Drip Irrigation!!!

We're excited!  We just purchased and installed our new drip irrigation system in the garden.  Our hope is that this system will save time, water, and energy as well as prevent the growth of unwanted weeds.  The system was really easy to put together and with the help of Trey and Ray at Berry Hill Drip Irrigation we got enough tubing, tape, and 
parts to set us up.

Below we have pics of the installation.  We will try to describe the process as you scroll through.

Step 1: The first thing we had to do was set up the hose and run it to the place we wanted to start.  Since we had to run the hose across the gate opening, we decided to dig a short trench and run the hose through some old pvc pipe.

Step 2:  We dragged the box with all the parts out to the garden and laid them all out on the table to make sure we had everything we needed.

Step 3:  Aaron hooked up the regulator to the hose.  The regulator drops the pressure to 10 psi.  It's automatic and there are no adjustments necessary.

Step 4:  Since the tomato rows are at the back of the garden and run perpendicular to the other rows, we needed to splice in a 'T' on the 3/4 inch main line.











    Step 5: Then we ran the 3/4 inch main tubing across the rows we


wanted to run the tape down.  At the end of each main, we used the *figure 8" lock to simply pinch off the end of the tube.  This stops the water from flowing out.

Step 6: To get the valves (red) connected to the main we had to punch a hole in the 3/4 inch tubing using the wood tool that comes with the kit.  It's on its side in the first pic above, next to the pile of valves.











Step 7:  Then we took the drip tape and slid it on to the valve stem, pulling the coupling back up over the tape and tighten down.  All of these couplings work with a simple hand tightening.

Step 8: After we connected the tape to the valve and ran it along the row, the last thing we did was install a blue end-cap.  It goes on exactly like the valves.

Step 9: We repeated until all of our rows are set up with drip tape.  Then, we turned on the water and checked for any leaks.  We only found leaks where we were supposed to be; in the drip tape, every 12 inches.  Below is the tomato patch.