gravity feed drip irrigation

14 years ago

We have a family garden project for next year and I would like opinions if this would work. The garden is in sw michigan and the soil is sandy loam,(my best guess) I will have it tested later but there are a lot of fruit and veg farms in the area. The question is irrigation, I would like to water the garden with gravity fed water . I have a large supply of 55 gal plastic drum, and was thinking of stacking one drum ontop of another, connecting them though the bung holes and drawing water from a faucet cut into the drum near the bottom. As this is a weekend project, could I use battery timers to water during the week and replenish the drums at the week end from the pond.I could set a double drum at the end of each bed.

sorry for long winded message

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Comments (4)

lehua49
14 years ago
I think your idea has merit but needs some more detail for clarity. Lets do some math. Do you know what pressure and flow rate you get from your faucet. Time filling a five gallon bucket or one of your 55-gallon drums and let me know what you get. Buy a pressure gauge from the hardware store($15)with a hose bib connection and put it on your faucet to measure the pressure and let me know what your reading is. I think we can go step by step here if you want and I can help you design your system. Aloha
docsarvis
14 years ago
Earl - I think we're like-minded individuals. I was thinking of using a cistern, say 200 gallons, and using a timer and drip irrigation to water new trees on a property I can only get to every 2-3 weeks. I'm eager to hear what Mr. Aloha has to say to you. I think we're on the right track though.

Doc
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lehua49
14 years ago
Hi Doc,

Do you want to share some details of what you want to do? Beside the flow and pressure you can provide, how many trees what type, and what trunk size or age are the trees? Are you considering pumping from your cistern? I assume the cistern is underground but what is the interval that the cistern could be filled? 200 gal capacity is a 3'x3'x3' cube, is that correct? Aloha, Mr. Aloha
docsarvis
14 years ago
Mr. Aloha,

Why yes, I will provide more substance. My water well provides 8 gpm, my well pump is 1/2 hp. I want to use a generator to pump the water into the cistern. This will be above ground and be a 200 gallon capacity. The cistern is at the top of our property and I'd like to have 2-4 different drip zones coming off of it.

My raw land is in the Rocky Mountains in the subalpine zone. I'm going to plant a line of 10 northwest poplar 9 yards apart and 5 yards away an adjacent line of 15 golden willow 3 yards apart. I'm planting clusters of blue spruce and douglas fir. I will plant groves of saskatoon bushes, wild roses and pin cherries.

Each grouping or line will require a different amount of water. I'd like to have a timer system with 2-4 lines.

My questions include what would the pressure be coming out of a cistern with a 200 gallon capacity? Is it logical to assume 200 gallons would be large enough to water a line of 10 poplar, 15 willows in one zone, etc assuming a daily watering of 1 hour? Can I add other zones? Thanks for your insight.

Doc