The water as the main constituent of any plant must be available throughout the year, or by rain or watering.
Therefore it is necessary for the proper development of a garden, the presence of an irrigation system properly sized, which is able to respond appropriately to the needs of all species present in the garden without place to water waste or lack of.
The projects of irrigation systems should be based on certain parameters such as:
- Soil texture
- Number of hours of sunlight
- Garden direction
- Type of use
- Type/need of the plants in the garden
- Water availability
- Garden geometry
Irrigation systems, like any hydraulic system, require skilled technicians to their proper sizing, field implementation and maintenance. Unfortunately, for the gardens’ health and with damage to their owners, there are many cases of gross errors in the design, implementation and maintenance of irrigation systems, these errors can destroy all investment.
We point out some errors that can be easily identified:
- Project irrigation wrongly dimensioned, not covering the whole area of the garden needed
- Project oversized, resulting in unnecessary investments in installation with subsequent high spending on water
- No filters or incorrectly installed
- Sectors with emitters and sprinklers together
- Watering of lawns and flower beds together in the same sector
- Inadequate irrigation uniformity by area
- Nozzles elements and/or incorrect tunings
- Incorrect irrigation time
- Projects/budgets made in measuring pressure and flow of the water point
Neoturf has qualified technicians, presenting options measured to the gardens and its users, with competitive prices and with different brands, so we can conveniently meet the requirements desired by all our customers.
Projects are delivered to customers in an Auto-Cad file and on paper. So the client will have a register of all the installations made. And it is necessary the delivery in a magnetic support of portion to work.
What are the advantages of having a good irrigation system:
- Significant water savings (90% savings compared to the costs of manual irrigation)
- Comfort and safety (automatic start watering during periods of absence)
- Most suitable watering schedule for the garden and its users.
- Greater efficiency in applications of fertilizers
- Decreased aggression caused by successive cuts
- Good "health" of the entire Garden
- Decreased damage done by animals (dogs and cats urine)
- Permanence of the aesthetic function of the Garden
- Decreased burden on staff losses vegetables planted.
- Underground watering (Ecological System)
- As the water is increasingly scarce around the world, and representing the gardens a factor of high water consumption, the underground watering is undoubtedly the future in all gardens, whether public or private, since decreases significantly because spending on water and energy
What are the advantages of Underground Watering (Ecological System):
- Water saving compared to the other irrigation systems
- Placement of water directly where the plant needs it more
- 100% Watering Accuracy (paths, roads and dry roads)
- Maintenance practically nonexistent
- Energy savings (less water and less pressure required by the system, about 1 Kg/cm2)
- Ideal for gardens with lots of use (weddings, receptions, parties - it allows watering simultaneously with the use of the garden)
- Protection against theft and vandalism (public spaces)
- Slopes without flowing off (no creating watermarks)
- Perfect solution for narrow cuts (separators streets and roads)
- Perfect adaptation between the irrigation system and the irregular design
- Ideal for windy areas
Never award an irrigation system who has not sought systematically the values of pressure and flow rate of the water point.
Agricultural Irrigation Systems: help produce with quality and stability..
The irrigation system is a tool that, as all the others should be well used.
Changes increasingly prominent in climate, with heavy rains in the winter and periods of drought in the summer, has increased the losses in agriculture, with the main focus on post planting, appearing sometimes, in the case of vineyards in the Douro, 90% losses in some tranches.
On the other hand, the farm management becomes more and more aware of the importance of maintaining quantity and quality levels of production. It is intended to achieve economic financial stability, being that aim directly linked to the stability of production.
Since water is a limiting factor in growth and maturation of crops, their control through irrigation systems, means control of one of the most limiting factors for the success of farms.
In contrast the irrigation systems have associated various technologies enabling the optimization of cultural operations, the fertirrigation is an example.
Of the many advantages of drip irrigation system we highlight:
- Significant saving of water
- Water supply 100% located
- Very high efficiency irrigation
- Versatility, with the possibility of use in all types of terrain and in all conditions (winds, extreme temperatures at night when power is cheaper ...)
