Drip irrigation: correct installation and long-term operation

Recommendation points

• Correct selection of capillary tubes
• Which trunk pipes are better to use
• Drip irrigation fittings
• The main subtleties of installation
• Seasonal work and winter storage

Drip irrigation systems save a lot of effort, but without proper technical preparation, installing them on your own becomes a waste of time and money. Knowing the basic rules of the device and technical features, you will be able to mount a convenient and durable irrigation system.

Drip irrigation can be fully used only on level or carefully planned terrain. The drip tube should not have a height difference of more than 0.6–1 m, but the main pipes are allowed to be laid at almost any slope. Therefore, the irrigated area should be a relatively uniform slope, on which drip pipes are laid along its strike..

Correct selection of capillary tubes

There are two types of capillary tubes, the use of certain materials is determined by the specifics of the plants and the conditions of their planting..

The most versatile and budgetary option is drip tapes. They have built-in drippers located along the entire length with a certain pitch (10-40 cm). The belts have a limited laying length (250–450 m) and a maximum height difference (less than 2%). Since the built-in drippers are not compensated, the water consumption in different areas may differ slightly. Dropper capacity ranges from 0.6 to 4 l / h and depends on inlet pressure.

There are three types of tape droppers. Labyrinth ones are morally outdated and give way to slot and emitter ones. The latter are a little more expensive, but less demanding on the filtration of irrigation water. The tapes also differ in wall thickness. In greenhouses and greenhouses, the thinnest are used, the more durable ones are used on open rocky ground, where there is a significant risk of damage.

The most specific in application are capillary tubes of various thicknesses, which are equipped with compensated droppers. Regardless of the pressure, they pass a strictly metered amount of water, which does not depend on the length of the line and the height difference. Some droppers are adjustable.

The advantage of tubes is that they are easy to turn and bend if the plants are not in line. For this reason, pipes are often used in multi-tiered greenhouses and nurseries, in vineyards and melons. It is easier and cheaper to roll out ribbons, but you need to control the planting process, maintain the same distance between seedlings and the linearity of the garden.

Which trunk pipes are better to use

The main pipes of the system are divided into supply and distribution, their main task is to deliver water to the irrigation fields in the required amount.

Pipes of distributing nodes can be specialized for drip irrigation, or general purpose. There are no special differences in them, both types are made of light-stabilized polyethylene, they serve for several decades. Special pipes are designed for use by inexperienced users and this is expressed in the simplicity of fitting connections that do not require tools and additional sealing.

Standard HDPE pipes are less flexible, some connections will need to be made threaded, but this option is much cheaper (20-40 rubles per meter).

It is strongly not recommended to use irrigation hoses, metal-plastic pipes and other products that are not suitable for such systems on distribution units..

Drip irrigation fittings

In drip irrigation, fittings and fittings are used for both general and special purposes. Among them:

1. Minicranes used as shut-off valves for individual capillary lines. The valve is inserted into the opening of the main pipe and tightened with a nut, pipes or tapes of different types can be connected to the opposite end.
2. Connecting fittings are used to extend and branch tapes and tubes.
3. Proprietary filters are designed for special pipes and hoses. In the case of standard HDPE pipes, conventional water supply filters are used: mesh or cartridge.
4. Injectors are used for automatic application of fertilizers-fertigators.

A separate type of fittings is irrigation automation devices. The simplest and most common are flow controllers that operate on a built-in timer. Different models have from one to four outgoing lines, for each of which you can set an individual operating mode.

In order for the pressure in different parts of the system to correspond as much as possible to the characteristics of the tapes and droppers used, water supply reducers are used. They do not allow the pressure to rise above the set value, which is indispensable when connecting drip irrigation directly to the water supply.

In areas with a steep slope, after closing the water supply, air is often sucked from the droppers from the upper level when the water flows down to the lower one. In this case, the droppers are clogged with particles of liquid dirt and quickly fail. If tapes or tubes are laid along the surface of the ground, air valves installed at the beginning of the supply line will help to avoid this phenomenon..

The main subtleties of installation

Installation of a drip irrigation system begins with distributing nodes, placing pipes parallel to the beds. A mesh water filter should be installed at the inlet of each unit, and on inclined plantations also a pressure reducer.

Further, from the distributing nodes to the point of water intake, a main pipe is laid. The distribution pipes are optimally connected to the mains with a flexible hose through a tee. If tapes less than 16 mm are used, which are not equipped with mini-cranes, a ball valve should also be installed at the inlet of the distributing unit.

Water intake can be carried out either directly from the water supply system, or from a storage tank. The latter is traditionally installed at the highest point of the site, the pressure in the irrigation system depends on the height of the tank: on average, about 0.1 atmospheres per meter. It is recommended to use containers for both pressure stabilization and for easier application of fertigators. The filtration and fertilization unit is usually installed at the very beginning of the supply line near the water intake point.

There are three mounting options for drip tape and tubing:

1. Garter to the beds.
2. Laying on the ground.
3. Under cover.

In the latter cases, the tapes and tubes are placed with droppers upwards to avoid clogging. To slow down the evaporation of moisture from the ground, lay mulch on top of the tape in a layer of 7-10 cm.

Seasonal work and winter storage

The laying of the irrigation system begins at a steady positive temperature immediately after the spring tillage. The cultures are planted after installation so that the seedlings are located exactly under the droppers. During the summer, maintenance of the drip system is reduced to cleaning filters and minor repairs of damaged pipes and tapes.

At the end of the season, the water is drained from the system and left to dry for 4–5 days. Drip lines are disconnected and transferred to storage. As practice shows, almost all drip tubes and tapes tolerate low temperatures normally, they are more damaged by numerous bends when reeling into coils. Therefore, stretched storage is recommended, you can simply tie the tapes to the fence.