There's no time like right now to make sure the garden does well this year ... So I've installed a submersible pump in our well (was here when we bought 20 years ago) and I'm in the process of designing a drip irrigation system . The plan is to use a large "caged tank" , a plastic tank in a steel cage (used to transport peroxide in this case) of around 275 gallons capacity . The pump will fill the tank , which will supply water to a system of piping with drip emitters . If I use that whole tank every day , it will cost me about 2-3 bucks a month for electricity . That much city water would cost me around a hundred bucks or more , with the added benefit that my well water has no chemicals added . If ever there was a time when it was important to have a productive garden , I think it's now . Too many signs point to a coming shortage of food , and I don't like going hungry .
Of wells and pumps and distribution systems
Apr 23, 2022
Last reply: 4 years ago
4 Replies
Maybe less electricity than you think ? ... not sure of my maths here .. : 10 minutes per day to fill the tank x 30 days = 300 min = 5 hours : 1/3 HP pump <?> 300 watts x 5 hours = 1500 watt hrs = 1.5 kWhr per month. < seems too small ? dunno .. >
Assuming that you are doing gravity-feed drip system - be sure to get the proper product - and not the < more common > ones that require pressure from the tap to work.
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Scum will want to build-up in the tank pretty quick - you'll want to keep it from clogging the system .. Happy growing. John T.
It's a 1 hp pump, I figure I can fill a 275 gallon tank in about 30 minutes at 10 gpm so at .11 per kw/hr that's about $.08 per day . The pump running unrestricted moves around 25-30 gpm but the well won't sustain that rate for more than 5 minutes or so . The emitters I've ordered are adjustable gravity flow up to 2 g/HOUR . It's going to take some tuning to get the correct amount of water where it's needed , peppers don't need as much as tomatoes ... The problem we usually have here is too wet in the spring followed by no or very little rain for 2-3 months in the mid-late summer. I can't do much about the wet spring but I can fix the dry spells . I think this year my wife will not feel like I put too much work in for the results we get . I just hope we have enough jars !
Bits and pieces are heading my way . I've ordered everything but the hardware to hook my pump outlet pipe to a faucet for a garden hose . That will be purchased locally . I've decided to try throttled flow from the pump instead of using a tank as a reservoir to feed the system . I can throttle main flow at the faucet interface , plus each run of pipe will have a valve from the main supply line and adjustable emitters .
I don't think so . If I run the pump at 7.5 GPM for an hour it doesn't matter if that 450 gallons goes directly to the plants or if it makes a trip through a holding tank . My first task in either case will be to regulate flow so I'm not over-pumping the well . We'll go from there to decide a watering schedule . Might be alternating rows every day , easily do-able with the valving I have on order . I need to finalize a layout for this year so I know where I need water . And how much .
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