Your Guide to Installing Drip Irrigation System

Drip irrigation is an efficient irrigation method that can help your garden plants nourish by means of offering water drips at the root levels. This precise amount of water drops helps in preserving the level of moisture in the soil which becomes conducive for the growth of the plants. It is easy to use drip irrigation system and very simple to install as well. Get to know about some basic installation tips and do it yourself.

Drip irrigation is made up of numerous components like tubing, valves, emitters, timers, pressure regulator, backflow preventer, filter etc. These irrigation supplies or tools can be purchased from garden supply stores.

Installation Tips:

After you get hold of required irrigation components, plan out your system design according to your garden requirement. Here are some of the tips that will help you install your own system easily:

1. Preparing Your Supply Line

You can lay out the pipe between your garden plants. You can run a single line all over the landscape. For making your irrigation task easier, you can also make the supply line short by installing a tee to split it.

2. Installing the Emitters

Proper placement of the emitters is important. You can place them at the base of the plant because all the roots of newly planted trees are in the root ball. And for the established old plants, you can set the emitters all through the root zone of the plants so that water can run to and beyond your drip-line.

It is good to use a punch and make a hole to push the emitter into the supply line. Use feeder lines to place emitters at the base of the plants. If you wish, you can insert the connection barb into the hole and then attach the feeder line to the barb.

3. Flushing Your System

During installation, soil and debris get into the line that may cause for clogging up your emitters. And that is why; it is good to flush your system before committing to your irrigation task. You can do it just by leaving the ends of the tubing open and letting water run off for several minutes.

4. Closing the Supply Line

You can close your supply line by bending over the end and crimping the pipe. You can also use duct tape to tape the end in place.

5. Adjusting Your Emitters

You need to run your system in order to check whether your emitters are working or flowing properly at the base of your plants. You can adjust the flow of your emitters if you’ve set mini-prays. It is essential to check the emitters or feeder tube for the reason that they can blow out if they are not perfectly snapped into place.

6. Burry Your Supply Line

Burying the supply line is an easy task. Cover your tubing with the help of mulch with a view to hide it from the sight. Suppose your line stretches across the turf, then it is good to use a spade to open up a wedge so that you’ll get the line go below the surface.

7. System Maintenance

In order to get the maximum out put from your drip irrigation system installed by you, you need to maintain it regularly. It is better to check your system once in a month to find out leaks and plugged emitters. Also you should check the filter and clean it for better results.

These are some of the basic tips to consider for installing a drip irrigation system. It’s not only easy to install but also cost-effective that helps uphold the moisture level, generates conducive atmosphere for the growth of plants and more importantly saves water! Now, you have to decide which one will be useful for your irrigation task – sprinkler system or drip irrigation?