FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Low volume, drip, or dripline irrigation is the application of water directly next to the plant, either with the water being applied on the surface near the plant, or in the ground, being delivered directly to the root zone.

No! When Netafim opened its first plant in the mid-1960’s, there were already a number of people working on this technology. However, Netafim created commercial viability for drip and low volume irrigation products by developing and mass manufacturing products for sale.

This spawned an industry that today is recognized as the most efficient way to water.

Netafim USA products offer a wide variety of advantages to the homeowner, including saving from 30% – 70% of the water they would use with overhead sprays, oscillating sprinklers or rotors, as well as growing much healthier plants. In fact, plants that are drip irrigated often grow to maturity as much as 50% – 70% faster, do so with less disease, and even reducing weeds in the garden.

Netafim offers two types of products – Drip and Dripline.

Drip – Drip emitters, sometimes called “point source” products are well known by many people.

An emitter is inserted into a pipe or hose, and water is delivered to a specific point. Hence the name “point source”. Only those areas that you want to have water get it, while nearby areas stay dry.

In our site you will see a variety of point source emitters. There are two families of them, Pressure Compensating Point Source Emitters and Non-Pressure Compensating Point Source Emitters.

Driplines – Dripline is tubing that has emitters already installed inside the tubing on 12″, 18″ or 24″ centers. This form of low volume irrigation is very popular because it wets the entire garden area, whereas Point Source emitters only irrigate a certain area.

Dripline is typically used where overhead spray sprinklers, rotary sprinklers or impact sprinklers would have been used. In fact, the concept of both overhead watering and dripline irrigation is to create an even wetted pattern throughout the area being irrigated. The problem is that the vagaries of overhead watering preclude that from happening.

Aren’t there other types of products? – Some companies also market specialty heads called “spinners” or mini-sprinklers to homeowners and commercial property managers. We do not.

Though Netafim USA does sell these types of products in other Divisions, they are very sensitive to alignment, height and position, and are most often found in areas like fruit orchards, not homeowner or commercial properties.

Point Source Emitters

• Wide spaced plants
• Container planting
• Hanging baskets
• Any area where water is desired in one place, but not an adjoining area

 

Dripline:

• Where an entire area needs to be watered, such as gardens, turfgrass, vandal-prone areas, narrow strips, odd-shaped areas, slopes, windy areas, retaining walls, trees and shrubs.

The most popular place for drip and dripline irrigation is gardens. It’s here that most homeowners spend a lot of time and money, and it’s the place that really makes the home more attractive.

Hanging baskets, raised planters, and vegetable gardens are other places that need water, and which can be very easily irrigated with Netafim USA products.

While people readily admit that they can see the benefits of using drip and dripline irrigation in gardens, they are surprised to find that dripline irrigation can also be used in turfgrass. In fact, Netafim USA has been irrigating turf areas since the mid-1980’s with great success.

Yes to both questions!

Adding low volume irrigation to an existing irrigation system is as easy as adding another valve, assuming you have an unused station on your controller. If you do not have an extra station on your controller, you can hook the new zone directly to a hose bib.

Because many irrigation systems only irrigate turf areas, add-on work is frequently done to include gardens.

It entails doing some plumbing work where your valves are located, (typically in the yard enclosed in a valve box) so that a new valve can be installed into your water supply.

From there, products like Techline^® CV and Techline^® are laid out throughout the new area, with the added valve being hooked up to your irrigation controller (if it is an automatic system).

To change out a zone of sprinklers to low volume, the process is even easier. Sprinklers in most residential irrigation systems either have a 1/2″ or 3/4″ female pipe thread base. Simply unscrew the sprinklers from the line and cap off all but one. The one you leave uncapped will be the beginning point for the dripline (Techline) that you will be adding.

We recommend that a Techline zone begin with a filter and pressure regulator to ensure the water is free of debris and set to a pressure of 45 psi or less.

Either install the filter and pressure regulator into the open spot where you removed the sprinkler, or place the filter and pressure regulator just downstream of the remote control valve that controls this zone. (Most electric valves are ganged together in a valve box as noted above).

Now all you need to do is weave the Techline back and forth throughout the area you are converting. The easiest way to do this is with our “Lite” layout method, pictured in Layout Section of our site. It is called the “Techline single loop design method” and requires only two fittings. If you are laying the Techline on the surface or under mulch, this is the quick and easy way to do it.

