Can anyone out there advise me on this? I put in four hop plants this fall and am planning to install a little drip system for them next spring. I've done lots of web serfing and think I get it except for the valve. Apparently low flow is a real issue with these solenoid-operated diaphragm valves typically used for irrigation systems. Because I am only watering four plants, my flow will be extremely low. I'm thinking I will have two 0.5 gal/hour emitters for each plant, so that is 8x.5/60=0.07 gal/min. When I look at drip irrigation valves at places like Rain Bird, even the low flow valves have a listed "bottom-of-the-range" of .2 gpm. If necessary I can extend this thing to the rose garden and increase my design flow, but I digress...
Now, to add to the confusion, I saw a thread on this very forum that described using one of these all-in-one timer/valves (hose-end timer) that you would install on a hose bib and connect your drip main to the discharge and it can be programmed for whatever you want your watering schedule to be, same as you would do with a separate controller connected to a valve.
They seem to indicate these will work for sprinklers and drip systems alike.
So, how does this thing avoid all the issues that plague the valve designers?
Now, to add to the confusion, I saw a thread on this very forum that described using one of these all-in-one timer/valves (hose-end timer) that you would install on a hose bib and connect your drip main to the discharge and it can be programmed for whatever you want your watering schedule to be, same as you would do with a separate controller connected to a valve.
They seem to indicate these will work for sprinklers and drip systems alike.
So, how does this thing avoid all the issues that plague the valve designers?