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Water butt/pump/sprinkler system

#1 · 1st June 2023, 4:45 pm

Hi there,

I have a challenge in getting a sprinkler to cover my 300 square meters lawn.

The problem is that no matter what sprinkler I buy (and no matter what the coverage details they give on their labels), my mains water pressure from the garden tap means that the most I can cover is around 40 sq.meters.

This means that wishing to give a 20 minute hose to the garden each evening ends up taking me over 2 hours as I move the sprinkler around to ensure an even coverage.

I'd hoped I could buy a water pump that I could plug into the garden tap to boost pressure but apparently this is not possible so I'll need to buy a water butt as the source of water which will then go through the pump to my hose/sprinkler.

Understandably, all the pump suppliers I have spoken to are nervous about recommending a pump as with so many variables (size of water butt, length of hose, amount of pressure used, amount of water required), it would be easy to miscalculate and either spend money on something that doesn't work or burn out the pump if there is insufficient water at source.

Has anyone found a way around this or know of a place to go where they are experienced in giving all the advice needed?

Thanks very much

#2 · 5th June 2023, 9:14 am

Hi @rob-w6

Thanks for your question. The first thing is ask is ‘is this a new lawn?’ The reason being is I would never water an established lawn. Even in a heat wave. They may go brown and crispy but they rarely give up the ghost

Contrary to popular belief it’s a complete waste of water and time watering established turf in most cases. Yes your grass stays green during heatwaves but it’s a huge waste of resources given that grass is one of the toughest plant species and water supplies are in scarce demand around the globe now due to rising populations, temperatures etc.

As Garden Ninjas we aim to have a positive impact on the environment. Only newly laid turf needs watering.

Using a water butt and pump for such an area of new turf is suitable however you’ll soon get through a water butt worth of water on that size of turf. So it will need refilling frequently.

The issue you’ll have is the longer the hose the less pressure there is even with a pump. So what starts off as high pressure after 50m up starts to lower and lower.

If you need to water that volume of newly laid turf it’s best to fit a temporary seep hose instead. Theres less wastage, they don’t need as much pressure and it can help establish a large new lawn. You can watch more on this below.

https://youtu.be/81muXEWDe9I

Happy gardening!

Lee