Water Pressure For Drip Systems

[Canada]

Anyone have experience running less than 10 PSI on a "semi large" system? I am talking about 3 rai. 26 rows of sugar at about 100 m per row. I am about to put a water tower in and am researching systems requirements. I'll likely use water line with holes and no droppers.

Any input?? Thanks

[David48]

Mate ... about the "I am about to put a water tower" bit ... have a read in the housing forum and the do it yourself section.

Many guys there have spoken about the water pressures you will receive based on head (of water) height.

EDIT ...

If you can't track it down, maybe PM the Mod crossy ... helpfull bloke and one of the main mods in the area.

.

Edited January 13, 2013 by David48

[Canada]

Mate ... about the "I am about to put a water tower" bit ... have a read in the housing forum and the do it yourself section.

Many guys there have spoken about the water pressures you will receive based on head (of water) height.

EDIT ...

If you can't track it down, maybe PM the Mod crossy ... helpfull bloke and one of the main mods in the area.

.

Thanks for your concern David. Formulas and figures are available online for this sort of calculating. I know how high to build for 10 lbs. I am wondering if anyone has experience working with less pressure than that.

Anyways, I'll take your suggestion and check out the forum. Thanks.

[NeverSure]

If you don't have a device on each outlet which controls flow, and if your flow from the tower and then down a properly sized (big enough) main line isn't greater than the total flow of all devices, you won't get even watering. The water will flow mostly from the outlets nearest the tower, and pressure will be reduced down line. Of course it's important to plug the end of the main line.

I can buy flow control outlets for either 15 psi or 25 psi, and from .5 gallons per minute to 2 gallons per minute. I have to do the math to figure out how many "drip heads" and what flow size I can put on any line. Pressure loss from friction down the pipe is negated by plugging the end of the pipe and using less water from drip heads than the main pipe can carry.

I'm using flexible black PVC pipe for the main line and branch lines. If a miscalculation is made and the regulator or pipe won't carry enough water, it is easy to put in a "T" and simply run a second one. I shorten the first one until it works, and the second one has no holes until it reaches the end of the first one.

Edit, with these inexpensive plastic regulators, I can hook to a pump which is producing up to 50 psi which is what mine does.

Edited January 13, 2013 by NeverSure

[Naam]

....10 PSI.. ...3 rai.... 26 rows of sugar at about 100 m per row. I am about to put a water tower in and am researching systems requirements.

a futile undertaking without a pump

[Canada]

This s a property that we are just building and just planted. It'll be the home, hobby farm, and sugar experiment. We have no electricity yet for constant pumping. We have a well, just drilled and can pump in the traditional Thai way....iron buffalo and suction pump. I guess we are building a 30 foot water tower of waiting for the electricity.

[Naam]

This s a property that we are just building and just planted. It'll be the home, hobby farm, and sugar experiment. We have no electricity yet for constant pumping. We have a well, just drilled and can pump in the traditional Thai way....iron buffalo and suction pump. I guess we are building a 30 foot water tower of waiting for the electricity.

= 13psi = not enough.

[NeverSure]

Thanks for your concern David. Formulas and figures are available online for this sort of calculating. I know how high to build for 10 lbs. I am wondering if anyone has experience working with less pressure than that.

Anyways, I'll take your suggestion and check out the forum. Thanks.

Only ditch irrigating. Then you need modest slope but not much. No slope needed if it's clay soil - just fill the ditch. You would also need valves to turn on the ones you could support with the pump in rotation.

I think your tower idea won't work regardless of height because water must run out as fast as it can run in due to the size and scope of your project. The pump will probably have to run all the time until you've periodically filled the ditches regardless.

Edited January 14, 2013 by NeverSure

[Canada]

This s a property that we are just building and just planted. It'll be the home, hobby farm, and sugar experiment. We have no electricity yet for constant pumping. We have a well, just drilled and can pump in the traditional Thai way....iron buffalo and suction pump. I guess we are building a 30 foot water tower of waiting for the electricity.

= 13psi = not enough.

Some sources say less than 10 psi is enough, but recommend more. I imagine there are other factors to consider. Not really wanting to get into a battle of wits with you Naam, I know you like that. I am just looking for some good answers based on experience. Thank you. If you have something to offer other than negative comments or criticism, that would be great.

