Drip Irrigation Systems: Simple, Efficient, & Eco-friendly

In our opinion, adding a drip irrigation component to your rainwater harvesting system is one of the most worthwhile things you can do. One of our favorite aspects of a drip irrigation system is its simplicity. Moreover, we like to think of the drip irrigation system as a "robotic rain barrel." In today's post we'd like to demonstrate the following:

• Creating a drip irrigation system is simple
• A drip irrigation system is easy to use and will simplify your watering routine
• Drip irrigation is a very eco-friendly and efficient way to water

Creating a drip irrigation system:

To start your system, we recommend getting a drip irrigation kit, which can be found at home supply stores, and which usually includes 25 or 50 feet of black irrigation tubing, a variety of watering tips (also referred to as drip emitters or sprinkler tips), a small plastic tool to puncture your tubing and install your drip emitters, connectors (like tee fittings and 90-degree elbows), hole plugs, and a threaded connector that attaches to the valve on your rain barrel, much like the end of a garden hose. 

Above is a picture of the black irrigation tubing with a tee fitting that connects three separate ends of the tubing. The tee fitting allows you to create a larger system  by "branching out," your water flow, which makes it simple to to water multiple sites that may be spread out over some distance.

Pictured here is one of the watering tips that was included in the drip irrigation kit we purchased. If you look closely, you can see the drops of water from the gentle stream that is emitted from this particular tip.  As mentioned above, there are a variety of tips available, some producing very heavy streams of water and others whose output is much less.

To begin, simply unroll your tubing and lay it on top of the ground next to the plants, trees, etc. that you intend to water. This is a great way to start, as you can get your first look at how much tubing you will need, how many tips you will need and where to insert the tips in the tubing. You will also get a feel for where, if anywhere, you will need a tee fitting or an elbow to change the direction of your water flow. Be sure to place one end of your tubing at your rain barrel, since this is where your water flow will originate. 

Once you have decided on where you will need to water, and are happy with your layout of the tubing on the ground, all you need to do next is puncture your tubing at your plant sites with the tool provided in the kit. 

Then, insert the sprinkler tips from the kit into the holes you just created. 

TIP! Your kit is going to come with several different kinds of watering tips. We recommend trying all of the tips in the different holes. Some will inevitably work better with your system than others. Once you have placed the watering tips into the holes, connect one end of your irrigation tubing to the valve on your rainwater harvesting system. Then turn on/open the valve and let the water start flowing through the tubing and out of the tips, so you can see how each of the tips works. You may find you need to move the tips around, discontinue use of a particular tip, or purchase additional tips of one variety, depending on how much water the plants you are irrigating need and what type of output the tips you are experimenting with actually produce. Keep in mind that in many cases with harvested rainwater systems we are operating off gravity alone, and some of the watering tips are designed for use with pump-operated systems, so the output may be less than advertised.


Once you've used your drip irrigation system for a bit, you'll likely want to expand the system, especially (if you're like us) if you have a tendency to keep adding more and more plants and trees into your landscape. It's not unreasonable to have a drip irrigation system consisting of 100 feet or more of tubing connected to a single rain barrel. 


Let's talk aesthetics. Once you have your system working, you might decide you don't want to look at the tubing laying all around your yard. To this end, you can simply lay mulch or other cover over the tubing. Or, you can create a narrow trench and actually bury the tubing underground. If you decide to bury the tubing, be sure it will be out of reach of lawn mowers and other equipment that may damage or sever the tubing. If you feel you might want to expand your system down the road, you might not want to bury your tubing right away, as this makes it a bit more work to expand, since you will need to dig up certain areas to attach tee fittings and elbows. 


WHAT WE DID: When we created our drip irrigation system (which we are always expanding, by the way) we buried some of the tubing, while leaving some of it uncovered. Why you might ask? The part of the system we buried carries water to two trees, which we knew we were going to keep around for a long time, and which we knew we would not place other plants near. Therefore, we would have no need to dig up the tubing in this area of the landscape for any reason. However, on the other side of the yard, we have several in-ground garden beds which we are constantly adding plants to. When we add a new plant, we will need to puncture new holes so that the water from the drip irrigation system will reach them. Thus, it's much easier to simply leave the tubing on the ground and cover it with mulch, so that we can easily access the tubing to allow for the addition of plant sites to water. 


