ISO Drip Irrigation System pictures

I’m just starting my journey, I got a list from @Dbox that he bought for up to 3-400 trees. It was costly initially like $500-600 total, majority will be usable over several years. I have my hydrant Y split and leave it on, then one line to the high tunnel and have a 4-way splitter in there, one line dedicated to an automated 4-way timer. B-hyve timer I got off amazon and I can program it Bluetooth with my phone very easily and is user friendly. I purchased an inline filter from amazon as well installed between the 4-way splitter and the timer.

At the timer I have a pressure reducer to 25 psi, well water is sitting 55-70 psi roughly as it cycles the pump. Connect an adapter to the psi reducer and run a 1/2” line where you want the trees, mine are zip tied to steel stakes in the ground to make them sturdy. Then an end cap at the end of the run, so far all of this has been assembled with zero tools and only zip ties. Once the run is placed and the trees are set, the first tool comes in which is a puncture and installer handle that makes a hole in your main line. Install nipple to the main line and connect 1/8” feeder line to the tree, there is a T stake installed into the tree. Connect the drip line also to the T stake and now your done. Size up the drip line to the size you need roughly 1 hole per 2-3 gallons of soil and mine is 1 hole every 6 inches with a .52 gph rate. Connect all your trees and done, maybe 50 trees per run is where I will top it and have 3-4 runs of just trees staggered in watering times.
 

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Figgin' A said:
100%... I have no idea what they do to them... A couple of years back, I bought one good looking heirloom tomato at Loblaws. It looked very good. Reminded me of Black Krim or Cherokee Purple. I was very curious to try it... paid $5 for one tomato. It was so bad that I threw it out. I think if I intentionally tried to grow a bad tomato it would have tasted better.
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Right!?! I paid $4 for an “heirloom” tomato last week. I can’t use the word to what it tasted like!
 
Bofig said:
I’m just starting my journey, I got a list from @Dbox that he bought for up to 3-400 trees. It was costly initially like $500-600 total, majority will be usable over several years. I have my hydrant Y split and leave it on, then one line to the high tunnel and have a 4-way splitter in there, one line dedicated to an automated 4-way timer. B-hyve timer I got off amazon and I can program it Bluetooth with my phone very easily and is user friendly. I purchased an inline filter from amazon as well installed between the 4-way splitter and the timer.

At the timer I have a pressure reducer to 25 psi, well water is sitting 55-70 psi roughly as it cycles the pump. Connect an adapter to the psi reducer and run a 1/2” line where you want the trees, mine are zip tied to steel stakes in the ground to make them sturdy. Then an end cap at the end of the run, so far all of this has been assembled with zero tools and only zip ties. Once the run is placed and the trees are set, the first tool comes in which is a puncture and installer handle that makes a hole in your main line. Install nipple to the main line and connect 1/8” feeder line to the tree, there is a T stake installed into the tree. Connect the drip line also to the T stake and now your done. Size up the drip line to the size you need roughly 1 hole per 2-3 gallons of soil and mine is 1 hole every 6 inches with a .52 gph rate. Connect all your trees and done, maybe 50 trees per run is where I will top it and have 3-4 runs of just trees staggered in watering times.
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That’s a nice setup. The initial cost is certainly there but most of that for me was in the timer. I still have the same one that I started with maybe 7-8 years ago.

I still have all my original main lines and find I just need to replace the odd emitter.

I do find good sprayers difficult to come by. They tend to fail or have erratic patterns.

My water pressure is about 50-60 psi and I bring it down to 20.
 
One thing to consider is if and where you might need to cross a walkway. Initial set up is a good time to bury a main line or consider how you’re going to work around it so you don’t end up with a tripping hazard later on.
 
TorontoJoe said:
One thing to consider is if and where you might need to cross a walkway. Initial set up is a good time to bury a main line or consider how you’re going to work around it so you don’t end up with a tripping hazard later on.
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I haven’t thought mine through yet but was thinking some dollar store rugs initially or cover in wood chips
 
I have a 4-zone irrigation system to water around 175 trees plus garlic. I’m only using 3-zones right now. This is an old diagram from 2024. This diagram doesn’t show the fig nursery/garlic, and I never did the last far right row of green pots because it was too shady. All pots are now 8-gallons.
Image 7-8-24 at 5.24 PM.jpeg

I started with 1/2” supply lines, but outgrew the system (ie, the water wouldn’t make it to the end of the zone when I added more trees so I had to split into 2 smaller zones). The patch is split into 2 zones front to back (where the dotted line is between the blue and orange pots). To save money, I only upsized the 1/2” line from the supply to where it started down the rows to 3/4”. Once on the rows, it is 1/2” tubing with 1/4” tubing connected to 3-gph drip rings. I use a trellis system to support my irrigation lines. I keep the irrigation tubes outside all winter but take in the timer.
IMG_7939.jpeg
I keep my collection as consistent as possible in terms of pot size (mostly 8-gallon) and soil mix. For the handful of 15-gallon pots, I simply use 2-drip rings in that pot. I use adjustable drippers for the 3-gallon fig nursery and garlic.

