Caravan and garden

[Buckman]

When we go away for a week or more we pay someone to come around and water the plants at least once a week. Is it possible get a drip system watering kit that can be controlled either by using a timer or using an app to switch the water on and off? Tried a bit of Googling, but probably using incorrect wording for search.
Can any one suggest a system that they are possibly already using? Thanks.

 

[otherclive]

I hada system when we had long trips abroad. It was a combination of slow drip around plants and micro sprinklers for containers.As far as possible I tried to place the containers close together in groups so that water wasn't wasted. It was a battery operated timer controlled valve that fitted to the outdoors tap. that then fed into manifold from which the various lines fed out to the watering areas. It came on twice a day early morning and later evening. Only for 15 minutes each time. Its was very effective.

However we stoped using it as I believe that the system was responsible for an indoors leak. One morning my wife heard the noise of water jetting in a kitchen cupboard. The indoor valve that isolated the outdoor tap had blown its internals out and we had mains pressure jetting into the cupboard. Luckily we were at home. Subsequently we found major leak in an underfloor mains cold water pipe that became a major insurance claim.

My thoughts are that the irrigation control valve shut off when the time interval ended, and its shut of was very rapid. I suspected that this created a reverse pulse that damaged the indoor isolating valve and possibly the underfloor mains pipe.

Since then we have paid someone to come around and water, although these days our daughter only lives 10 minutes walk away so she comes around. I turn off the gas and mains supply when e are away, so she just turn the mains on and goes around with the watering hose.

Hoselock, Klaber nd Gardena all do the systems and you can buy the ancillary bits on Amazon and Ebay etc. My timer was a Klaber.

I got the kit from here:

https://www.easygardenirrigation.co.uk/collections/garden-irrigation-systems

 

[Buckman]

Ouch just looked at Hozelock system with timer and cheaper to carry on paying the person to come in and water the plants.

 

[otherclive]

Basic kits can be put together without paying Hoselock or Gardena prices. On Ebay there lots of sellers with the hose, micrometers, leaky pipes, support pegs, balancers etc. I bought a branded timer though, albeit one with almost instantaneous shut off speed, and we had high water pressure and don't forget if you are watering a lot of stuff the water flow into the system is full bore.

 

[JTQ]

Gardena do a whole system of hose, drippers and sprinklers, that in the more sophisticated version use their timer unit LINK

When we cultivated our land I made up my own using hose and their distribution bits all fed from a sump pump in our well, the pump being on a cheap mains timer. All worked well for many years.

If you have the approved anti-back flow outside tap you can use a hose , then a cheap washing machine solenoid valve and timer could form the basis of a system using Gardena distribution bits.

 

[Beachball]

Our son comes in every two days or so to water the garden if it hot we found that was a better system and gave him some cans of beer

 

[Thingy]

Our garden is now mainly patio and that is filled with large tubs and pots.

Luckily, our daughter lives 100yds away, and our grandson loves to earn a bit of pocket money by watering the plants. We try to aid this by placing very large plant sauces (Pound Shop or Fleabay) beneath our pots, and we fill them with water so the pots are standing in them, and we have covered the top of each pot with slate chippings which stops them drying out so fast.

OC, I cant see why the valve failing would cause an indoor leak. Surely, if the tap is on or off, you will still have the same pressure in the pipes. Like you recently, we had an underfloor leak, and came home to find the hallway wrecked, and that too became an insurance claim. As the leak was under a tiled floor in the bathroom, that too was involved, and we ended up paying for a new bathrom too. That was our last trip to Cornwall in 2019. And add to that what we are going through now, its beginning to look like the gods conspire against us.

 

[otherclive]

Our garden is now mainly patio and that is filled with large tubs and pots.

Luckily, our daughter lives 100yds away, and our grandson loves to earn a bit of pocket money by watering the plants. We try to aid this by placing very large plant sauces (Pound Shop or Fleabay) beneath our pots, and we fill them with water so the pots are standing in them, and we have covered the top of each pot with slate chippings which stops them drying out so fast.

