Watering systems

This coming season I won't have time to water my plants daily.  I live in Southwest Indidan butted up against KY next to Evansville, IN.  

I've been thinking of using a standard rainbow sprinkler in the morning on a timer and then again at about 6 pm each day for 30 minutes daily. 

Eventually, when I've the funds put in a drip system on a timer. 

If you all have idea's can you post pictures of them and describe your watering systems.

Thank you in advance, 

Stephen Rager

I though about doing this as well.  My boxes will be 4x4s and in a row.  Anyone want to way in on the cost benefits of drip over sprinkler. 

Pro
The rainbow sprinkler will be cheaper on equipment upfront.

Con
wetting the whole plants daily may lead to mold/mildew problems?

Drip system
pro - targeted water to the roots.

Con - cost for parts and replacement parts may add up for those of use on a budget.  A little more complex to setup initially.

http://www.dripworks.com/category/drip-irrigation-kits
This site was posted on another thread by an active user. 

Thank you,

Stephen 

Steve, you only water the plants you want watering with the drip system ,the rainbow sprinkler waters the world as well as weeds so not only are you wasting water it's going to eventually cost you an arm and a leg for the water bill as well. 
 I guess that my drip systems are around qty 45 adjustable micro spray heads set to a drip every two to three seconds using about a litre each for  10 min of watering every morning and the same in the evening so 90 litres a day against a rainbow on my water pressure that will run out about 22 litres a minute  a ( for this calculation I've said 1 litre is about 2 pints )

The Israelis have done a massive amount of R&D for watering because of the scarcity of water over there .  They use miles and miles of adjustable drip head lines ,one line for each row , one dripper per plant and have become world famous for " making the desert bloom ".
They seem to have done rather well with it as they export their crops all over the world .

Stephen - I have experience with soaker hoses ONLY.  Yes, they cost up front and with age they tend to split - pouring all that line's water in one spot. They are repairable tho.
Mulched well, the water doesn't go all over the plot.

Drip systems might be the answer - they can direct water exactly where you want it, but again expensive to set up.

Sprinklers (to me) seem the most wasteful because they throw water all over and the water hits leaves - a big no-no if you have diseases.

We've currently got soaker hoses.  Would love to get drip system set up and put it on a timer.  Then I wouldn't have to worry about getting out there at a certain time.  You can also set up different sections to run at different times.

I agree about the leaves.  And the other thing about rainbow sprinklers is local laws about watering times.  If you have "water police,"...

I've spent the past 2 hrs checking out drip systems and discovered that there are 2 basic types:
a) 1/4 tubing that YOU poke the holes and place the emitters where YOU want them, cheaper than b) (Drip Depot, HD, etc)
b) 1/4" tubing that already have the emitters spaced at either 6" or 12" (Drip Works is the only one that I found quickly checking)

I see both types being valuable in my beds (raised and table tops); but as I still have decent soaker hoses -- I think this season I'll use a variety of the 3 and spring for what I like best for the 2016 season.

Mine uses reinforced UV resistant hose 1/2" bore hose pipe from teh water tap toa branch off point and then into  two 1/2 " black polythene branches that run a maximum of 12 x 1/4 " take offs .
These 36 inch long umbilicals are 1/4 " prick in types 's that have adjustable drips or spray heads which are screwed into the 1/4" umbilical pipes and set up on stalks that I can move around each bed that they are close to as needed .

Judy McConnell wrote:I've spent the past 2 hrs checking out drip systems and discovered that there are 2 basic types:
a) 1/4 tubing that YOU poke the holes and place the emitters where YOU want them, cheaper than b) (Drip Depot, HD, etc)
b) 1/4" tubing that already have the emitters spaced at either 6" or 12" (Drip Works is the only one that I found quickly checking)

I see both types being valuable in my beds (raised and table tops); but as I still have decent soaker hoses -- I think this season I'll use a variety of the 3 and spring for what I like best for the 2016 season.

We put in the drip works drip tape in our beds last spring. We tried hand watering(not nearly enough during the summer in AZ) Then we tried a dripper system... Worked ok, but really hard to do if you want to plant radishes or a bunch of lettuce and spinach.. After putting in the drip tape last year we had the best summer yet! I even had tomatoes and peppers last through the summer even if they weren't under shade cloth. That is huge here!

What is drip tape and could you share a pic of your set up?

Thank you,

Stephen

I can't find a pic of the boxes with just the drip tape, but you're in luck. I am going this afternoon to help my aunt get hers set up with it and I'll be sure to take a picture of one of her boxes.

Dripworks 1/4" line with emitters every six inches is the way I go here in Las Vegas.

Works a treat for everything, even radishes.

brainchasm wrote:Dripworks 1/4" line with emitters every six inches is the way I go here in Las Vegas.  
Works a treat for everything, even radishes.

Love mine in Fresno.  Our weather is similar, though you get above 110*F for a few days, I think.

We just helped my aunt get her set up all ready for spring with the new drip tape system.
    

That was very nice of you. She's got quite a nice sized garden there.

NICE, Duhh!

She sure does! Took 16 wheel barrel fulls of compost to top her beds off this year. She mainly only plants tomatoes and some peppers. This place will look like a jungle in 2 months!

Duhh
Nice work, and you gave me a great idea for topping off my 1 bed barrier using the cattle panel as an arch.

Duhh, post a photo of the jungle this summer! Thanks

DUH, could you lay out what type of drip tape you use for raised beds and any pros/cons you have found and anything else about using them in raised beds?  Please.

I spent way too much on 1/4" tubing and never got it to work well.  I am not usually clumsy but I had a horrible time with those brittle tiny elbows and Ts etc.  So I went back to my rainbow sprinkler and a soaker hose in the greenhouse.  That at least is reliable.

I have seen the drip tape used commonly in market gardens around here, and that seems what the Dripworks catalog is aiming this to.  What intrigues me is what seem like easier to use and stouter fittings and a flexible tape.

Turan, If I need to work on the 1/4" tubing in the winter, I use a pan of boiled water to soften the end of the tube. Reheating as needed. In the summer, it's a lot easier, but I have to wear cotton gloves to grasp the fittings. My fingers get sore rather quickly.

Sanderson, I gave all my 1/4" stuff to a thrift store and am hoping it was a positive thing and not passing on a curse. 

I am curious about the pros and cons of drip tape for raised beds.  It looks like DUH spaced one per foot.  What is the emiter spacing used?  Is one per foot because it is for tomatoes and peppers?  If so what would the spacing be for carrots?  Ect.

Oh My, Turan - I hope that I don't have the same experience with the drip tape system that you did.  Just ordered both 1/2" and 1/4" tape because as you suspected, I wanted the 1/4" spaced ones for the closer togethers - carrots, beets, etc.

BUT - as Sanderson mentioned - she heated the fittings so they went together.  I had to do this with the soaker hose (even tho it was much larger diameter) to get it to fit with the fittings that I had (think it was 1/2").

I did the soaking in boiling soapy water thing.
I also never managed to get the watering at all even. And then when i thought it was going it would snap a fitting some where.  I might of had poor quality fittings.  I got them at Lowes.  I still get all irritated thinking about the fiddly stuff.....  

Soooo.....  I am curious especially about " Aqua-Traxx drip tape is ideal for row crops or raised beds."

Am sorry to read this about your experiences.  I guess that we'll see if I have any better luck buying from Drip Works.  Maybe this stuff is too good to be true??