Installing an Irrigation System: 3 Questions You Need to Ask

18 March 2019
 Categories: Business, Blog

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If you are planning to install an irrigation system to water the crops on your farm, it is vital that you ask yourself a few questions to establish which type of irrigation system is best suited to your needs. Below is a guide to 3 questions you need to answer before designing and installing a new irrigation system.

Do I have a reliable water supply?

The number-one thing you will need for your irrigation system is a reliable water supply. If you have a well on your land or a rainwater tank, you may wish to hook your irrigation system up to these. However, you need to be mindful that it times of drought, these sources of water may run dry. This is the reason that many people are now opting to connect their irrigation systems up to the public water supply.

Is the land level?

The lay of the land will have a big impact on your irrigation system. This is because gravity will play a big part in the movement of water through the system. If you are planning to irrigate a piece of land that is sloped, you will need to think carefully about the setup of the system. The best solution is to have the water source at the highest point of the slope, as you will then be able to let gravity carry the water through the pipes and down the hill. However, if your water source is at the bottom of the slope, you will need to use a pump to move the water up the hill and through the irrigation system.

How hard is the ground?

Irrigation systems rely on pipes to carry the water to your crops. While it is possible to leave the piping on the surface of the ground, this increases the chance that it will be damaged. Any damage could lead to leaks, which can be time-consuming to fix. A better solution is to bury the irrigation pipes under the ground. However, before you can do this, you need to assess how hard the ground is. If the ground is soft and sandy, it will be easy to dig the trench by hand using a shovel. If the ground is hard or made of clay, it may be wiser to hire a small excavator so you can easily prepare the trench without any backbreaking work.

If you would like to find out more, contact a company specialising in irrigation system solutions.