OC, I cant see why the valve failing would cause an indoor leak. Surely, if the tap is on or off, you will still have the same pressure in the pipes. Like you recently, we had an underfloor leak, and came home to find the hallway wrecked, and that too became an insurance claim. As the leak was under a tiled floor in the bathroom, that too was involved, and we ended up paying for a new bathrom too. That was our last trip to Cornwall in 2019. And add to that what we are going through now, its beginning to look like the gods conspire against us.

The leak was when the indoor isolating valve that allowed me to isolate the outdoors tap in winter blew apart. The timed outdoor irrigation valve slammed shut as the timed interval ended.

However we stoped using it as I believe that the system was responsible for an indoors leak. One morning my wife heard the noise of water jetting in a kitchen cupboard. The indoor valve that isolated the outdoor tap had blown its internals out and we had mains pressure jetting into the cupboard. Luckily we were at home

PS pressure can increase momentarily due to sudden close off.

 

[Buckman]

We are only looking at watering about 20 pots including tomatoes. Most are indoor plants with afew outdoor plants. Not too bothered with the plants that are in the garden as I am sure it will rain at some point while we are away.

 

[Jcloughie]

The leak was when the indoor isolating valve that allowed me to isolate the outdoors tap in winter blew apart. The timed outdoor irrigation valve slammed shut as the timed interval ended.




PS pressure can increase momentarily due to sudden close off.

Washing machines and suchlike have similar soliniod valves without an issue, Could have been a faulty olive. Commpession and soldered joints can take many times mains pressure.

———————-

We are only looking at watering about 20 pots including tomatoes. Most are indoor plants with afew outdoor plants. Not too bothered with the plants that are in the garden as I am sure it will rain at some point while we are away.

I am not in favour of automated irrigation systems personally as:

• They could fail and waste water.
• They can be difficult to hide.
• They can be difficult to calibrate throughout the system.

A local pub used one for their hanging baskets, they soaked them for 1 hour every evening. But that was probably an operator issue.

For inside pots, in the summer we find putting them outside out of full sun does them good. It’s easier then to water with the rest of the garden.

We are lucky to have great neighbours who are willing to water and our son is 2 mins away.


John

 

[otherclive]

Washing machines and suchlike have similar soliniod valves without an issue, Could have been a faulty olive. Commpession and soldered joints can take many times mains pressure.

———————-





I am not in favour of automated irrigation systems personally as:

• They could fail and waste water.
• They can be difficult to hide.
• They can be difficult to calibrate throughout the system.

A local pub used one for their hanging baskets, they soaked them for 1 hour every evening. But that was probably an operator issue.

For inside pots, in the summer we find putting them outside out of full sun does them good. It’s easier then to water with the rest of the garden.

We are lucky to have great neighbours who are willing to water and our son is 2 mins away.


John

John
forgive me but I do know when a valve physically fails rather than the olive or compression coupling failing. It was a JG valve on push fit couplings and the couplings were A1 which is more than can be said for the valve.

 

[Jcloughie]

Then as I said, faulty valve.
John

 

[otherclive]

Then as I said, faulty valve.
John

You didn’t say a faulty valve, unless it’s implicit in your comment on system failure. You explicitly intimated that such valve on washing machines are “ without an issue”.

For information it was a JG emergency shut off valve and it’s central core departed from its body, despite a 50 year guarantee ☹But rich when ones emergency shut off blows apart. No wonder my wife says I’m a pessimist.

 

[Jcloughie]

You didn’t say a faulty valve, unless it’s implicit in your comment on system failure. You explicitly intimated that such valve on washing machines are “ without an issue”.

For information it was a JG emergency shut off valve and it’s central core departed from its body, despite a 50 year guarantee ☹But rich when ones emergency shut off blows apart. No wonder my wife says I’m a pessimist.

It was implicit, forgive me, as I thought it to be obvious. I never suggested it would not be a faulty valve or fitting, but whatever technology the valve uses it should cope with the pressures and beyond and not be unduly affected by a pressure blip caused by a solenoid valve.


That ALL the point I was making.

John