For the last few years we have pumped our landscaping water directly out of a county ditch; a 1 1/2 HP suction pump was used that provided 45-50 pounds of pressure; it continuously fed a yard hydrant that is 75 ft from the ditch, via 1-inch poly pipe. I hooked up two hoses to the yard hydrant and distributed water over the lawn, always with more than sufficient pressure to run the two hoses (each over 100 feet). The system worked very well.

This year, however, the County abandoned the ditch, placing instead an 8-inch, gravity-fed, lateral pipe on our property's western border, which runs parallel to the abandoned ditch--55 feet away. The homeowner is required to find a way to connect the new lateral pipe to the landscaping system.

Homeowners along the ditch were told that they could expect approximately 40-50 pounds in the new gravity-fed system; in fact, some properties further down the line are getting good pressure. My block, however, is getting 27 pounds. According to the County Ditch District: that is all the pressure they can generate--gravity and physics prevail.

We need direction. Our current hookup: To the riser's 2-inch PVC valve, we installed 55 feet of 1 1/4-inch poly pipe, which is then reduced to 1-inch to connect to the existing 75 feet of 1-inch underground poly pipe. There are no leaks or blockages in the system. Once in a while [not always], if I shut off the system for a while, then turn it back on, we will receive a brief, initial burst of water that covers some lawn (about 1/2 of what we used to get). This is short-lived, however, and soon a tiny stream of water shoots out of the hoses, never improving. I've tried using one hose directly connected to the new hydrant's faucet, but there is no change.

The Ditch District states that all landscaping systems must be sealed: no storage ponds or reservoirs. A few people have mentioned "inline" pumps to us, but no one seems to know very much about them. Any suggestions? Any comments would be appreciated.