Irrigation

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

WatereeBrew

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 2, 2009
Messages
47
Reaction score
1
Location
Camden, SC
Does anyone have experience with pumping water out of a river for irrigating a field of hops? I'm off the grid and thinking of building a water wheel to power an alternator, which will charge a bank of batteries to run a 12 volt pump.
right now i'm using a gas pump to fill a 250 gal tank which gravity feeds my hops, but i'd like enough pressure to run misters twice a day 10 feet up the bines.
 
Does anyone have experience with pumping water out of a river for irrigating a field of hops? I'm off the grid and thinking of building a water wheel to power an alternator, which will charge a bank of batteries to run a 12 volt pump.
right now i'm using a gas pump to fill a 250 gal tank which gravity feeds my hops, but i'd like enough pressure to run misters twice a day 10 feet up the bines.
I dont think you would want to run a mister on the hops, fungus and mold will get them, its best to water them at ground level, at least that is what all the info tells me, but I love the idea of a water wheel, good luck on your project, and keep us informed.:mug:
 
ok, so if that is the case then gravity feed will work fine. now i just have to find a better way of moving the water from the river to the holding tank.
How about if the water wheel is directly hooked up to a water pump which will fill the tank slowly all day. this takes a few steps out of the process.
 
I want to see pix as well, this sounds like a great project. I'm especially interested in the off grid horticulture set up you've got going on.
 
I don't want to rain on your parade, but I'm a civil engineer and work on hydraulic projects like dams, levees and pump stations. I know this project is small, but you really need to check into your local permit requirements before starting this project. It seems rediculous, but I wouldn't be surprised if you are required to get a withdrawl permit, a stream buffer variance, an erosion and sediment control permit and a land disturbance permit. There may be some agricultural exemptions you can exercise, buy you'll need to research or contact your extension agent. Also, if you're on an official trout stream that will complicate issues.

If you can figure out a way to deploy only when irrigation is needed and remove when not, I think that might be an easier way to get around all the red tape. Possibly a small floating barge that is tethered to the shorline.
 
yeh, we've already got permits to pump out from the river to fill our duck pond, so they should appyly to a piece of 1" pvc. this is a big river with no trout. but I am all about being legit, thanks.
 
How much lift are you talking about when the river is at it's lowest? If it isn't much you could attach scoops to the wheel that would empty at the top of the loop.
 
i've thought of that, like belgian style but i've got about 15 ft. of lift to the hops and another 15 to the top of the tank.
IMG00203-20090730-1609.jpg
This is my current setup, 250 gallon plastic water tank, running to 1" sprinkler pipe with 1/16" holes drilled for each mound. i'm using a mister landscaper timer. If i have a small pump going all day, I can let it fill my tank and just overflow. I need a live well underneath so the overflowing water will aeriate the livewell. I can catch some catfish, put them in the big fish tank underneath, put a ball valve in the bottom and use that nutrient rich water to feed the hops... I don't know where i'm going with this but I like it... let me think on it a while.
 
I dont think you would want to run a mister on the hops, fungus and mold will get them, its best to water them at ground level, at least that is what all the info tells me, but I love the idea of a water wheel, good luck on your project, and keep us informed.:mug:

I not sure I understand this, if you mist late morning, the hop plant and leaves have all day to dry. I plan on adding misting to my hops next year, one mister at the 4-5 foot level and another at the top. The mister/fogger I purchased are rated at 3/4 gallon per hour. I'm having a terrible time with spider mites and have read that misting plants daily will help keep the problem in check. Well see.

tom
 
I not sure I understand this, if you mist late morning, the hop plant and leaves have all day to dry. I plan on adding misting to my hops next year, one mister at the 4-5 foot level and another at the top. The mister/fogger I purchased are rated at 3/4 gallon per hour. I'm having a terrible time with spider mites and have read that misting plants daily will help keep the problem in check. Well see.

tom
Try it and see, I hope it cures the mite problem, good luck.:mug:
 
Try it, but all the stuff Ive read says that the less often your hops are wet, the better due to the mildew problems. (downy mildew and powdery mildew)
 
I know that misting your hops with a manure "tea" can cut down on pests such as jap beatles. i may just run a drip system with a T in the line and a ball valve to turn on the mister's as needed.
 
Another thought about your water source, if you had a shed or something with a roof in the area, you could catch rain water and route it to your storage container with out any pumps assuming it's higher than your tank. It's amazing how much water can be snagged from a small shed in a decent rain. Granted it wont catch any when it there's no rain and wont solve all of your problems, but it might help minimize some pump power needs, and i'd bet with being fully off the grid, every little bit probably helps...

Good luck...
Kyle...
 
Back
Top