That’s it! Fast and easy, and you now have a more efficient, more effective way to irrigate your expensive garden areas.

You bet! In North America, there are often 30% – 70% savings in water alone. Seems hard to believe doesn’t it? But think about it.

Sprinklers throw water everywhere. In the street, on the sidewalk, on the house, in the neighbor’s yard, on the fence, into trees and bushes, and into the air where the wind evaporates what it doesn’t dislocate. Hopefully some of it gets to the root zone where the plant needs it, but often not enough. In fact, other than the fresh look of a wet lawn, the water you are seeing on the surface will be this afternoon’s clouds…it will never get to the roots of the plants.

Because of wind, evaporation, (humidity) run-off, sprinklers that are out of adjustment, crooked, or buried too low, or when the irrigation system is operated during the day, many “overhead” irrigation systems are lucky to be about 50% efficient. (Said another way…many overhead systems use twice as much water as they should to get the job done).

Compare that to a Netafim USA system where water is applied slowly and efficiently into the soil, right where the plants need it. That means your plants get the water they are meant to have, stimulating their growth, reducing the disease so frequently found with wetted foliage and saving as much as half of the water of an overhead irrigation system.

You bet! Netafim USA drip and dripline products are easy to install. You only need a few tools and the different parts go together very easy, often hooking right up to a hose bib for the simplest of connections.

That said, the best way to ensure that you are getting a properly designed and installed system is to rely on a professional irrigation contractor. You can find them in the Yellow Pages under “Sprinklers, Garden and Lawn”.

Another great way to get a system designed is by using a licensed Landscape Architect or Irrigation Design Consultant.

There are really two questions here. They include whether you want to tackle the job on your own or if you want to use a professional irrigation contractor.

If you want to use a professional irrigation contractor, the best place to start is the Yellow Pages under, “Sprinklers – Garden & Lawn”. There you will find the names of irrigation contractors in your area.

Another way to find contractors in your area is to call a local irrigation supply house where contractors buy their products. They are often happy to refer folks to a couple of the local contractors they work with.

If you want to tackle the job yourself, then you are a D-I-Y’er, or Do-It-Yourselfer. In that case, you will have to buy your products through a professional irrigation supply house. Netafim USA Landscape and Turf products are not sold through home centers and hardware stores.

While the actual installation is relatively easy, you will need to sit down and review the materials you will find here on our site to determine what materials you will need. Everything we currently have in print and on video is available to download in our Online Library section.

Please keep in mind that you are working with products designed for the professional side of the landscape and irrigation business. While we have made our literature as easy-to-understand as possible for the homeowner, we tailor our business to the professionals who do this type of work regularly.

If you go to our Distributor Locator page you can find the nearest Netafim USA Distributor by simply typing in your Zip Code and we will show you the nearest locations.

We encourage you to call our Distributors on the phone first because many supply houses only sell to irrigation and landscape professionals. If that is the case, drop us an e-mail. We can often help homeowners find a company that will ship the products.

Wherever you want! Netafim dripline and point source emitters are very well suited to work wherever you could use a spray, rotary, or impact sprinkler. That includes turfgrass, gardens, large potted plants and trees, interiorscape plantings and hanging baskets but there are even more places where it is even a better choice than sprinklers.

Consider the problems of narrow planting areas, slopes, odd-shaped areas, areas where wet surfaces are unsightly or dangerous, not to mention those hanging baskets and special plants. We can even help you grow a bumper crop of tomatoes in your vegetable garden!

You bet! Netafim products have been saving water around the world for over 45 years. You’ll find us helping grow agricultural products, nursery and greenhouse products, as well as beautifying landscapes. We typically do it with half or less of the water compared to an overhead irrigation system, making us a great choice for people who want maximum plant health, growth and water conservation.

All of us have heard or lived through outdoor watering restrictions or bans during droughts. And we will certainly see more restrictions as water districts grapple with strains being placed on the public water supply.

Netafim products actually support sensible water use by using virtually every drop of water. That typically translates into Netafim products receiving an exemption when other forms of outdoor watering are being restricted or banned (check with your water management district for more information). That means you don’t have to worry about losing your expensive landscaping when it is hot and dry, all while knowing that you are doing your part to help conserve water.

