gangjababy
Well-Known Member
I thought it might be a good idea to get a thread going specificly for guerrilla irrigation. Feel free to share experiences, ideas, etc. Lets have a good resource for newer and older growers.
Some of us are simply worried about summer droughts, and some of us depend entirely on water supplied artificially.
Here I'll start out with the basic outline for a basic gravity fed, resivour based system-
This crude paint picture shows the main components:
#1. Resivour: This could be a barrel, a garbage can, a rough tote, a water bed matress, or a water bladder.
#2. Hose or pipe: This could be Garden hoses, Poly pipe(the two best), PVC, Vinyl, etc.
#3. Water timer: Many brands exist, look near the garden hoses in your favorite Home center/dept. store/gardening store.
#4. Line spitters, Ts and Ys: Use these to split your lines off to multiple plants. If you are using garden hose, you'll use Ys or other multi spliters found near the garden hose dept.
If you are using a type of pipe, like poly, you will use Ts made for the specific type of pipe you are using.
#5. Valves: In a gravity fed system, it is important to make sure flow is even at each plant, a appropriate valve at the end of each plants line will give you control over the flow getting to each plant, allowing you to turn down or turn up the waterflow for each plant, until each recieves a roughly equal flow.
If you plan to leave the system to work on its own for weeks at a time, being able to know exactly how much water will be used will allow you to arrive to refill the rez before it runs out.
Also, I like the idea of using valves rather than emitters for controlling flow, emitters have a tendency to become plugged, especially when used with "wild water" collected in the bush. Valves are more ajustable, and are easily cleared if you find one plugging up.
System therory
Basicly, when the timers programming tells it to open the valve, water flows down from the rez to the rest of the system. As the sytem fills, water starts flowing from the valves at each plant. By ajusting the time the timer leaves the valve open, and by ajusting the valves at each plant, each plant will get its alloted ration of water.
Its best for the rez to be placed "uphill" from the plot, most water timers require at least a small amount of water pressure. My Gilmour timers require that the resivour is at least 2 feet higher than the timer to operate correctly, I have seen systems built online that had almost zero pressure, but I am not sure what brand of timer they used. At any rate, it is good for the rez to be as high above the grow as possible, but a huge difference in elevation is not a absolute requirement.
Building a rez
The most difficult part of building one of these systems is setting up a resivour that won't leak. Lots of cheep containers could make great resivours if they are properly modified.
The main thing you need to do is provide a way to tap water from the resivour. This involves drilling a hole in the wall of the container a couple inches from the bottom of the container, and using threaded parts with washers or heavy duty epoxies to attach a threaded pipe nipple to the resivour in such a way that it will not leak. Then you will be able to hook up the system.
Here are the basic parts and a diagram of what you need to do this, a trip to your local building supply and a little imagination should get you the parts you need. Its possible that your local plumbing supply might carry "Bulkhead addapters", these are plumbing parts specificly for this purpose, there should be no problem asking for one of these, but if you need a excuse, tell them you are building a rain barrel for catching water(basicly almost the same thing).
You could also just take a threaded pipe nipple, dill a hole just big enough to push it through the wall, and then just use a marine grade epoxy or cement/sealant to glue it in place. I don't think this is the best way, but it can work, just be carefull not to accidently step on or kick it, you could loose all your water fast.
Here is a example of a homemade guerrilla rez that I made:[/red]
Here we have a 50 gallon rough tote-
And here are some plumbing parts picked up at the local home improvement super store-
From left to right: 1/2" faucet, fender washer 1/2" Inside diameter, 1/2" threaded PVC addapter(used to addapt from glued PVC to threaded pipe), and two rubber washers that fit the threaded PVC part.
I cut a 1/2" hole near the bottom of the tote on the end, I put the fender washer and one of the rubber washers onto the threaded end of the PVC part, and put the assembly through the hole frm the inside of the tote.
Now I placed the other rubber washer onto the threaded PVC part sticking through the wall of the tote, then I screwed the faucet onto the part and using wrenches I carefully tightened everything nice and secure.
Almost finished!
I drilled some holes throgh the lid and lip of the tote, and installed some bolts, this will help keep larger animals from getting into the rez, and also helps the rez keep its shape while filling.
