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Porous watering pipes
timothy.stroudg
Posts: 6
Hello everyone, last year I bought 100 metres of porous pipe which worked perfectly. I stored the pipe indoors over winter and this year I added 50 metres on the end to reach a new part of the garden. I have just found that the new pipe works as it should but that the old pipe hardly leaks at all! It cannot be a build-up of calcium inside the pipe as our water does not have any, and I find it difficult to believe that 100m of piping has suddenly been gummed up with some micro vegetable matter. I have boosted the water pressure but to no avail. Does anyone have a suggestion on what I should do or how I might try cleaning the inside of the pipe? Thank you in advance
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I use soaker hoses and have had them in place for 3 years now. I don't take them in in the winter and have had no problem with them and I do live in a hard water area. I don't know what to suggest. Maybe you should try dropping the manufacturer an email. They may have heard of this before and be able to offer you some advice.
Yes, I had thought of contacting the manufacturer but -- I don't remember the name and there is nothing written on the pipes!
Water takes the path of least resistance, maybe the new pipe is a bit more porous than the older one?
How does the old pipe work without the new bit on the end?
You could try changing the order so the older pipe is in the new area, if this is the cause it may even itself up over time anyway, hopefully.
Try blasting through the old pipe on its own, to clear any blockages.
Yes, I wondered about the degree of porosity but find no information anywhere that relates to it. I tried fidgetbones suggestion but that caused a fissure in the old pipe rather than unblocking the holes. I have been thinking of reversing the order of the pipes but putting it off as there is so much work involved. I suppose it is now a necessity. Thanks for the suggestions.
try putting the old pipe in some hot water, it'll soften up the material its made out of, then run water thru it at full pressure (block the end) that might loosen up any debris inside it.
Bacteria will form a biofilm (slime) and I wonder could this be the cause. If so it doesn't seem like a particularly efficient system and it would render a lot of these hoses useless. A 100m is a lot of hose but could you run a dilute solution of bleach through or soak it in bleach overnight ensuring that the hose is full inside and then rinse really thoroughly?
I like the bleach idea. Soaking it overnight so that the interior is well treated is probably the best approach. I suppose I could cut out a section of the pipe in the middle and open it to see if I can find anything in it before taking the entire length up -- I don't think I could put it back down again this year as the plants are now so dense. I'll report back when I get the time to organise it. Thanks!
Well thank you Riley! You've certainly organised it well. I, in contrast, am metered (I live in France) and am very careful about water usage. This year I have not yet had to water the garden thanks to the continual deluge we have had since January (thank you El Nino) and everything has doubled in size over the spring. Who knows - perhaps I won't even need this leaky pipe this year!
Just to bring this thread to a close, here is my conclusion. I cut open a section from the middle of the non-leaky pipe to take a look inside but there is no biofilm or anything else to block the holes. Nor does scrubbing the outside of the pipe change the rate the water comes through. I can only assume, therefore, that the pipe is of poor quality and needs to be replaced. Thank you for your suggestions.