If you are certain that you will not be adding additional plant sites (maybe you are replacing one plant with another in the same (or a nearby) location) burying the tubing works well. Just be sure to keep the watering tip a little above the surface.


What if you remove a plant or tree from a particular spot and don't want the water to be emitted there anymore? No problem! Most drip irrigation kits also come with "goof plugs" which you simply insert into the hole you originally created (after removing the watering tip of course) and your hole is now plugged.


A drip irrigation system is easy to use and will simplify your watering routine.
Once your drip irrigation system is up and running with your rain barrel or other rainwater harvesting system, we bet you will find that it is incredibly easy to use and will cut down the time and energy it takes to keep your landscape healthy and beautiful. Literally, all it takes is opening the valve on your rain barrel, and all of your plants and trees are watered simultaneously. Gone is the need to makes dozens of trips back and forth to your rain barrel with a watering can. No more unrolling the hose and dragging it around the yard, wasting water while you walk, snagging it on every tree, plant, and rock as you go. Hey, add a timer to your rain barrel and you've basically got a robot that waters for you!

Drip irrigation is an eco-friendly and efficient way to water.

One of our favorite features of a drip irrigation system is its efficiency. With drip irrigation, you can direct your water to exactly where you want it, down to the smallest of areas. Try achieving that with a traditional sprinkler...we've all seen driveways and sidewalks being watered by sprinklers, but they never seem to grow! In addition, the design of the drip irrigation system is such that much smaller amounts of water are used in each irrigation cycle, which helps conserve your stored rainwater supply. Plus, by reducing how much water goes to each plant site, we can essentially prevent flooding our plants and help control erosion.

We hope this post has been helpful and demonstrates that adding drip irrigation to your rainwater harvesting system doesn't have to be difficult or intimidating, and can make irrigating easy, efficient, and hassle-free.

Check out our video below, which walks you through some of the basic steps to create a drip irrigation system.

We would love to hear from you! Please leave a comment or ask a question if you feel so moved, and we will gladly respond. Help us spread the word and get the discussion going on water conservation. Every little bit helps!

Happy harvesting!

~Sarasota Rain Barrels

Rainwater Harvesting for Beginners

Today's topic was submitted to us by a Facebook friend. Thanks, Janet!

How does a homeowner get started harvesting rainwater and what applications can the water be immediately used for?

To address the first part of our topic, we've compiled a list of things for a homeowner to consider when deciding on how to start harvesting rainwater.

How to Get Started
I. Feasibility report: Consult a rainwater calculator (see ours below) to determine how many gallons you could potentially harvest.

Then determine how much space you have to work with and how much storage you will need. You should consider:

        a) The applications for which you plan to use the rainwater (see later in this post for common uses) which will determine how much water you will need to use and store.

*Here's a tip: Go to your water meter before you use your city water and record the numbers. Then, water as you normally do. Once you are done using the water, check the meter again, and subtract your beginning numbers; this will tell you exactly how many gallons of water you used. Then simply multiply that by how often you use the water (daily, weekly, etc.) Here's an example:
     
Let's say our application for the water is irrigating a large flower bed. The first reading on the meter might be 807,016. The number after watering is 807,124. When we subtract the first number from the second, that gives us the number of gallons that were used: 108. If we water this flower bed 3 times per week, multiply 108 by 3, and that tells us we use 324 gallons per week of water for this application. We'll talk about how to lower the number of gallons you use later in this post.

Once you have decided on the application(s) for which you will use your harvested rainwater, you will then have an idea of whether you will need a little bit of water or a lot.

If you only want a couple hundred gallons between rainfall events, a few rain barrels either connected in a single system or in several locations, may be your best bet. For irrigation purposes, whether you will need barrels in multiple locations or a single system will depend on where your plant sites are located, and if you have more than one site. If you have an application that requires large amounts of harvested rainwater frequently, you may consider a cistern or larger rain tanks, to help sustain you through dry spells.

        b) The type of climate in which you live - drier areas typically need more storage since rainfall is less frequent.
   
