Do-it-Yourself Lawn & Garden Watering

Homemade Irrigation Systems Sprinkle Smart

Watering your lawn with garden hoses and old-fashioned sprinklers wastes water. Once you untangle your hoses out onto your lawn they inevitably spread the water unevenly. If you place cups around a sprinkler and turn the water on, soon some of the cups will be overflowing while others are nearly empty. Meanwhile, water is tossed high into the wind where it evaporates.

Why Use a Homemade Irrigation System

Homemade irrigation systems will discharge exact amounts of water onto precisely targeted areas. Automatic systems are especially handy because they ensure optimum watering schedules (important if you must adhere to municipal regulations). You will get water where it is needed when it is needed.

PVC is the best material to use but the fittings are expensive and the installation can be difficult, The cheapest irrigation kits (usually simple black poly-pipe) can cost as little as $150 though many require that you purchase the spray heads and valves/timers separately. Whatever you choose to use, make sure to take advantage of the tremendous amount of online support and help available for those interested in do-it-yourself irrigation systems. Then make a quick run to the local irrigation supply house, hardware store or gardening center. Remember, a cheap irrigation system is a lot better than none at all.

Components of an Irrigation System

There are three basic components of an irrigation system: the timers or hand valves; the underground piping; and the sprinkler heads. You need to hook up the water supply and run water lines to a control box where you install the timers and/or hand valves. From there the water lines go underground to the places you want watered. Finally, the sprinkler heads are placed in the lines spaced so that the spray patterns overlap.

You can use old garden hose to save money. It will not last as long as PVC pipe but there are advantages: it is flexible and so the trench need not be very straight or deep (trenches for PVC pipe must be 6"-8" deep and very straight); the fittings (grey plastic tees and elbows) are much less expensive than PVC fittings; and, of course, the hose itself is readily available at thrift stores for pennies and just about anywhere else on garbage day for free! Money saved on the pipe costs can be spent on a back-flow preventer, which is required in order to prevent contamination of the domestic water supply.

If you grow food crops you might want to make sure that you including piping to water any fruit trees, berry bushes and vegetable gardens you might have; you will be surprised by the increase in the quality and quantity of your harvest.

There's lots of information on the internet on how to install your own irrigation system. Go ahead and learn how to do-it-yourself so that you can start saving water, time and money.