I started with a Melnor Bluetooth timer, but it died this year after 3 seasons. (The Bluetooth stopped working even after we changed batteries, updated app, etc). We were never happy with the app that you use to connect to program the schedule. We replaced it with the Orbit b-hyve 4-port times with Bluetooth and we added on the WiFi hub. The app seems much easier to use.
IMG_7938.jpeg
In the future, I would like to mount everything on a board and hang it on the wall above the faucet. There’s not enough room between the faucet and the floor to fit everything, and the connections seem convoluted as we tried to make it work. We’re behind on everything this season because of the weird weather… someday…
 
9ah-figlet said:
I have a 4-zone irrigation system to water around 175 trees plus garlic. I’m only using 3-zones right now. This is an old diagram from 2024. This diagram doesn’t show the fig nursery/garlic, and I never did the last far right row of green pots because it was too shady. All pots are now 8-gallons.
View attachment 23112

I started with 1/2” supply lines, but outgrew the system (ie, the water wouldn’t make it to the end of the zone when I added more trees so I had to split into 2 smaller zones). The patch is split into 2 zones front to back (where the dotted line is between the blue and orange pots). To save money, I only upsized the 1/2” line from the supply to where it started down the rows to 3/4”. Once on the rows, it is 1/2” tubing with 1/4” tubing connected to 3-gph drip rings. I use a trellis system to support my irrigation lines. I keep the irrigation tubes outside all winter but take in the timer.
View attachment 23110
I keep my collection as consistent as possible in terms of pot size (mostly 8-gallon) and soil mix. For the handful of 15-gallon pots, I simply use 2-drip rings in that pot. I use adjustable drippers for the 3-gallon fig nursery and garlic.

I started with a Melnor Bluetooth timer, but it died this year after 3 seasons. (The Bluetooth stopped working even after we changed batteries, updated app, etc). We were never happy with the app that you use to connect to program the schedule. We replaced it with the Orbit b-hyve 4-port times with Bluetooth and we added on the WiFi hub. The app seems much easier to use.
View attachment 23109
In the future, I would like to mount everything on a board and hang it on the wall above the faucet. There’s not enough room between the faucet and the floor to fit everything, and the connections seem convoluted as we tried to make it work. We’re behind on everything this season because of the weird weather… someday…
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That looks very much like what I got. I sent an not-to-scale hand drawn sketch and they send me a proper diagram with a detailed parts list. I'm Finally mounting everything to a board this season. Hopefully this weekend. Until now I've been tossing a piece of tarp over the timer and attached fitting so it's not sitting in the direct sun all the time.

I never thought of Melnor as a top-shelf brand but I've had my 4-zone unit since 2018 and it hasn't missed a beat. I couldn't be happier with it. I just put in a fresh pair of AA batteries every spring and it does its job
 
It's so weird I hadn't seen this thread I actually pushed the button and ordered my drip depot stuff today! I went ahead and got the fertilizer reservoir too and extra drip tape. Planning on making rings for all my pots!!! I kept putting it off but my husband helped me water last weekend. I guess he didn't want to help anymore. After work he had everything in the cart and brought me in to push the button 😁
 
betdempster said:
It's so weird I hadn't seen this thread I actually pushed the button and ordered my drip depot stuff today! I went ahead and got the fertilizer reservoir too and extra drip tape. Planning on making rings for all my pots!!! I kept putting it off but my husband helped me water last weekend. I guess he didn't want to help anymore. After work he had everything in the cart and brought me in to push the button 😁
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I literally get excited when I see others take the plunge because I know first hand how liberating it is. For sure, it's a pain on the initial setup... But, once you get the hang of it... nothing but smooth sailing and more time to enjoy your garden.

I forgot one piece of advice that EVERYONE should really take. Whenever you order anything, buy extra Goof Plugs.... Lots and lots of goof plugs! You'll need them to plug all the holes in the mainline from mistakes or when you need to move something.

I also put the plugs on short pieces of 6mm drip line to plug off emitters that aren't being used. Easier and cheaper than 6mm valves...... which you should also keep many extras of....
 
Oh! Another thing I learned from trial and error. If you get a big roll of black mainline. The stuff can be a pain to work with.

It can be very difficult to uncoil and lay flat. If you can lay it out in the sun so it warms up a bit. This will make it a lot easier to straighten out

HOWEVER

Once it's in place, if it's warm from the sun... .it's nearly impossible to punch a hole in it to insert a barbed fitting. You need to cover it from the sun so it cools down a bit and it's firmer. This makes it way easier to punch the hole.
 
Valves are your friend. Install them whenever possible even on the same zone. For instance. My garlic raised beds are on the same mainline as my tomatoes. I need to stop watering garlic long before the tomatoes to let them dry up before harvest. Put a valve in place and this will allow you to keep watering your pomodori even after cutting off your garlic or onion
 
You mean the poop off valves? I may have to go back and get more ... But I actually ordered 100 good plugs. I know me and besides the mistakes I will have to plug i also will lose some from dropping them. They look pretty little
 
betdempster said:
You mean the poop off valves? I may have to go back and get more ... But I actually ordered 100 good plugs. I know me and besides the mistakes I will have to plug i also will lose some from dropping them. They look pretty little
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These are the type of valves I use the most


and


You will definitely loose some. Best to keep extras. Something like a fishing tackle box is great for storing the small parts and keeping them handy when out in the garden.
 
betdempster said:
Oh even for the quarter inch line. Ok definitely will get some of those and more of the big ones. And a box
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I find the little ones very useful. Although the ones I pictured are a bit problematic. They employ a screw shutoff. See if you can get the ball valve type... like these... they're directional

www.dripworks.com

1/4" Micro-Flow Valve - Barbed

Water your plants smarter and more efficiently with the 1/4-Inch Micro-Flow Barbed Valve available online with quick shipping from DripWorks.
www.dripworks.com www.dripworks.com
 
I’ve been looking at the ultimate kit that’s for 100 trees or more on Drip Depot. Now I’m sketching out zones to determine how to efficiently install the system.
 
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