Drip Watering

I am looking at purchasing drip watering for a large garden area(s). Mostly perennials but some vegetable beds. I live in Wisconsin and am wondering which brands you have had good results with, and which brands you have had poor results with?

I really like dripworks.

http://davesgarden.com/gwd/c/660/

I suggest doing mostly the 1/4 inch in-line drippers. They are slightly more expensive but a LOT less work than snaking a line to each plant. They will save you a lot of time. The reason for this is that you can snake it around and when a plant dies you can just plant another one or two in it's place instead of looking for the main line, putting a 1/4 tubing to it and then putting an emitter to it. And if you plant seeds - it's all ready done.

I use a mixture of sprayers, in-line emitter tubing, regular, tubing, shrubblers etc. If you use sprayers make sure you overlap their spray areas. If need be, you can pick up a part here and there at Home depot or Lowes. I also like the spin-loc attachments.

The initial investment is high because you need
pressure regulator
punch
filter
beginning end
1/2 inchTubing
1/4 inch tubing
emitters
sprayers
stakes for tubing
stakes for sprayers
end
and more (elbows, goof plugs etc)

The initial work is a lot but once it is done it is a easier.

Some people say that going to your home depot or Lowes is cheaper etc. And it can be - I've used both, but Dripworks is very good quality and I have been very happy with their stuff.

If you've never done it before it can be a little confusing but the people at dripworks are very helpful.
And people here can answer questions as well.
Mobi

My whole yard is on drip and it is permanent. But it doesn't freeze here, so what I say might not be relevant. I am also on a very steep slope which creates pressure problems. I have used drip for almost twenty years in a variety of situations. Because of the bad water and the steep slope I like to use the pressure compensating vortex emitters--the netafin ones. The vortex emitters are self cleaning and do not seem to clog like the ones with the flags. I like see them when I walk around to make sure they are all working instead of waiting for a plant to die before knowing that one is not working and how much water is coming out. This lets me know if the lines are too long or there are too many emitters on them. I think the fittings where the pipe goes inside the fitting work much better than the barbed fittings. I try to standardize on one size emitter. If a plant needs more water I add an emitter. I try to not use the spaghetti tubing unless I have too. It is forever getting moved out of position. My system has lots of valves to give great flexibility and keep the pressure constant because of the hillside. I generally do not snake the drip line but run it more like you would pipe. It is just easier to keep track of what plant is on what line. I put the plant name tags right next to the emitter for that plant. I use the bundled wire--7 wires, 6 for valves and one ground. It works well. I just run it on the ground next to the main water line. I usually put the valves in a 6 valve array and use the small 3/4" in-line valves. Any anti-siphoning that is needed I do in the beginning. I use separate pressure regulators and strainers for each valve, that way if there are any problems it only affects that particular valve. I like the Hunter Pro C model controller. It has controls for 12 valves that can be added in modular fashion. It is very easy to program and I have not had any problems. I centralize all the controllers in the garage so I can see what is going on. I generally water twice a week for a half hour, but that is totally dependent on soil type, weather, plants, but I mention that to give you an indication what it takes in this yard. I use the 2 gallon emitters because it has a wider pattern. The slower emitters send the water straight down and the surface roots cannot get at the water. Of course with the thin soil and steep slopes we have here it probably doesn't matter. I like the drip sprays and the spot-spitters and have used them in the past but not yet in this yard. I am getting ready to add 12 more valves and to automate most of the pots and change a lot of things around to better equalize the pressure. The garden is growing and that requires changes. As plants get older, you need to move the drips farther away from the trunks. In the beginning the drips need to be right on the plants, especially if you planting very small things like liners or from six packs. Even a few inches away will make the difference between making it and not making it.

Freezes aren't much of a problem as long as you have emitters at your lowest point and open the end of the line for winter. Some people use a air compressor to flush out the lines. If you mulch over the lines they last longer as well.

If you start with a small system for one area you can see how much work is involved, what you like to use, and if you want to do your entire garden. One reason I went with a drip system for my entire garden is because I often don't feel good enought to keep up with watering by hand. So I needed a system which was easy and convienient to use. Plus I live in an area where water is scarce. I started with one area and each year I add to it.


Mobi

The HOA requires the houses in this development to completely landscaped before you could move in. Fortunately their concept of complete landscaping (the minimum) and mine (the maximum) were compatible. I started out with four valves and probably 200 emitters. I now have 18 valves and 1500 emitters and am getting ready to add 12 valves and 500 more emitters and restructure the system. Drip is very flexible and easy to work with. Very low technology and developed for low rain-fall areas. I found a pair of large side-cutters work great for cutting the drip line. You can pull the old line out of the connectors with either the sidecutters or a pair of lineman's pliers. You just have to make sure you have left it long enough or it will stretch and be very hard to get out. Sometimes a pair of needlenosed pliers will help getting it started. The problem with the barbed fittings is that it doesn't take much pressure to blow the fittings out, whereas the ones you put the pipe into the fitting, the pressure works to make them tighter. The figure 8 ends work on the same principle and will not blow out. Just have to be sure you have enough tubing past the opening of the figure 8.

We've got miles of drip (plus a few miles to go!) and I'm both nodding and learning quite a bit here.

One note to add is that DH and I have found it helpful to photograph the PVC lines before covering them. Years later it helps remind us where the pipes are before we start a new project that might damage them.

I just run my drip lines on top of the ground, so I can see them. But I have a steep hillside and no equipment will ever go there even if I wanted to. The plants cover everything up in a few months so it is not that visible. The hardest part for me is keeping sufficient pressure so all the plants get about the same amount of water. I have rearranged things several times as I have added more emitters. When you start moving lines around it can take several go arounds before you get them equal again. There is nothing like turning the valves on and looking at the emitters to see what is working or not. I water during the day so I can see what is going on when I am outside. But it doesn't get very hot here, otw I would water early in the morning so the plants would have a chance to take up water and be ready to face the heat of the day. Be sure to use schedule 40 pvc pipe on any mainlines. The schedule 200 will break if you step on it. If you have really long runs you are better off running them in pvc because the friction will cause significant pressure loss. The same with running lines up steep hillsides, big pressure loss. The ends of the lines will not have enough pressure to put water through the pressure compensating emitters.

I ordered stuff from http://dripirrigation.com/index.php
and had no problems , good prices on stuff too.
check the clearance sales ....