advice on irrigation?- mainly emitters

Hey all, had a few questions about irrigation. Ill be setting up my irrigation soon. Pretty simple set up. I will have 4 rows of plants going down my greenhouse. ill have a 1" main line bringing water from my well/pump. And then reduce to 3/4" black tubing. Tubing will run down the 2 centers of the rows, and from there will punch holes and connect emitters which will stake inside the pot. We are planning on a light dep run, so im thinking my plants will end up in only 5 gallon pots, MAYBE 10… If we fall behind time and do a full term then 25 gallon pots. So my question is, what spray emitters do you suggest to use? or in what setup. A 360 degree sprayer in the middle of the pot? 2 180’s? And what specs should i look for in terms of gph etc. I have a ton of emitters with the small tubing and plastic punch connectors already, from a left behind grow. If they arent clogged i may try them, but realistically emitters arent that much. Thanks for the advice :slight_smile:

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Adjustable 360 emitters for the win! You can also use drip clean to clear the blockages :slight_smile: BerryHillDrip has everything you will need and can custom build you a setup from your existing parts in 1 call!

Sweet! Gonna look Into those options and figure out the most efficient way… I see come come with stakes, etc. thank you!

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Also, would u suggest one emitter right in the middle? Or 2 in some configuration for redundancy’s sake and ensuring good coverage

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1 emitter per 5g is good enough. 2 would be great for many reasons; surface area, redundancy, volume to name a few. Go for larger drip rings with larger pots. Also, what is the length of your greenhouse?

Dramm makes a drip ring product. Alternatively, you could buy 90 degree elbows for your tubing and make squares with an emitter on each side to make your own sort of ring.

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I’ve used 1/4" weeper/soaker hose and a tee to make rings for my plants rather than place emitters.

https://www.amazon.com/50-Inch-Porous-Soaker-Hose/dp/B01BO67UZ6

might not work so well for nutes as it did for straight water (outdoors, and in the ground).

pretty easy to coil up and store after the plants come down.

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Rain Bird T63-500S Drip Irrigation 1/2" (0.634" OD) Blank Distribution Tubing, 500’ Roll, Black Amazon.com

Rain Bird T22-250S Drip Irrigation 1/4" Blank Distribution Tubing, 250’ Roll, Black Amazon.com

Rain Bird SW20-30PS Drip Irrigation Spot Watering Dripper/Emitter, 2 Gallon Per Hour, 30-Pack https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0049C5G18/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_joezEbCHJ0XEG

These are the highest quality/lowest priced items I could find when I built my system last month.

I highly recommend rainbird or at least sticking with one brand/company so nothing leaks.

The hoses are an amazing price From what I was paying before! You may be able to find the drippers for cheaper in bulk and definitely in higher flow rates I only grabbed 2 30 packs to test with.

I really like these drippers they’re cheap simple and work; I haven’t dealt with any clogging and it’s been a consistent watering throughout my 12x12

I noticed the hoses I linked may not quite match with what you have I’m sure you could find the same kind a size up or maybe even an adapter if you have need in the future.

Hope I could help man good luck,

GiGi

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I am so appreciative of all of your advice and information and I will look into all of it thoroughly. I’m in a place where I know I’m confident that I can succeed, but a little guidance goes along way. Thank you all so far

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To answer the above inquiry, as of right now I was thinking about running three-quarter inch black tubing down the rows of the greenhouse, with the tiny tubing and connectors coming out of that tube into the plants on stakes with the emitters. I’m basically following the set up I had when I was working with someone else a few years ago that was very simple and easy. The emitters were really the only up in the air decision I had. I’m pretty good with plumbing and things like that so putting it together is actually really easy. The emitters were a wild card but it seems like you’ve all provided great information on that

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Also to respond to Cyclopath, I’m still working on educating myself on nutrients. I’m going to be running the earth juice line, but trying to determine how often I will be feeding. If I don’t do a feeding with every watering I may just hand water on the feeding days which will avoid any problems with the irrigation lines

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I use floraflex

https://floraflex.com/shop/?_vsrefdom=googleads&gclid=Cj0KCQiAqY3zBRDQARIsAJeCVxMCZpSDnHJeC26Ffrtxljnbk27rNC-wFqMTgoDzy5BJFqdfSKcvOKsaAmqUEALw_wcB

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Perhaps consider running only the 3/4” tubing directing across the pots next to the stalks and insert drippers directing into the 3/4” tubing? Not as surgical as little tubing Running from a main line but it was cheaper easier and faster for me. Less time bent over snapping together little hoses and less parts to go wrong!

GiGi

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not a terrible idea, but i forsee it behind hard to “Stake” down the tubing and it being a little more unorganized as id like… But i for sure see the benefit to your suggestion !

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Bang for buck ive never found a better one than these. Nothings perfect tho

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I zip tie/plant tie to every couple pots and pull it tight as I go along.

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I actually have a ton of ones just like that style! They were left behind from an old grow and I was going to check them out to see if they are clean and functioning. I assume they spread up into the concave top and spray down 360 style?

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Take a look at DripWorks, they have a write up on everything you would need to know regarding irrigation.

Best advice is to get out there and start setting things up, it’s all fairly simple and you seem to have enough of a grasp on it :+1:

The 360 style emitters are great, removable heads are prefered so you can clean them in case of clogging. Make sure to use an inline filter, and dont spray water directly on the stalk.

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Installed systems in in 2 greenhouses yesterday. Took <1hr… just get on berry hill, make the call, and order your parts. You’ll be better off working than talking :slight_smile: this part is so easy, go hustle and get it done friend!

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