[Naam]

This s a property that we are just building and just planted. It'll be the home, hobby farm, and sugar experiment. We have no electricity yet for constant pumping. We have a well, just drilled and can pump in the traditional Thai way....iron buffalo and suction pump. I guess we are building a 30 foot water tower of waiting for the electricity.

= 13psi = not enough.

Some sources say less than 10 psi is enough, but recommend more. I imagine there are other factors to consider. Not really wanting to get into a battle of wits with you Naam, I know you like that. I am just looking for some good answers based on experience. Thank you. If you have something to offer other than negative comments or criticism, that would be great.

are those sources aware that you are planning to attach 2.65 kilometers (1.65 miles) of pipe and did the sources calculate the flow resistance of that total pipe length? but let's leave that for later because...

...your biggest problem is not flow resistance but to distribute the flow not only evenly to the individual 26 rows but also achieve an evenly discharge for each row and the individual 100 pipe meters. the latter is even a bigger challenge no matter what pressure and flow is initially available... except if you have water galore to waste and go for a system similar to the picture "never sure" has posted.

the calculation is not rocket science but still quite difficult. but the basis should be "how much maximum water volume at what interval do you need for each row during the dry season" and then work your way back calculating diameter and number of holes in the pipe, necessary flow rate and pressure comes into the picture.

of course you can say "this is what is available, i can't increase the variables and the plants will have to do with whatever i am able to provide."

[Canada]

It may as well be rocket science Naam. I think we'll likely be working from a basis of......"well, that didn't work well, how can we improve?"This may not be the best way of doing things but it's probably more in the range of what I am able to do....if you get what I mean. I'll try to minimize errors on the more expensive parts of the project by doing some research. Along with trying to figure this out, I am trying to get some sort of dwelling built that doesn't resemble a jungle hut, deliver water to another 100 rai worth of sugar, get 2 more wells drilled, build a compound for my dogs that have yet to arrive, build a chicken home for 40 chickens or my dogs will eat them, oh...and get some freaking electricity.

There is a company here in LOS that sells solar power delivery systems. They have installed quite a number of systems for small rural mubans and also have a simple plan for a solar powered pump fed drip irrigation system. I am getting the sense that this may be my best bet. In the meantime, I'll keep watering as the Thais do until I figure out the best way to go with this project. I am doing this 3 rai as an experiment really. We have 3 different strains of cane, planted by machine (in a different way) and will vary water, fertiliser, weed control and ph control from the norm in the area. I am not looking to duplicate the 100 ton per rai that has been achieved, but rather develop a system that will increase return that is applicable on a larger scale. Drip irrigation may not actually fit into that set of parameters. Drip irrigation on a large scale is quite a project in itself. So is supplying water to 100 rai....any way you look at it.

Anyways, thanks for your input.

D

[Naam]

oh...and get some freaking electricity

looking at what you are planning that should be your main concern. by the way, solar power is only an expensive band aid and not a solution.

[Canada]

oh...and get some freaking electricity

looking at what you are planning that should be your main concern. by the way, solar power is only an expensive band aid and not a solution.

I am not sure about that yet, although I suspect the same. I have yet to get price quotes based on expected usage. Yet to get prices of any sort actually. Too busy trying to get other things done.

Depending on price, a solar powered pump fed drip irrigation system may be a solution for some applications. Other solutions would include buying land to farm that has power available, but the price goes up with its desirability.

This particular 3 rai piece is only 600 m from power so it is available. I just don't like paying power authority to run it out here and then it being their property and anyone else wanting to hook up to it is welcome to do so at no charge aside from monthly usage charges. There are already about 5 properties between us and the power waiting for us to do it. I refuse. fuc_king freeloaders.

[Naam]

There are already about 5 properties between us and the power waiting for us to do it. I refuse. fuc_king freeloaders.

what if all of you contribute to pay?

[NeverSure]

Some sources say less than 10 psi is enough, but recommend more. I imagine there are other factors to consider. Not really wanting to get into a battle of wits with you Naam, I know you like that. I am just looking for some good answers based on experience. Thank you. If you have something to offer other than negative comments or criticism, that would be great.

10 psi is plenty to flood irrigate if you have a large enough mainline pipe that you don't lose much pressure. Here, volume is more important than pressure. You will be using what is called "non-captive" pressure and it simply has to flow the volume you want. If you use a drip system, you must capture some of the pressure in order to cause water to flow from the (let's call them drip holes) in an even way along the length of the run(s) of drip pipe. If necessary you can do this by trial and error by adding to or shortening the run of pipe until all holes flow equally. If you buy drip heads, you can calculate it.