Talk with your Irrigation Contractor, Landscape Architect, or irrigation consultant about what you are looking for in your system. Explain that you want your landscape to grow to maturity as quickly as possible and that you want to save water. Tell them you want the benefits of Netafim products, and you can be assured that Netafim will help you see your landscape vision come true.

Yes! The dripline can simply be laid on the surface, stapled down to hold it in place and then covered with mulch. It’s fast, easy, and the plants and your water district will thank you.

Yes. Netafim products are designed to be used with public water, well water and even lake water. A filter is installed with the system to make sure debris is minimized.

Low volume, drip, or dripline irrigation is the application of water directly next to the plant, either with the water being applied on the surface near the plant, or in the ground, being delivered directly to the root zone.

No! When Netafim opened its first factory in the mid-1960’s, there were already a number of people who had been working on this technology for over 25 years. But Netafim created the commercial viability for drip and low volume irrigation products by developing and mass manufacturing products for sale. This spawned an industry that today is recognized as the most efficient way to water, and the way that the vast bulk of farmers irrigate around the world.

One of the major reasons our products outperform other Landscape irrigation products is because Netafim USA products got their start as Agricultural products. The performance standards in Agriculture are far more demanding than in the Landscape market. (The difference between a dry spot on someone’s lawn, and a farmer losing an entire crop).

Netafim USA products offer a wide variety of advantages to the professional designer, including:

• Very easy to design with
• Ability to design more creatively
• Saving from 30% – 70% of the water normally used with overhead sprays, oscillators or rotors
• Healthier plants, often growing to maturity as much as 50% faster, and doing so with less disease
• Local water use regulations that provide an exemption for water conserving products

Netafim USA offers two primary styles of product – drip and dripline.

Drip – Drip emitters, sometimes called point source products are well known by many architects and designers.

A dripper is inserted into a pipe that feeds through a garden area, and is designed to provide water to a specific point. Hence the name “point source”.

In our site you will see a variety of point source emitters. There are two families of them, Pressure Compensating Point Source Emitters and Non-Pressure Compensating Point Source Emitters.

Dripline – Dripline is tubing that has emitters already installed in the tubing. This form of low volume irrigation is very popular because it wets the entire garden or turf area, whereas Point Source emitters only irrigate specific spots. In fact, the concept of both overhead watering a dripline irrigation is to create an even wetted pattern throughout the area being irrigated. the problem is that the vagaries of overhead watering preclude that from happening. Dripline products such as Techline^® CV and Techline^® are the most frequently designed-with products for landscape applications.

There are several reasons. Among them:

1. While drip and dripline irrigation has been used around the world for over 45 years, it has only been in the last 10 years that products such as Techline have made low volume irrigation in landscape and turf applications easy.
2. Clients sensitive to water use are requesting low volume irrigation for their projects, often aware of articles heralding the benefits of saving water and growing healthier plants.
3. Making Netafim USA products a standard part of your product portfolio will help separate you from other designers and architects in your area that aren’t “up to speed”. This is especially true when you use Techline CV or Techline. Both products are pressure-compensating and continuous self-flushing dripline. That means every emitter emits the same amount of water regardless of pressure and debris do not stay lodged in the emitter but rather is flushed immediately. With Techline CV, you get a product that has a check valve built-in to every emitter, saving even more water and helping you mange water on slopes and other uneven surfaces.
4. With the competitive nature of the business, being able to offer quality products from Netafim USA helps set you apart.
5. For years Netafim USA Techline has been called, “The Irrigation Problems Solver” because many of the problems you face cannot be easily solved with fixed spray and rotors.
6. Our products work! That may seem to be an odd comment, but the callback rate on our products is incredibly small. On top of that, vandalism and damage caused to sprinklers by lawnmowers and other heavy equipment disappear.

The easy answer is anywhere. Netafim USA products, especially Techline CV and Techline, can be used in:

• Shrub and groundcover areas
• Flowerbeds
• Athletic fields
• Turfgrass
• Interiorscapes
• Curved, narrow or angular planting areas.
• High traffic/high liability areas
• Areas subject to vandalism
• High wind areas
• Areas where plant growth blocks or will block water
• Slopes
• Hardscapes that could be bleached or stained such as house or building facades, wood fences or at-grade windows.
• Medians or curbs where car bumpers can block spray
• Low pressure or low volume
• Interiorscape plantings
• Watering window issues (The amount of time that the system can be irrigated)
• Areas where municipalities have watering bans during drought that allow low volume zones to be used without restriction.