I also cut a hole just large enough for a garden hose for filling, this hole will be covered when not in use.
It would be ideal for this rez to be at least partially burried to help support the sides of the tote when filled, although I have never had a tote split under the weight of the water it contains.
Building a basic automatic irrigations system
Here I show how to build a basic automatic irrigation system from garden hose parts, most of the parts came from Wal-mart, and from old parts laying around the garden.
Here is a picture of most of the parts: A old beat up 50' garden hose, a Gilmour water timer, 3 garden hose "Y"s, 4 garden hose shutoff valves, a bunch of male and female hose ends meant for repairing garden hoses(I show more in this pic than were actually needed for this project), a pocket knife, and a screw driver(not shown is a new 10 to 50 foot garden hose).
I start by cutting the old 50' hose into 4 roughly equal length sections.
One of the hose sections will have a male end already attached, and one will have a female end attached. Each section needs a male and a female end, so I use the hose end repair parts to install the needed ends.
I first loosen the screws on the collar, and slide it on the hose, then I shove the male or female end into the hose end, this takes a bit of pressure and can be helped by lubing it with soap.
Once the end is shoved in, I slide the collar back up the hose onto the bulge caused by the installed end, and tighten it.
When I am done, I will have 4 new shorter hoses that look like this.
Now I connect the new(not leaky) hose to the rez, and to the Timer. Its important that this connection be absolutly leak proof, thus the need for a garden hose in excelent condition, you don't want to find your system leaked all it water after returning to visit after 1-3 weeks.
The water timer should be placed at least 2 feet below the faucet on the rez, to insure there is addequate pressure to opperate the timer, and the lower beneath the faucet you can get it the better, more pressure will ensure smooth operation of the system.
Now I take the 3 "Y"s and connect them to the timer as shown. The 4 homemade gardenhoses I made earlier are connected to the 4 male ends on the "Y"s.
Now I connect a hose shutoff valve to the male ends of the garden hoses.
Here is a pic of the system completed and layed out. My water timer is about 6 feet below the faucet on the rez in this set up. I have the hoses all laying together, but in a real set up you would direct the ends to their individual plants.
Its best for the plants to be lower than the timer, and roughly at equal elevations to each other, this will make ajusting the flows easier.
Here you see water flowing through the shutoff valves, the valves are about half open.
Now I have closed the valve on the one I am holding to about a quarter open, notice how the other ends are emmiting more volume in water?
Ajusting the flow
Now we need to ajust the flow of water, so that each plant gets a equal ration of water, and so you can ajust the system to give the ammount of water needed. This way you know how long the water will last between waterings
On this system I have four places to ajust flow: The faucet on the rez, the water timer, the "Y"s, and finally the shutoff valves at the end of each plants hose.
In most situations you will do most ajustments at the hose end valves and at the water timer.
My Gilmour water timers, and most other timers are designed to be used for watering lawns and vegie/flower gardens, so it is designed to be opened in 15 minute increments, 1-7 times a week, some of the more expensive digital timers allow even more ajustments and will allow you to program the timer to open up for smaller increments of time.
To ajust the system, place the hose ends at each plant site, and place each end in a bucket or jug larger than the ammount of water to be given. Close the valves on the ends to about a quarter open, and turn the water timer on, since mine opens in 15 minute increments only I program it to open for that period of time.
When the valve has closed after 15 minutes, I check the containers at each hose end and see how much water flowed, I take note of which ones got too much water or too little and ajust the valves accordingly. I pour the test water back into the rez and try again and again until the flow is right.
How much water?
This depends on your climate, and soil conditions. Most growers in North America will probably need 1-5 gallons per plant per week. If you live in a area where rains fall occaisionally in summer and/or the temps stay coolish(70-low 80s) a gallon 1-2 times a week may be all that is needed. Those in very dry areas may want to give 5 gallons per week divided into 2-3 waterings.
I give about 3-4 gallons per plant per week, divided into 2 waterings, depending on how sun exposed and hot the location is. I have highs in the upper 90s most weeks in July and August, sometimes higher.
Enriching your soil with Peat moss or Coco coir, and water holding crystals can help the soil retain more water between waterings, and may help you reduce frequency and volume of waterings. In exteme climates, lining the sides of the holes with sheet plastic or garbage bags can further reduce moisture loss, but make sure excess water can get out through the bottom or you may set up a situation for drowned roots and dying plants.