I'll say it again. With the scope of your project, I don't see a water tower in the equation. You will need so much water that any tower you build will empty so quickly that the pump will run anyway. Unless your well capacity is so low that you need to pump small amounts and store it (in which case you're already in trouble) then you might as well just feed from the pump. Now you have no pressure problems and you have a known flow and pressure to work with. Now you'd need a regulator to cut the pressure down, or you'll have to get the distance and number of holes just right to account for it.

If you drip, you'll need a really good filter or your holes will soon plug, and worse if you pump from a surface source.

snip... except if you have water galore to waste and go for a system similar to the picture "never sure" has posted.

I'm "not sure" what that means. I grew up on a 4,000 acre ranch in E. Oregon, in the irrigation district from the Columbia River. Farmers don't consider ditch irrigation a waste. I consider overhead sprinkling a waste but it's still the predominate method.

I earned much of my spare change moving irrigation pipe for other ranchers as did most of my friends until we got old enough to drive a combine or a wheat dump truck which followed the combines and emptied them.

This ain't my first rodeo.

[Canada]

There are already about 5 properties between us and the power waiting for us to do it. I refuse. fuc_king freeloaders.

what if all of you contribute to pay?

Now that's a nice thought.......

[Canada]

I am seeing the same for this project. Looks like a pump driven system, which is not a big deal, just that I have no electricity yet aside from a 5kw generator, which would drive a pump...for a price. I'd have more money into fuel than I would get off the sugarcane.

Other problem is that I had an improper well drilled. I doubt that it is even diameter as only the top 5 m is lined. I think I wuld have problems getting a pump down. I'll need to drill a proper, deeper well and 6" bore would be better seeing as how I'll need to drill another well anyways. I have the deep well driller going to another piece this week, I'll talk to him about it. At least I have a date with the well driller.....which may or may not be worth much.

[NeverSure]

The type of irrigation used is always a dilemma. With ditches, you can put down a lot of water in a hurry at low pressure. If you have a lot of water this is the cheapest. It costs money (both in pump type and energy) to build and maintain pressure, and drip and sprinklers systems have to run longer. The installed equipment is also more expensive for drip or sprinkler.

Drip and sprinklers are sometimes used only because of the water supply. If the well will produce limited amounts, then drip works well. If you're pumping unlimited amounts from a river or natural pond, then you have any option.

With low pressure flooding, even the pump(s) will cost a lot less. You can flood with what's called a trash pump which I'd want for use in a river or pond. It can literally handle some trash, but it will produce good volume but not high pressure. If you want higher pressure, then it's another pump entirely. I paid $US3,000 for a good 2.5 hp variable speed submersible, and it will pump about 35 gpm at 60 psi, but a heck of a lot more water than that at low pressure for the same energy cost. It all depends which valve is turned on. If the valve sends the water to captive pressure (such as a house where all valves are turned off and the pressure is captured) it's entirely different from when another valve sends the water down a 2" pipe which is open on the end.

I paid $US500 for a trash pump in case I want to pull from the irrigation ditch and it will produce about 50 gpm at about 10 psi. It's just a backup because I can get everything I need to irrigate the 3/4 acre I do water from the well. This saves me from picking up weed seeds from the ditch if nothing else. I also don't have to wait my turn for the ditch water.

It doesn't take as much electricity to run a motor as it does a resistance element, so if your pump isn't building high pressure, it should run pretty cheaply.

It would really be nice to know how many gpm of water you'll have.

BTW, how deep is the static (water level) of your existing well, and do you know the gpm? There are perfectly good low pressure pumps that don't have to submerse if it isn't too far down to water. We sure as heck don't submerse irrigation pumps whether high pressure or trash pumps. Most wells which are cased and sealed and the pump submersed are that way to assure drinking purity. Some are cased because the soil type might cave in, but routine irrigation wells are different.

[Naam]

snip... except if you have water galore to waste and go for a system similar to the picture "never sure" has posted.

I'm "not sure" what that means. I grew up on a 4,000 acre ranch in E. Oregon, in the irrigation district from the Columbia River. Farmers don't consider ditch irrigation a waste. I consider overhead sprinkling a waste but it's still the predominate method.

-OP Canada wants drip irrigation

-Never Sure suggests ditch irrigation

question: which of the two method requires a multiple of water volume over and above the other one?

