Not your typical system

As concerns about water shortages, restrictions and price increases have gained momentum, so has interest in certain forms of irrigation. In parts of the country, the days of using sprinklers to water flowerbeds are not only being replaced with methods of water conservation but overhead systems have even been banned. The trends have given way to a rise in popularity of drip irrigation.

“The drip segment of our industry is growing faster and has been growing faster than the overall segment of our market,” says Mike Baron, Toro’s national specifications manager for water management products. “And that is because the need to conserve water and improve irrigation efficiency has been working.”

An increase in the use of drip technology has been seen in both residential and commercial landscapes. And while it’s more prevalent in the Southwest and drought-stricken states, it’s a form of irrigation that everyone can stand to benefit from using.

How drip works

Unlike a traditional sprinkler system that rotates to reach a broad area of lawn and landscaping, drip distributes water to a smaller, more central location.

“Basically, drip irrigation delivers water slowly at low pressure directly to the root zone of the landscape plant material,” says Dave Palumbo, irrigation products sales manager at Rain Bird.

The drip system is woven throughout the plant material either directly above or below ground and water is emitted in gallons per hour, not gallons per minute.

“The idea is we are applying water very slowly at or near the root zone so that we lose almost no water to evaporation, or to landing or being placed where it doesn’t do the plant any good,” Baron says. “By eliminating those sources of water, you increase the efficiency when you use a drip system over more conventional methods.”

Drip systems can be used in any situation one would find regular irrigation techniques, but is mainly seen in flowerbeds and containers. While it can be used for turf and is gaining popularity for turf irrigation, some manufacturers caution using the technique because maintenance can cause challenges.

That said, there are two basic approaches to drip technology.

For sparse planting, tubing – usually polyethylene – is laid in lateral lines to carry the water to the plant. Emitters are placed in the tubing that circles the plant to carry water directly to the roots. “You don’t want to be watering that open space because it’s not growing anything, so you don’t need any water there,” Baron says. “What we call drip emitters are placed near the plant. You typically like to have two emitters, one on each side of the plant.”

For denser plantings, dripline might be more suitable. This technology already has emitters built into the tubing, which is usually PVC or some form of polyethylene, and the emitters comes with different spacing (i.e., 6 or 9 inches apart) and different flow rates.

“In that case, you collate around the plant material and you can either bury the tubing with mulch or put it on top of the ground,” says Stuart Spaulding, technical service manager at DIG Corp.  “Dripline is more suitable for an area where you have a lot of plants close together, say ground cover or flowerbeds where you want to receive total saturation of the entire bed,” he says.

What contractors should know

While drip can be a more efficient way to irrigate, if the system isn’t installed and run properly, it still wastes water.

“It all comes down to proper water management,” says Mark Hall, district sales manager at Netafim USA. “You can waste just as much water with drip as you can with spray. It’s all how you run your controller.”

The three components contractors need to pay close attention to are water pressure, filtration and run time.

“Technically speaking they should know that it operates at lower pressure than a sprinkler system so they should put in a pressure regulator if necessary,” Spaulding says. “Also, drip systems usually utilize a filter, which a conventional sprinkler system doesn’t, to keep the water relatively clean and keep the emitters from clogging.”

A traditional sprinkler system can operate anywhere from 30-60 psi, experts say. But a drip system needs to be below 50 psi and can run as low as 15 psi. Also, because the water rate is gallons per hour instead of gallons per minute, a filtration system can go a long way in keeping clean water circulating.

“The third (point for contractors) is that the system probably needs to run longer,” Palumbo says. “Because the flow rate is less, you need to run it longer than you would a conventional irrigation system.”

Because the water flow rate is a different measurement, it might take some time to get the water schedule down, Baron says. Contractors will need to look at the different plants and understand their exact watering needs.

While there are technical aspects to think about, the systems aren’t that difficult to put in if you have the proper training, Spaulding says. “I think there’s a little bit of confusion about that,” he says. “Some people might think its tedious and time consuming, but if you do a little bit of research and get a little bit of training it’s no problem at all.”

The experts say organizations like the Irrigation Association and many local college extensions offer classes.

Baron says new contractors hesitant about installing drip systems can also spend $30-$40 and experiment with connecting the tubing and a hose. “Don’t be afraid to punch the tubing, connect the tubing, take emitters in and out, flush the line and then throw it all away,” he says. “I think it’s a mindset of, ‘I’ve never done it before, am I going to screw it up?’”

What to emphasize when selling drip

While drip has been around for decades, manufacturers say there’s been an installation boon as the public becomes more educated about the technology.

States such as California, Arizona, Nevada and Florida are leading the way with installations taking place, but it is spreading throughout the country. Retrofitting has also become popular.

To understand the reason for the growing trend, all one has to do is look at the numbers. Industry experts say those using drip can save anywhere from 25-70 percent on water usage. The number can vary widely based on proper management of the system, but other benefits include not having water spots on cars, windows and houses – anywhere the wind or rotation might take the spray from a traditional sprinkler system.

Experts also say there is a misconception that the system costs a great deal more to install. “Installing it might be a little more expensive, but it all depends,” Palumbo says. “It depends on if you’re going to bury the system or leave it at grade. There are some variables that make it tough to say it’s always more expensive or it’s always less expensive. But it’s very comparable.”

When selling drip systems to clients, the benefits are important to point out. But it might not hurt to take a few extra steps. For those just installing the systems, teaming with a good designer is one way, Hall says.

“Contractors say, ‘People won’t pay for a design,’ but a lot of it has to go into how you sell it,” he says. “If you sell it properly to a customer, they’ll realize the value of a design and that is going to make for a better job. And actually, the contractor will probably make more money.”

Another recommendation is to use visuals in the selling process, Hall says. Take photos before a system is installed, during and after to document the work.

“When the contractor goes to the next client, they can say, ‘This is what it achieved. Before we had water spotting on the windows, now we don’t. Before our plants were yellowing, now they’re not,’” Hall says. “You can tell them in three years, all of the money you’ve spent, you can get back and this is how.”

The author is an associate editor at Lawn & Landscape. She can be reached at clawell@gie.net.