II. Consider your budget: Once you have calculated what you can potentially harvest and you have an idea of both how much water you use and how much water you would like to have in storage, consult your budget to figure out what kind of rainwater harvesting system is the best fit for your situation. You should also factor in whether or not your house has rain gutters. If not, this is a cost you must allow for. Adding rain gutters can be fairly expensive, depending on what type of and how much gutter you want. But if your house already has rain gutters, in many cases only slight modifications will be needed and this will cut your overall cost down significantly. Let's talk about some actual numbers.

As a general rule, a smaller system should cost somewhere between $2 to $3 per gallon of storage capacity. That means if you have a 55-gallon rain barrel, you can expect to pay around $100 to $200, depending on how elaborate you want your system to be. (For example, there are systems with built-in planters, filtration options, and other features that will tack on extra dollars.)

Larger systems (with thousands of gallons of storage capacity), tend to lower your cost per gallon of stored water, usually to below $2 and as low as $1 per gallon in many cases. For instance, a 5,000 gallon tank may cost in the neighborhood of $5,000.                             

III. Where do I get a rainwater harvesting system? Many counties in the US have rainwater harvesting programs, and more counties are adding them all the time. Local offices offer rain barrel kits for the "do-it-yourself" type. Sarasota County sells 55-gallon drums, basic plumbing parts, and plans for a wooden stand, at a greatly reduced cost to consumers. You can also find rain barrels at many retail home supply stores, but these generally do not include a stand. A simple Internet search (of your area specifically) may provide you with several stores or local businesses that sell rain barrels or other rainwater harvesting systems.

IV. Irrigation Systems: Once you have decided on and installed your rainwater harvesting system, you might want to consider hooking up an irrigation setup, customized to work with your new rainwater harvester. If you plan to irrigate on a regular basis, an irrigation system will save you a ton of time and energy. There are several different types of components that you can use to create an irrigation system. Let's look at a few different options.

        a) Sprinkler: Most large sprinkler systems tend to consume a considerable amount of the harvested rainwater each time they are used. If your only goal is to water your lawn, and you don't have tight constraints on how much water you use, this might be a good option to consider. However, if you are looking to conserve your rainwater, a traditional sprinkler system may not be the best option.

        b) Soaker hose: Soaker hoses are designed for use with large amounts of water pressure. The water pressure you get from gravity-fed rainwater harvesting systems is not sufficient to supply a soaker hose without a pump. Therefore, soaker hoses are not often used with rainwater harvesting systems.

        c) Drip irrigation: Drip (or micro) irrigation systems are a favorite of many rainwater harvesters for several reasons. Because of the smaller diameter of the pipe or tubing, and the smaller diameter of the emitters (sprinkler heads) drip irrigation systems usually consume far less water than other irrigation systems. They are custom tailored during installation to direct water only to the sites or individual plants where you want it. And, drip irrigation systems work with or without a pump.
     
Now, to address the second part of our topic, we have listed below several common applications for harvested rainwater.


Immediate Uses for Harvested Rainwater
1) Irrigation - flower beds, gardens, landscape features: trees, plants, shrubs
2) Water features - water gardens, koi ponds, waterfalls - rainwater is a great choice for these uses because it doesn't need the pre-treatment that municipal water requires to ensure the health of fish and plants.
3) Cleaning applications - many outdoor chores that require water can be accomplished using rainwater. We just cleaned the white-wall tires on the Ghia with our harvested rainwater!
4) Watering livestock - Cows, goats, sheep, chickens and other animals are often given rainwater on farms. Our chickens harvest their own rainwater from the gutters we installed on their coop!
5) Emergency situations - Harvested rainwater can be filtered and/or boiled for consumption in emergency situations. It can be used for flushing toilets, washing, cleaning laundry and cooking. Your harvested rainwater will be a coveted commodity!

We've even used rainwater to mix concrete.

These are just a few examples of immediate uses for harvested rainwater. There are many more, so be creative!

We hope this has been a helpful dialogue for the beginner or for those of you who may be on the fence about whether or not to harvest rainwater. Even if you think a rain barrel will not accomplish all of your watering needs, we think it's at least a good place to start. You can always add to your system over time!

We will go into further detail about much of the information presented here in future posts. In the meantime, please feel free to leave questions or comments.

Happy harvesting!

~Sarasota Rain Barrels