[Canada]

The type of irrigation used is always a dilemma. With ditches, you can put down a lot of water in a hurry at low pressure. If you have a lot of water this is the cheapest. It costs money (both in pump type and energy) to build and maintain pressure, and drip and sprinklers systems have to run longer. The installed equipment is also more expensive for drip or sprinkler.

Drip and sprinklers are sometimes used only because of the water supply. If the well will produce limited amounts, then drip works well. If you're pumping unlimited amounts from a river or natural pond, then you have any option.

With low pressure flooding, even the pump(s) will cost a lot less. You can flood with what's called a trash pump which I'd want for use in a river or pond. It can literally handle some trash, but it will produce good volume but not high pressure. If you want higher pressure, then it's another pump entirely. I paid $US3,000 for a good 2.5 hp variable speed submersible, and it will pump about 35 gpm at 60 psi, but a heck of a lot more water than that at low pressure for the same energy cost. It all depends which valve is turned on. If the valve sends the water to captive pressure (such as a house where all valves are turned off and the pressure is captured) it's entirely different from when another valve sends the water down a 2" pipe which is open on the end.

I paid $US500 for a trash pump in case I want to pull from the irrigation ditch and it will produce about 50 gpm at about 10 psi. It's just a backup because I can get everything I need to irrigate the 3/4 acre I do water from the well. This saves me from picking up weed seeds from the ditch if nothing else. I also don't have to wait my turn for the ditch water.

It doesn't take as much electricity to run a motor as it does a resistance element, so if your pump isn't building high pressure, it should run pretty cheaply.

It would really be nice to know how many gpm of water you'll have.

BTW, how deep is the static (water level) of your existing well, and do you know the gpm? There are perfectly good low pressure pumps that don't have to submerse if it isn't too far down to water. We sure as heck don't submerse irrigation pumps whether high pressure or trash pumps. Most wells which are cased and sealed and the pump submersed are that way to assure drinking purity. Some are cased because the soil type might cave in, but routine irrigation wells are different.

I can't give figures, but I can tell you that the water volume is low. I have a similar type well on another property that pumps a full 2" pipe. Same pump, same rpms. This well pumps out a quarter of a 2" pipe....if this means anything to you.

[NeverSure]

snip... except if you have water galore to waste and go for a system similar to the picture "never sure" has posted.

I'm "not sure" what that means. I grew up on a 4,000 acre ranch in E. Oregon, in the irrigation district from the Columbia River. Farmers don't consider ditch irrigation a waste. I consider overhead sprinkling a waste but it's still the predominate method.

-OP Canada wants drip irrigation

-Never Sure suggests ditch irrigation

question: which of the two method requires a multiple of water volume over and above the other one?

No, and you may stop it now. I don't want anything. I gave alternatives based on cost, and amount of water available, and terrain. I asked and didn't know even how much water he has available over a given amount of time.

[NeverSure]

The type of irrigation used is always a dilemma. With ditches, you can put down a lot of water in a hurry at low pressure. If you have a lot of water this is the cheapest. It costs money (both in pump type and energy) to build and maintain pressure, and drip and sprinklers systems have to run longer. The installed equipment is also more expensive for drip or sprinkler.

Drip and sprinklers are sometimes used only because of the water supply. If the well will produce limited amounts, then drip works well. If you're pumping unlimited amounts from a river or natural pond, then you have any option.

With low pressure flooding, even the pump(s) will cost a lot less. You can flood with what's called a trash pump which I'd want for use in a river or pond. It can literally handle some trash, but it will produce good volume but not high pressure. If you want higher pressure, then it's another pump entirely. I paid $US3,000 for a good 2.5 hp variable speed submersible, and it will pump about 35 gpm at 60 psi, but a heck of a lot more water than that at low pressure for the same energy cost. It all depends which valve is turned on. If the valve sends the water to captive pressure (such as a house where all valves are turned off and the pressure is captured) it's entirely different from when another valve sends the water down a 2" pipe which is open on the end.

I paid $US500 for a trash pump in case I want to pull from the irrigation ditch and it will produce about 50 gpm at about 10 psi. It's just a backup because I can get everything I need to irrigate the 3/4 acre I do water from the well. This saves me from picking up weed seeds from the ditch if nothing else. I also don't have to wait my turn for the ditch water.

