Organic Fertigation?

[Worth1]

The 200 mesh filter is what is recommended and they are relatively cheap.
The filters can be back flushed to clean them out also.
Here is a link to some filters you may be interested in.
Sadly they dont have one for chlorine.
I do suspect that the bodies would accept a chlorine filter if you looked around or took measurements.
Most of this stuff is standard sizes anyway.

Dont freak out the prices range from expensive to affordable.
http://www.sprinklerwarehouse.com/Dr...ers-s/1046.htm

Worth

[Worth1]

One thing caught my attention with this.
You already have drip tape under your plastic mulch.
You can tie a better line to the drip tape and use the tape to pull the better line under the mulch.
I would like to add pumps can get complicated.
They will look the same but be different due to the configuration of the impeller.
They will have various psi and gpm ratings.
But nothing you cant get around with a little research.
I would suspect you would want something that would put out around 10 gpm at no more than 25 psi.
That would be a small pump.


In Seattle now waiting on yet another plane to get home.

Worth

[Cole_Robbie]

I read a link last night from the University of California. They tested drip irrigation methods to see if they clogged with organic fertigation. They found that even with drip tape, organic ferts did not clog the emitters as suspected. They did flush out the lines with pure water after each injection, which might be the difference between it working and not working.

Kelp4less has several soluble ferts that I think would work fine in a EZ Flow, both certified organic and natural. I will need to plumb some valves in order to be able to bypass the injector and switch to straight water at the end of a cycle. I'm not sure I will be able to make that work on a timer, though.

Maybe I can get a truckload of wood chips to mulch the beds, so I can access the drip line more easily than if it were under plastic.

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

I read a link last night from the University of California. They tested drip irrigation methods to see if they clogged with organic fertigation. They found that even with drip tape, organic ferts did not clog the emitters as suspected. They did flush out the lines with pure water after each injection, which might be the difference between it working and not working.

Kelp4less has several soluble ferts that I think would work fine in a EZ Flow, both certified organic and natural. I will need to plumb some valves in order to be able to bypass the injector and switch to straight water at the end of a cycle. I'm not sure I will be able to make that work on a timer, though.

Maybe I can get a truckload of wood chips to mulch the beds, so I can access the drip line more easily than if it were under plastic.

What kind of timer do you have?


Worth

[Cole_Robbie]

I haven't bought one yet. I wanted to for next year so my watering would be more regular.

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

I haven't bought one yet. I wanted to for next year so my watering would be more regular.

You can go two routes one that is cheap like the battery powered timers you can get at the big box stores or you can go the other way and get a real timer.
The cheap way will lead you down the path of spending more and more money with what you want to do.
Not all of the timers are the same either the programming is different on all of them as far as timing and options go.

I will be back in a bit and show you how it can be done with a drawing.

Worth

[Worth1]

Fert Bypass 2.jpg

This one would work either with a timer or the battery operated ones.

You could get the two outlet battery operated timer and just connect the hoses up in the fashion of the drawing.
Set your time for the fertilizer and then right after the 2nd outlet would flush the system for however long you wanted.

Worth

[Cole_Robbie]

Thanks. Honestly, I had to look up what a solenoid is. I need to learn such things.

It would look like this, right?
http://www.chinazhanying.com/photo/o...noid-valve.jpg

Are they always brass, or do they make pvc ones?

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

Thanks. Honestly, I had to look up what a solenoid is. I need to learn such things.

It would look like this, right?
http://www.chinazhanying.com/photo/o...noid-valve.jpg

Are they always brass, or do they make pvc ones?

No that is the wrong one you need to get ones for irrigation.
Let me give a picture and a link.
http://www.sprinklerwarehouse.com/Sp...alves-s/36.htm


All of your Irrigation valves work off of 24VAC and if you look at the specs not all of them are the same.
You can get a few good valves at HD and Lowes but make sure you have a flow control on them.The flow control is the valve handle on top.
You can even get them threaded if you like or slip I got all of mine threaded.

[Cole_Robbie]

thanks for the link

[Worth1]

Your more than welcome.
Out of all of the research I have done I have found these valves to be the best fit for everything.
They would be the 2500 Series valves from Irritrol with flow control.
They will work from .025 GPM to 30 GPM.
Some valves will open at a low flow rate but wont close.
You dont want that for obvious reasons.
The reason for the flow control is two things you control the flow if you wish and the other in important.
If at full flow it wont close you can turn down the flow with this valve and it will close.

Worth
http://www.sprinklerwarehouse.com/Ir...e-p/2500tf.htm

[Worth1]

Since the web site is huge I have will provid links to what you will need to help you set this up.
Filters.
http://www.sprinklerwarehouse.com/Dr...ers-s/1046.htm
Timers.
http://www.sprinklerwarehouse.com/Sp...llers-s/23.htm

The prices seem a little high at first but you have to think about the free time you will have doing other things.

Plus if thought out you can customize the watering to any need.

It really depends on what you want to do.
What ever you decide to do I will try to help you with it I'm not here to sell my ideas but to help with other peoples ideas.

Right now I can turn my water on from my laptop I am typing this from.


Worth

[Cole_Robbie]

So a timer like this one?
http://www.sprinklerwarehouse.com/To...ers-s/9373.htm (I'm looking at the 2-station one)

Each of the controllers goes to one of the solenoids in your diagram, right?

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

So a timer like this one?
http://www.sprinklerwarehouse.com/To...ers-s/9373.htm (I'm looking at the 2-station one)

Each of the controllers goes to one of the solenoids in your diagram, right?

Yes each station would go to a valve and there would be a master valve too.


I'm confused as to whether it comes withe the latching solenoids.
They are different than the regular ones.
The way these timers work and any other battery type is they toggle.
Meaning they get a short burst of electricity from the timer and a switch toggles to on or off.
You still have to have valves and run some amount of wire to make these things work.
I think they were intended for remote areas without electricity and they are costly.

I think a better option would be the other type hose end battery operated timer they have if you want to go battery operated.

Is there any reason not to use the 120 volt timers?

Worth

[Worth1]

Here is one for a hose end timer.
Hose end timer.jpg

The problem with this one is your limits on watering due to the program they all have.
It would work fine just for the fertilizer set up but you would need another timer for just watering if that is the way you are going.

In other words if you set up the EZ flow station 1 for lets say one hour then a flush station 2 for 10 minutes that would be all you have.
You couldn't set up station 2 for any more than 10 minutes even if you set it up to go off every day or every other day.
I have two of these things one 1 station and the other a 2 station.
One is on my counter.
You could add another one parallel to the two station timer and tie it in down line from the flush station 2.
What a contraption it would be.

Worth