Various
types of irrigation techniques differ in how the water obtained from
the source is distributed within the field. In general, the goal is
to supply the entire field uniformly with water, so that each plant
has the amount of water it needs, neither too much nor too little.
It is often called flood irrigation when the irrigation results in
flooding or near flooding of cultivated land.
To increase the yield and effectiveness of the
entire process center pivot irrigation is used instead of flood
irrigation. It is a form of sprinkler irrigation consisting of
several segments of pipe joined together and supported by trusses
mounted on wheeled towers with sprinklers positioned along its
length. The system moves in a circular pattern and is fed with water
from the pivot point at the center of the arc. The crops are planted
in a circle to conform to the center pivot and are very common in
parts of the U.S. where terrain is flat.
The project was to create a gravity feed system 2.5 miles long that would supply enough water and pressure to irrigate 240 acres of flood irrigated farmland.
To provide a solution for the customer Rain for Rent designed and constructed a pressurized under-ground pipeline which brought water from a creek through a 21" head gate into a self cleaning weir for pivots instead of flood irrigation. The water flowed underground into a 15" PVC pipeline running 11,000ft to the first pivot and then another 2,600 ft to the second pivot. Rain for Rent was able to engineer a pressurized pipeline that supplied 1700gpm at 50psi to the customer without any electric/diesel power to supply water to the pivots.