Trying to find a video on PVC irrigation

11 years ago

About a year ago, maybe more, someone posted a link to a really great video of how to make a PVC irrigation system. The link in my favorites that I saved now says it is a private video.

The video featured a master gardener and in it he taught what size of hole to drill for the drip line and how many holes were recommended for several types of vegetables. He gave tips on how to hold the pipe so that the holes were all aligned properly and gave details of how to make zones with inexpensive shut-off valves.

I don't know if it was posted here or in the gardening forum.

I've searched You Tube for a similarly informative video to no avail.

If anyone knows about this I'd like some information. Maybe I can contact the owner and get permission or find it posted elsewhere.

Here is a link that might be useful: PVC Drip Irrigation

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Comments (8)

Raw_Nature
11 years ago
YouTube has several very informative videos on PVC irrigation... You can't find any? Type in, yep you guessed it "PVC irrigation" thenvideos should hit you in your eye! Let me know if you still can't find any, I'll be more specific...

Joe
milehighgirl
Original Author
11 years ago
I believe I may have found the author. I sent an email. In the meantime I found that most of the information is also posted in a .pdf file.

Here is a link that might be useful: Designing a Basic PVC Home Garden Drip Irrigation System
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larry_gene
11 years ago
Didn't see this in the pdf:

Keep in mind that the water source is best applied to a central point in the main line, especially if there are many lateral drip lines in the system.

Each lateral drip line should have about equal pipe volume (diameter x length), or else you will find some lines barely dripping while others make small geysers.

If your system has a control valve for each lateral, then the above items are far less serious.
Raw_Nature
11 years ago
I was interested in making a PVC drip system... But I soon realized that it is far more expensive than buying the trusty premaid drip tape... Why don't you save yourself some money, time and frustration and buy something you knows going to work? I thought inwould save big bucks making it myself as well, but ends up your better off buying it.. just a thought

Joe
milehighgirl
Original Author
11 years ago
Raw_Nature,

I tried them last year but found I could not put more than one hose because they would not leak if there was too much length. The only way it would work is if I cut them shorter and attached them to a main lateral individually. Even though I have good water pressure here they wouldn't drip enough to actually water, and they watered the whole length which I didn't need. They may be okay for an actual row of vegetables but not trees.

I had a very old one of these soaker hoses and it worked far better than the new ones I purchased from Home Depot. I think they were even the same brand but the quality was not there. The fittings came off on a few of them, and I returned them.
steve333_gw
11 years ago
MileHigh, I assume you were having troubles with the weep everywhere hose; if so you might want to check out the preformed "soaker hose" which the drip irrigation places sell. This is different than the hoses of the same name at the big box stores which weep over their entire surface. They are solid PE hose with an emitter installed at regular intervals (1' up to 3'). The emitters are pressure compensating, so you can vary the elevation of the hose and still get even coverage. I have found that this type of drip and the T-tape type works much better than the big box weeps everywhere stuff. (you will need a filter and pressure regulator with these emitter hoses)

Regardless of what type of emitters/hose, you will need to calculate the flow and pressure of the hose or other water source feeding the system. You need to be sure you can feed the system with the flow it needs at the pressure it requires. Simple math if you are using the drip emitters but for the weep everywhere hoses you probably need a pressure gauge in the system that you can read to figure out how much length your source can support.
Raw_Nature
11 years ago
Milehighgirl:

"i used one of them last year" what did you use, soaker drip, what brand,where from, be specific. If you were having trouble with drip tape, you are going to have problems with PVC... I think you are supposed to always have laterals coming off the main line with valves to solve th problem you had.. As Steve said, you have to plan it out before hand... I an ready to buy drip tape any day now, I hope you guys would tell me about any concerns/ problems you guys had with it before a waste hundreds of dollars. Hope this helps

Thanks,
Joe
milehighgirl
Original Author
11 years ago
Well he got back to me and he gave me these links. Thank you all for your input!

4 page fact sheet:
Designing a Basic PVC Home Garden Drip Irrigation System
http://extension.usu.edu/htm/publications/file=14535

28 minute broadcast:
Local Channel 10 Home and Garden Show: PVC Drip Irrigation
http://www.local10.tv/player/player/vod/flv/garden-pvcdrip/flv

PowerPoint presentation/script:
Juab County PVC Drip Irrigation System
http://extension.usu.edu/juab/htm/horticulture

This post was edited by milehighgirl on Thu, Mar 14, 13 at 1:45