I have written and rewritten this post a number of times. Train of thought gets interrupted and the flow of my words seems to be stilted, so I put it down for a while...again and again. I started this in April, so much of the beginning text is mute- mostly comments about weather and chiggers and wanting to get this done before the really hot weather kicks in. So without further procrastination, here is my irrigation project.--
One of the items I wanted to have done this past winter was to get some irrigation up to the street for the garden. I had someone lined up and it fell through sadly. The method he was going to install the water was pretty straight forward. I Googled a bunch of YouTubes and decided it was something I could do myself.
After getting the mulch done (see last post) and having some sunny days ahead I went about ordering the needed items.
Disclaimer: I am going to show a specific product. I have not been compensated in any way for use of this item. My thoughts are my own, positive and negative.
Ordering online for pick-up at the store is a nice way to shop for irrigation parts and accessories. I ordered Mr. Landscaper Premium kit at Lowe's. The water source is to be my spigot at the well, about one hundred feet from the street. The kit came with 100 feet of tubing and after figuring out the distance involved, I ordered two more bundles of 100 feet of 1/2 inch tubing to carry the water from the well to the garden at the street. I also ordered more stakes to hold the tubing at ground level, more couplers to connect tubing, and an elbow connector. I went back to get more ground stakes and a Y-connector for the spigot and a few more sprinklers and sprayer heads. Seems like every task or homeowner improvement project needs multiple trips to the store. This project is no different.
The installation is pretty straight forward and I am writing / photographing this is to show others that it is almost foolproof. Follow the photos and the captions to a quick and easy project.
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| Tubing and details for installation on box, don't pitch the box right away! |
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| Sprayer heads, timer, puncture tool and assorted pieces |
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| Because the tubing was had been rolled in a bundle, I stretched it out along the driveway to relax the plastic. |
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| Multiple sprinkler stakes with connector lines |
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| The orange sprinkler head shoots almost a full circle of water, but also has a 180 degree capability. To change it you take off the orange head, turn it upside down and replace it. |
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| Ground stakes |
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| End crimper, feed the hose through the hole and back through again. |
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| Basic timer that attaches to the spigot |
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| Assembly to the spigot- timer, 50 PSI flow regulator, and hose coupler |
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| Hole puncher |
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| The hose and sprayer stake- ready to make my connection |
To connect the sprayers you take the hole punch, make your hole and insert the tip from the sprayer stake into the hole. It is self sealing and if you make an error in placement of the hole- the kit comes with a hole plug! I placed my hose along the edge of the driveway and made note of the plants that I wanted. Placing the stake into the ground I then adjusted the connector line to the hose, made the hole and connected the sprayer.
Once I got to the top of the driveway I needed to get the hose line to the other side. There is a culvert under the driveway near the street, so I had a clear path to use! I have a brush and multiple 18 inch rods that screw together for cleaning the dryer vent. I used my flexible rods, pushed them through the culvert, tied a line to the rod, pulled it back through, and tied the hose to the line and pulled it under the driveway.
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| The hose is almost hidden through the rocks |
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| The garden now has water! |
After I was pleased with the placement of the stakes and the hose I covered exposed black hose with pine straw. Adjustments were easy, just pull up the ground stakes and the sprayers and move according to where you want the water.
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| Spray of water |
The water spray is not far, maybe a five foot diameter, so more sprayers were needed in some areas. I think I can add two more sprayers to reach the capacity of sprayers per hose to spigot. The garden is filling in now that there is water. Much of what is planted up at the street, in full sun, is drought tolerant but the added water allows me to add some other plants.
Winterizing this is easy. Just take the hose off the end crimper (the black thing with the two holes) and drain the water. If there are issues after a cold winter I will update.
My assessment of this type of irrigation -- I like it, I might add another to the other side of the driveway to benefit some of my azaleas and dogwoods that are on the high side of the driveway. The water connection has to be figured out for this one. If I didn't have in ground irrigation for the rest of the yard, fed from the lake, I would think about adding something like this to specific spots that need the extra water.
Do you have projects that you are pleased with?
©Copyright 2021
Janet. All rights reserved. Content created by Janet for
The Queen of Seaford.
words and photos by Janet,The Queen of Seaford.
