Hello dear forum,
We spoke with the plumbing company about planning an irrigation system for our garden and asked what preparations might be needed. Unfortunately, they are not very familiar with this (understandable, as they are not landscape gardeners). However, they assume that no special planning is required and that the irrigation can later be connected with a T-piece to the regular outdoor water tap (along with a garden water meter). When I asked whether the pressure would be sufficient, they suggested not reducing or reducing less the pressure for this tap... (at least that’s how I understood it).
These statements seem a bit vague to me, so I’d like to ask you: how did you handle this, and can you confirm their advice?
Best regards!
We spoke with the plumbing company about planning an irrigation system for our garden and asked what preparations might be needed. Unfortunately, they are not very familiar with this (understandable, as they are not landscape gardeners). However, they assume that no special planning is required and that the irrigation can later be connected with a T-piece to the regular outdoor water tap (along with a garden water meter). When I asked whether the pressure would be sufficient, they suggested not reducing or reducing less the pressure for this tap... (at least that’s how I understood it).
These statements seem a bit vague to me, so I’d like to ask you: how did you handle this, and can you confirm their advice?
Best regards!
@Katdreas
That's exactly what I thought. A controller like the one in the picture can only manage one zone. The larger one can handle at most two zones. So you won't be able to automate your garden irrigation with that.
It’s better to use a distribution box, a control cable (not power), and a proper irrigation controller.
At the location where you want to install the controller, you will need power, Wi-Fi, and the control cable.
That's exactly what I thought. A controller like the one in the picture can only manage one zone. The larger one can handle at most two zones. So you won't be able to automate your garden irrigation with that.
It’s better to use a distribution box, a control cable (not power), and a proper irrigation controller.
At the location where you want to install the controller, you will need power, Wi-Fi, and the control cable.
Many people underestimate how much water is actually needed.
During hot periods, lawns can require as much as 25-30 liters per m2 (2.7-3.1 gallons per ft2) per week.
If we exclude possible hedges, flower beds, and trees, a conservative estimate leaves about 200 m2 (2,153 ft2) of lawn area out of 300 m2 (3,229 ft2).
Just for this lawn area alone, around 6,000 liters (1,585 gallons) of water are needed per week... Hedges, trees, and flower beds require additional amounts.
During the establishment phase, the water demand is even higher.
During hot periods, lawns can require as much as 25-30 liters per m2 (2.7-3.1 gallons per ft2) per week.
If we exclude possible hedges, flower beds, and trees, a conservative estimate leaves about 200 m2 (2,153 ft2) of lawn area out of 300 m2 (3,229 ft2).
Just for this lawn area alone, around 6,000 liters (1,585 gallons) of water are needed per week... Hedges, trees, and flower beds require additional amounts.
During the establishment phase, the water demand is even higher.
Of course, you could connect a distribution/valve box directly to the water tap.
I have seen that Gardena also offers a distributor for 6 zones including control. If you want something very simple, it’s worth considering. It’s also very affordable (Gardena automatic water distributor).
For a valve box plus controller, as I mentioned before, I would recommend Hunter Hydrawise.
Free@Home is not my area. I find it too limited and closed. Instead, I continue to rely on KNX.
There might also be controllers compatible with free@Home (Hydrawise is not).
In theory, you can also control the channels directly via free@Home: set up timers, create visualizations... but that requires know-how and time.
I have seen that Gardena also offers a distributor for 6 zones including control. If you want something very simple, it’s worth considering. It’s also very affordable (Gardena automatic water distributor).
For a valve box plus controller, as I mentioned before, I would recommend Hunter Hydrawise.
Free@Home is not my area. I find it too limited and closed. Instead, I continue to rely on KNX.
There might also be controllers compatible with free@Home (Hydrawise is not).
In theory, you can also control the channels directly via free@Home: set up timers, create visualizations... but that requires know-how and time.
G
Grantlhaua2 Sep 2019 13:32@Katdreas If you have Free@Home, in my opinion you don’t need a computer, provided your actuators have enough capacity. Just connect all the valves to an actuator, and you can set up and control them via Free@Home.
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