Some of us are simply worried about summer droughts, and some of us depend entirely on water supplied artificially.
Here I'll start out with the basic outline for a basic gravity fed, resivour based system-
This crude paint picture shows the main components:
#1. Resivour: This could be a barrel, a garbage can, a rough tote, a water bed matress, or a water bladder.
#2. Hose or pipe: This could be Garden hoses, Poly pipe(the two best), PVC, Vinyl, etc.
#3. Water timer: Many brands exist, look near the garden hoses in your favorite Home center/dept. store/gardening store.
#4. Line spitters, Ts and Ys: Use these to split your lines off to multiple plants. If you are using garden hose, you'll use Ys or other multi spliters found near the garden hose dept.
If you are using a type of pipe, like poly, you will use Ts made for the specific type of pipe you are using.
#5. Valves: In a gravity fed system, it is important to make sure flow is even at each plant, a appropriate valve at the end of each plants line will give you control over the flow getting to each plant, allowing you to turn down or turn up the waterflow for each plant, until each recieves a roughly equal flow.
If you plan to leave the system to work on its own for weeks at a time, being able to know exactly how much water will be used will allow you to arrive to refill the rez before it runs out.
Also, I like the idea of using valves rather than emitters for controlling flow, emitters have a tendency to become plugged, especially when used with "wild water" collected in the bush. Valves are more ajustable, and are easily cleared if you find one plugging up.
System therory
Basicly, when the timers programming tells it to open the valve, water flows down from the rez to the rest of the system. As the sytem fills, water starts flowing from the valves at each plant. By ajusting the time the timer leaves the valve open, and by ajusting the valves at each plant, each plant will get its alloted ration of water.
Its best for the rez to be placed "uphill" from the plot, most water timers require at least a small amount of water pressure. My Gilmour timers require that the resivour is at least 2 feet higher than the timer to operate correctly, I have seen systems built online that had almost zero pressure, but I am not sure what brand of timer they used. At any rate, it is good for the rez to be as high above the grow as possible, but a huge difference in elevation is not a absolute requirement.
Building a rez
The most difficult part of building one of these systems is setting up a resivour that won't leak. Lots of cheep containers could make great resivours if they are properly modified.
The main thing you need to do is provide a way to tap water from the resivour. This involves drilling a hole in the wall of the container a couple inches from the bottom of the container, and using threaded parts with washers or heavy duty epoxies to attach a threaded pipe nipple to the resivour in such a way that it will not leak. Then you will be able to hook up the system.
Here are the basic parts and a diagram of what you need to do this, a trip to your local building supply and a little imagination should get you the parts you need. Its possible that your local plumbing supply might carry "Bulkhead addapters", these are plumbing parts specificly for this purpose, there should be no problem asking for one of these, but if you need a excuse, tell them you are building a rain barrel for catching water(basicly almost the same thing).
You could also just take a threaded pipe nipple, dill a hole just big enough to push it through the wall, and then just use a marine grade epoxy or cement/sealant to glue it in place. I don't think this is the best way, but it can work, just be carefull not to accidently step on or kick it, you could loose all your water fast.
Here is a example of a homemade guerrilla rez that I made:[/red]
Here we have a 50 gallon rough tote-
And here are some plumbing parts picked up at the local home improvement super store-
From left to right: 1/2" faucet, fender washer 1/2" Inside diameter, 1/2" threaded PVC addapter(used to addapt from glued PVC to threaded pipe), and two rubber washers that fit the threaded PVC part.
I cut a 1/2" hole near the bottom of the tote on the end, I put the fender washer and one of the rubber washers onto the threaded end of the PVC part, and put the assembly through the hole frm the inside of the tote.
Now I placed the other rubber washer onto the threaded PVC part sticking through the wall of the tote, then I screwed the faucet onto the part and using wrenches I carefully tightened everything nice and secure.
Almost finished!
I drilled some holes throgh the lid and lip of the tote, and installed some bolts, this will help keep larger animals from getting into the rez, and also helps the rez keep its shape while filling.
I also cut a hole just large enough for a garden hose for filling, this hole will be covered when not in use.
