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Waterbutt > seeper/soaker

hiacedrifterhiacedrifter Posts: 119
in Problem solving
Hi, I'd like to connect a perforated hose or similar to my 300 litre waterbutt. That way I can just open the tap and let it gradually empty onto the border. Are there any seeper/soaker/dripper hoses I could use? Or would they get clogged with bits/need more pressure?
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  • Pete.8Pete.8 Posts: 11,340
    I think there will be a lack of pressure and water will only just drip out very, very slowly.

    Billericay - Essex

    Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
    Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    Yes, I agree, not enough pressure.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • hiacedrifterhiacedrifter Posts: 119
    Hmm, ok, I'll look at adding a pump into the equation. Thanks.
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    I have the set-up you describe and it works perfectly well without a pump, the seeper hose functions right along it’s 20m length. The butt is set on a half landing of the nearby outdoor steps so there is an initial fall of about a metre -  that first length is normal hose which then connects to the seeper hose laid on the bed. Raising your butt certainly seems to help with the pressure 😊 
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    Yes, I suppose that is actually like having a pump.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • philippasmith2philippasmith2 Posts: 3,742
    I have used the same set up as @Nollie in the past - worked well.
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    Just a bit of gravity works wonders!

    Obviously it requires rainwater, something in short supply here at the moment. I do occasionally attach it to the garden tap, but my well water is very hard so that does clog it up with calcium deposits over time and shortens the lifespan of the seeper hose.
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • hiacedrifterhiacedrifter Posts: 119
    What would happen if I connected a length of hose, and cut slits every so often to match the plant locations. I'd blank off the far end of course.
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    The clever thing about irrigation systems, is their even distribution of pressure along the hose length, so that one can get an even drip all the way along. I would imagine that with a cut hose, you would get more of a spurt in the early holes and much less at the far end of the hose. How long is your proposed length and how much of a rise can you get between the butt and the outlet?

    It would be an interesting experiment to run.
    ----
    It doesn't answer your intial question but I don't find I can hold enough water in my two butts to make them much worth saving the water, so I run a hose from them and keep the taps open, so that any rain goes right to the base of new plantings - trees, roses, shrubs etc. I have two dwarf apple that need water all summer - even after eight years in, so I all my rain water goes to these two. I can then move the hose end around to other thirsty plants and give them a good soak on a  rotation. 

     I'm plotting to put in a new small butt to harness water from my porch roof, dedicated to a rose I want to put in over the winter. It's going into a very dry spot where it won't thrive without constant watering for a good few years. 
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    Slits might turn into larger splits and cause overwatering in some places and possibly loss of pressure elsewhere. Or more likely, there will not be enough pressure from the butt for water to force its way through a slit. Holes punched out with a bodger might work. Ive tried various irrigation methods but found seeper hose, designed to emit slowly under lower water pressure, works best with butts.
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
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