- Economic savings: reduction of losses (mainly ready-grafts), almost complete reduction of labor force, lower power consumption (lower operating pressures required)
- Technical improves: possibility of mounting fertigation and water points in all portions facilitating phytosanitary treatments
- Improvement in production: qualitative and quantitative improvements already recognized by oenologists
- Easier implementation of cultural operations.
Drip irrigation system characteristics
Dripper
- Auto-offset, this means within a maximum pressure, it delivers the same litres per hour in all the drippers
- It has the ability to expel small particles avoiding the blockage;
- Durable in extreme weather situations
Pumping station
- Electric motors are the best option for this irrigation system, as besides being cheaper have great longevity and require lower maintenance.
Filters
- Filters are undoubtedly components that contribute the most to proper functioning of the irrigation systems. Its efficiency is directly related to durability of the whole system.
- Sand Filters - remove organic matter and algae, being advised to back-wash automatic or manual cleaning. In the case of being automatic, may be installed a differential pressure switch, being the filters clean according to the pressure differences between the input and output filters.
- Screen Filters – these filters complement the action of sand filters removing smaller impurities, including those caused by fertirrigation.
- Disc filters - Can be used instead of sand filter (given the trade mark and model).
- Sand separator or Hydro-clycone Filters
Polytubes
- Primary and secondary tubes - PVC or HDPE certificates, buried to 0.5-1 meter deep packaged by land riddled
- External Pipes - Galvanized iron pipes in all external piping.
Fertirrigation
- Devem ser utilizados doseadores compatíveis com o sistema para que haja um controlo rigoroso das adubações (principalmente na vinha).
- Depósito - Deve possuir um misturador automático para que o adubo fique bem dissolvido.
Aparelhos e Dispositivos de Controlo, Regulação e Segurança
- Must be used dispensers compatible with the system so that there is strict control of fertilizers (mainly in the vineyard).
- Deposit - Must have an automatic mixer so that the fertilizer is properly dissolved
Instruments and Control Devices, Regulation and Security
- Drivers: must be simple and complete, allowing to perform automatically certain functions that facilitate and reduce almost completely the hand labour required for the proper functioning of the system.
- Electro valves: In its installation and in the case of extended ducts should be placed a filter. Must be fitted with a strainer, and is advised to include a pressure gauge to facilitate detection of problems in the system.
Electrical connections must be safeguarded from direct contact with the environment, preventing cables’ corrosion.
- Pressure regulating valves: used for controlling the pressure in portions that have steep slopes (10 meters gap represent 1Kg/cm2).
- Air valves: these valves are essential to the proper functioning of the system, being placed in well defined positions to avoid vacuum and the existence of air in the ducts, as well as the numerous problems that may result of these situations.
In any portion with steep slopes (eg Douro DOC), these valves are crucial.
- Maximum and Minimum pressure gauge: instrument used to stop the whole system in case of low pressures (breaks) or excess pressures (not operating a electro valve, clogging, air in ducts), thus preventing the serious consequences that these situations can cause.
The controller must have these options so that the switch can act.
- Relief valves: these valves have a function in case of detection of abnormal high pressures, "relieve" the pipes, supplementing the function of the maximum and minimum pressure gauge in case of non-functioning. In this case the valve opens to let out any water, preventing the destruction of the system by high pressures.
- Purge Valves: valves used to ensure smooth operation and durability of the system, allowing the vent of secondary ducts in the maintenance procedures.
Other accessories
- Flow meters: measure the number of litres passing through the main duct. This accessory can be connected to the controller if it has the option of watering per litre instead of run time
- Clamps the emitter tube support wire
- Electrical cables: must be certified
- Nanometres: essential to monitor information related to the proper functioning of the system and find possible faults
- End rings lines: have to be practical to facilitate purging of extensions maintenance
- Electrical Panels must have the necessary protection (current stabilizers, electrical storms ...) and starting relays for the various mechanisms of the system (pump, dosing pump, mixer)