It would be ideal for this rez to be at least partially burried to help support the sides of the tote when filled, although I have never had a tote split under the weight of the water it contains.
Building a basic automatic irrigations system
Here I show how to build a basic automatic irrigation system from garden hose parts, most of the parts came from Wal-mart, and from old parts laying around the garden.
Here is a picture of most of the parts: A old beat up 50' garden hose, a Gilmour water timer, 3 garden hose "Y"s, 4 garden hose shutoff valves, a bunch of male and female hose ends meant for repairing garden hoses(I show more in this pic than were actually needed for this project), a pocket knife, and a screw driver(not shown is a new 10 to 50 foot garden hose).
I start by cutting the old 50' hose into 4 roughly equal length sections.
One of the hose sections will have a male end already attached, and one will have a female end attached. Each section needs a male and a female end, so I use the hose end repair parts to install the needed ends.
I first loosen the screws on the collar, and slide it on the hose, then I shove the male or female end into the hose end, this takes a bit of pressure and can be helped by lubing it with soap.
Once the end is shoved in, I slide the collar back up the hose onto the bulge caused by the installed end, and tighten it.
When I am done, I will have 4 new shorter hoses that look like this.
Now I connect the new(not leaky) hose to the rez, and to the Timer. Its important that this connection be absolutly leak proof, thus the need for a garden hose in excelent condition, you don't want to find your system leaked all it water after returning to visit after 1-3 weeks.
The water timer should be placed at least 2 feet below the faucet on the rez, to insure there is addequate pressure to opperate the timer, and the lower beneath the faucet you can get it the better, more pressure will ensure smooth operation of the system.
Now I take the 3 "Y"s and connect them to the timer as shown. The 4 homemade gardenhoses I made earlier are connected to the 4 male ends on the "Y"s.
Now I connect a hose shutoff valve to the male ends of the garden hoses.
Here is a pic of the system completed and layed out. My water timer is about 6 feet below the faucet on the rez in this set up. I have the hoses all laying together, but in a real set up you would direct the ends to their individual plants.
Its best for the plants to be lower than the timer, and roughly at equal elevations to each other, this will make ajusting the flows easier.
Here you see water flowing through the shutoff valves, the valves are about half open.
Now I have closed the valve on the one I am holding to about a quarter open, notice how the other ends are emmiting more volume in water?
Ajusting the flow
Now we need to ajust the flow of water, so that each plant gets a equal ration of water, and so you can ajust the system to give the ammount of water needed. This way you know how long the water will last between waterings
On this system I have four places to ajust flow: The faucet on the rez, the water timer, the "Y"s, and finally the shutoff valves at the end of each plants hose.
In most situations you will do most ajustments at the hose end valves and at the water timer.
My Gilmour water timers, and most other timers are designed to be used for watering lawns and vegie/flower gardens, so it is designed to be opened in 15 minute increments, 1-7 times a week, some of the more expensive digital timers allow even more ajustments and will allow you to program the timer to open up for smaller increments of time.
To ajust the system, place the hose ends at each plant site, and place each end in a bucket or jug larger than the ammount of water to be given. Close the valves on the ends to about a quarter open, and turn the water timer on, since mine opens in 15 minute increments only I program it to open for that period of time.
When the valve has closed after 15 minutes, I check the containers at each hose end and see how much water flowed, I take note of which ones got too much water or too little and ajust the valves accordingly. I pour the test water back into the rez and try again and again until the flow is right.
How much water?
This depends on your climate, and soil conditions. Most growers in North America will probably need 1-5 gallons per plant per week. If you live in a area where rains fall occaisionally in summer and/or the temps stay coolish(70-low 80s) a gallon 1-2 times a week may be all that is needed. Those in very dry areas may want to give 5 gallons per week divided into 2-3 waterings.
I give about 3-4 gallons per plant per week, divided into 2 waterings, depending on how sun exposed and hot the location is. I have highs in the upper 90s most weeks in July and August, sometimes higher.
Enriching your soil with Peat moss or Coco coir, and water holding crystals can help the soil retain more water between waterings, and may help you reduce frequency and volume of waterings. In exteme climates, lining the sides of the holes with sheet plastic or garbage bags can further reduce moisture loss, but make sure excess water can get out through the bottom or you may set up a situation for drowned roots and dying plants.