It doesn't take as much electricity to run a motor as it does a resistance element, so if your pump isn't building high pressure, it should run pretty cheaply.

It would really be nice to know how many gpm of water you'll have.

BTW, how deep is the static (water level) of your existing well, and do you know the gpm? There are perfectly good low pressure pumps that don't have to submerse if it isn't too far down to water. We sure as heck don't submerse irrigation pumps whether high pressure or trash pumps. Most wells which are cased and sealed and the pump submersed are that way to assure drinking purity. Some are cased because the soil type might cave in, but routine irrigation wells are different.

I can't give figures, but I can tell you that the water volume is low. I have a similar type well on another property that pumps a full 2" pipe. Same pump, same rpms. This well pumps out a quarter of a 2" pipe....if this means anything to you.

I'd get a bucket of known size and time it to full. Then a little math will tell you what the gpm is of that flow. Also, well tests are done for four hours. If it will pump a certain amount for 4 hours without drawing the static level down much, then that's the well's gpm.

If your pump isn't adjustable and it pumps the well dry, then the answer is simply a valve and cut down the flow and measure again. I realize this is backwoods technique, but you probably don't have a flow meter etc.

You are having another well drilled? Before you can design an irrigation system you need to know your available GPM. If it's low, the drip will work but you'll need many stations, one running after another.

If a well will flow 20 gpm at no pressure, it will also flow that at high pressure. The difference is the pump type and resistance. 20 gpm is 20 gpm.

I can't estimate the amount of water you mention from a 2 inch pipe. I have no idea. Frankly, with the amount of land you're mentioning I'm thinking you need a lot of water and I mean a lot. An acre-foot of water is about 43,000 cubic feet, or about 350,000 gallons of water. In my hot summer climate I have to put down 2" of water a week for most plants so you need about 7,000 cubic feet or 50,000 gallons of water per acre per week when it's hot. I think a rai is a little less than 1/2 acre????

We have dry-land crops which depend on soil moisture and rain, and irrigated crops. People choose crops based on climate, soil type and availability of water.

I wonder if you're choosing the right crop for now. I haven't farmed in LOS so I don't know what they farm on dry land. In the US wheat and corn rank high there, but they still depend on good soil moisture for planting, and then some rain. In the Midwest right now and last year there is drought and crop failure, especially with corn.

I'm just rambling from experience, hoping to give you something that might spark an idea one way or the other.

[Canada]

I appreciate your ramblings. Thank you. Most sugar farmers in this area rely on rain as most don't have money to invest in irrigation. Once the sugar is planted it gets water. Then again one or two times before the rain season. So that is 2 or 3 waterings in a four to 5 month period. Local yields are probably an average of 12-14 tons per rai. Which is a little more than half of what average yield should be. Sugar survives drought well it seems but yields are very low in this area due to the lack of irrigation. The cane does not need much. I think a little would go a long ways.

I have put drip on the back burner for now. I'll need to do more calculating and cost figuring before I go ahead with this. Until then, I'll continue with the Thai labour intensive method and modification of it.

[harrry]

....10 PSI.. ...3 rai.... 26 rows of sugar at about 100 m per row. I am about to put a water tower in and am researching systems requirements.

a futile undertaking without a pump

Just put a ladder and you can fill the tank with a bucket.....no need for a pump

[Gary A]

The shallow ditch method between rows is certainly the easiest and cheapest. The shaft driven pump immersed into a pond and powered with a single cylinder Kubota or Yanmar diesel engine delivers a huge volume of water. Our Kubota tak tak running at just above idle speed using a four inch pump will irrigate about eight rai of sugar cane in a couple of days. It works well until the pond runs dry.

The problem is what happens when the pond gets too low? This has been a very dry year and our ponds are the lowest that I have ever seen them. Topping up a pond from a deep well is an expensive proposition. Besides the initial investment for boring the well and buying the pump, the fuel costs of pumping from the well are a killer.

For gardens and small areas, soaker hoses are easy to use and require only low pressure. A few PSI pressure from a low tower will easily run a hundred foot of hose. You need to move the hose between rows once a day unless you want to spend a lot of money for manifolds and multiple hoses. Unfortunately unless they have improved the hose material, the sun degrades the hose and you will be lucky to get more than one growing season. I have found that laying black plastic strips over the soaker hose conserves water and protects the hose from the sun. I suppose a perforated one inch PVC pipe would last longer but would be more work moving between rows.