Our products have passed the rigorous tests that their use in Agriculture demand, so you can rest assured that it will exceed your quality requirements.

Remember the slogan “The Irrigation Problem Solver” is not just words. As an irrigation system designer you often run into one or more of the application issues described above that overhead irrigation solutions can’t effectively answer. When you do, we’ll be here to help.

You bet! In North America there are often 30% – 70% savings in water alone. Seems hard to believe doesn’t it? But think about it.

Sprinklers throw water everywhere. In the street, on the house or building, on the sidewalk, in a neighboring yard, on the fence, into the trees and bushes, and into the air. Hopefully some of it gets to the root zone where the plant needs it, but often not enough.

Because of wind, evaporation (humidity), run-off, out of adjustment issues, and when the irrigation system is operated, many “overhead” irrigation systems are only about 50% efficient during the day. (Read that another way.many overhead systems use twice as much water as they should to get the job done).

As a professional designer, you have a vested interest in not only creating a lush landscape for your client, but you also need to be aware of the amount of water your system uses to accomplish this. Saving your clients between 30% – 70% of the water an overhead system makes good sense!

Netafim has developed two brochures that explain the benefits of low volume irrigation to your clients. Click these links to download and read them: The Right Solution For Beautifying Your Yard and Irrigation Fact versus Fiction.

Yes it is! Very easy in fact when you use Techline CV and Techline, our most popular dripline.

(For more information, please view Design Manuals and other materials in our Online Library)

With Techline, you simply answer two basic questions; are you irrigating shrubs and groundcover or turfgrass, and what type of soil do you have.

Armed with only that information, we can tell you:

• Exactly which model of dripline to use
• How far apart to install rows of dripline
• What the application rate is
• How many minutes to run the zone to apply 1/4″ of water
• How many GPM every 100′ uses
• How far a row of dripline can go

 

We can also tell you other things, such as roughly how many feet of Techline you will use in an area when you know how many square feet there are.

Please visit our Techline CV and Techline Calculator which will automatically run the calculations given the correct input and estimates how much dripline you will need plus determines all of the other major components such as filter, PRV, staples, flush valves, etc.

We know that many of you look through various irrigation catalogs and see a wide variety of products that may or may not work in the areas you are designing for. With Netafim USA, the questions are answered straightforward. The annoying guesswork is gone.

Netafim USA sells a variety of products, including:

• Emitters – Pressure Compensating Point Source Emitters, Non-Pressure-Compensating Point Source Emitters and all fittings
• Dripline – Techline CV, Techline
• Filters – Techfilter, Disc Filters, 1″ Screen Filters
• Pressure Regulators
• Line Flushing Valves
• Air/Vacuum Relief Valves

Netafim USA’s Landscape & Turf products are distributed only through landscape irrigation distributors. 

Click here to find the nearest Netafim Distributor

Netafim USA offers the following assistance to support your professional design services. (This information is available in our Online Library):

• CAD design details in .dwg or .dxf format
• Samples of written Bid and Performance Specifications

Homeowners are actively looking for ways to beautify their home landscape while saving water. Often they think this isn’t possible, but when they find Netafim, they learn they can do both.

People typically learn about Netafim USA products from friends, family or neighbors, but they also learn about it from written articles in books and magazines.

Netafim has developed two brochures that explain the benefits of low volume irrigation to your clients. Click these links to download and read them: The Right Solution For Beautifying Your Yard and Irrigation Fact versus Fiction.

Facts and figures about how easy it is to use low volume irrigation are easy to find. Harder to find are people to help an author ensure his or her article is technically accurate and using the best and latest products.

Netafim USA understands that authors sometimes need to have someone to discuss topics and questions with, and we offer a service that offers you just that! “Author support” is Netafim USA’s way of ensuring that your article is both well-written and accurate. Support services include

• A Netafim USA Technical expert will be specifically assigned to work with you throughout the development of your article
• Technical and design assistance of the area being irrigated for the article
• Product support as necessary
• Technical review of the article prior to publishing

Contact us by email using the “Contact Us” link located at the top right of your screen. We’ll discuss with you the details of the article you are writing including the magazine, publication date, and scope of article. That’s all there is to it!