[NeverSure]

Back to the sugar beets, no irrigation, etc.

It is always the case that a dry land farm will produce less than one with irrigation, all other things being equal. BUT it costs a lot of money to install and run an irrigation system of any sophistication. Installation and maintenance costs were the only reasons I suggested thinking of ditching the rows and flooding. That's if you have enough water.

So, sometimes a dry land farm will be more profitable than an irrigated one. Yield is only one thing. I'm telling you, a real irrigation system is expensive. It takes power (energy costs) and work to maintain it during the season. It takes maintenance in the off season. Someone is working it every day. I see those 1/4 mile long wheel lines running and only wonder how much electricity they are using. I know how much water they are using. I know how much they cost and it's staggering.

We had (family still has) 2,000 of 4,000 acres in dry land wheat. All we had to do was to till and fertilize and plant it. The planter fertilized at the same time. We pull the implements with a large cat. Then once during the season we hire a crop duster to fly on a broad leaf herbicide to kill weeds and increase yield. Then it's a matter of running the combines and dump trucks through and hauling it to the elevator. If we irrigated it we would double our costs but not our yields.

Just for giggles, these circles are 1/2 mile diameter. The sprinkler lines are 1/4 mile long and pivot from the middle. Here's a couple of designs. The wheels are huge and powered by hydraulic motors and water pressure. The line is kept straight by sensing micro-switches. Someone had some money to burn.

[Naam]

GaryA:

The shaft driven pump immersed into a pond and powered with a single cylinder Kubota or Yanmar diesel engine delivers a huge volume of water.

A few PSI pressure from a low tower will easily run a hundred foot of hose. You need to move the hose between rows once a day unless you want to spend a lot of money for manifolds and multiple hoses.

the OP has 26 rows each 100 meters (300 foot), he doesn't have a pond and his well does not yield a huge amount of water.

why not trying to help the OP with advice (if available) based on the facts he provided instead of writing scientific papers about irrigation methods which do not apply?

[NeverSure]

I think that the more the guy knows about different types of systems, costs, ROI, dry land vs irrigated and all, the better off he is.

We don't know his land. Much of the land in LOS has a high water table. For all we know he could dig a productive pond. It certainly takes less energy to lift from a pond than from a deep water well. Someone just told him how much water can be pumped from a pond with a single cylinder diesel with a 4 inch hose, and with specificity about the machine, time and number of rai.

Yes it's random information about random land we don't know much about. I like all of the information I can get including how much water a single cylinder Kubota will pump in terms of area irrigated and pipe size used.

We have no idea what he will end up doing. We don't know whether he'll have almost no water, or a flood of it. At the least he surely has a lot of information to consider.

[Canada]

If I ran one soaker hose for 2 hrs per day and changed it 3 times per day to another row, I would water 4 rows per day. I could water every row once a week. That's better than your average Thai sugar farm. I may get enough pressure off a not very tall water tower to accomplish this. My rows all flow on a slight downhill grade from the water well.

I could run 1" pvc with holes drilled and the end capped. 3 metre lengths not glued for easy moving. or....set up drip lines with a valve on each line....open one or two at a time....easiest once installed....but more expensive

[Canada]

I think that the more the guy knows about different types of systems, costs, ROI, dry land vs irrigated and all, the better off he is.

We don't know his land. Much of the land in LOS has a high water table. For all we know he could dig a productive pond. It certainly takes less energy to lift from a pond than from a deep water well. Someone just told him how much water can be pumped from a pond with a single cylinder diesel with a 4 inch hose, and with specificity about the machine, time and number of rai.

Yes it's random information about random land we don't know much about. I like all of the information I can get including how much water a single cylinder Kubota will pump in terms of area irrigated and pipe size used.

We have no idea what he will end up doing. We don't know whether he'll have almost no water, or a flood of it. At the least he surely has a lot of information to consider.

I agree. More information is better. It helps to spark ideas. I have a single cylinder diesel Kubota and a 2" pump, but the water here is not that great so pumping straight out into the field is time-consuming. I would rather spend my time building a system that I could watch work rather than move pipe by hand for the rest of the year.

I think you take your avatar a little too serious Naam. Warf was a Klingon warrior. We are not at war. This is not Star Trek. We're just trying to figure out some shit in a friendly way. Actually my only question was if anyone had any experience working a drip system with less than 10 psi. A simple "no" would suffice.