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    Irrigation Equipment Options: WWW - Msue.msu - Edu

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    nasmi
    This document discusses various irrigation equipment options for farmers. It describes side roll or hand move systems, drip and trickle irrigation, solid set systems, linear move systems, big gun travelers, and center pivots. Center pivots are the most common option, irrigating over 80% of acres, as they provide uniform coverage with low labor and operating costs. The document provides details on the advantages and disadvantages of each type of system.

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    Irrigation Equipment Options: WWW - Msue.msu - Edu

    Uploaded by

    nasmi
    29 views30 pages
    This document discusses various irrigation equipment options for farmers. It describes side roll or hand move systems, drip and trickle irrigation, solid set systems, linear move systems, big gun travelers, and center pivots. Center pivots are the most common option, irrigating over 80% of acres, as they provide uniform coverage with low labor and operating costs. The document provides details on the advantages and disadvantages of each type of system.

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    Irrigation equipment

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    This document discusses various irrigation equipment options for farmers. It describes side roll or hand move systems, drip and trickle irrigation, solid set systems, linear move systems, big gun travelers, and center pivots. Center pivots are the most common option, irrigating over 80% of acres, as they provide uniform coverage with low labor and operating costs. The document provides details on the advantages and disadvantages of each type of system.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    29 views30 pages

    Irrigation Equipment Options: WWW - Msue.msu - Edu

    Uploaded by

    nasmi
    This document discusses various irrigation equipment options for farmers. It describes side roll or hand move systems, drip and trickle irrigation, solid set systems, linear move systems, big gun travelers, and center pivots. Center pivots are the most common option, irrigating over 80% of acres, as they provide uniform coverage with low labor and operating costs. The document provides details on the advantages and disadvantages of each type of system.

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    of 30

    Irrigation Equipment Options

    Lyndon Kelley
    MSU Extension/Purdue University Irrigation
    Management Agent
    269-467-5511

    www.msue.msu.edu - find St. Joseph Co.


    - then hit the Irrigation button
    Average irrigation
    cost have risen
    from $530/acre in
    1985 to over
    $900/acre
    currently.

    Field size have


    decreased and
    equipment prices
    have more than
    doubled in two
    decades.
    Farmers have benefited Michiana’s rural economies
    by investing $140 million in irrigation equipment in
    the six most heavily irrigated counties.
    Irrigation Equipment Options
    Side Role
    Drip and Trickle
    Hand move
    Solid set
    Linear Move
    Big Gun Travelers
    Center Pivots
    MWPS -30 $20 ??
    Side Role
    or
    Hand Roll
    -Crop heights up to 30”
    -Low cost compared to
    pivots
    -Not common east of
    Mississippi
    Drip and Trickle
    • Precise application of water to a specific area.
    • Excels where irrigating a portion of field is
    desired.
    • Excels where watering only the root is desired or
    when tool root saturation of soil is not achieved.
    • http://mtngrv.missouristate.edu/Publications/Drip_Irrigation_&_Watering_Web
    _Links.pdf
    • Trickle Irrigation in the Eastern United States NRAES-4, $6
    Issues of water quality and
    purity

    Filters?
    Pressure Compensating:

    Emitters

    Tape
    SUBSURFACE
    DRIP
    Reverse Drainage Irrigation

    Stand pipe or ditch dam is used to build water level in dry season.
    • Commonly
    drained heavy
    soils are slow to
    respond.

    • Environmental
    benefit to limiting
    the time of year
    drainage is
    functioning.
    Hand move

    • Low start up cost for small scale field irrigation


    • Full and partial circle options
    • Advantage of solid set with option to move field
    between seasons
    • High energy cost, low uniformity
    Hand move
    • Often used to fill in corners or
    square up fields
    • In-line booster pump may be
    required - Requires 90 + psi
    • Potential to lay-over crop

    •Labor intensive
    Solid set
    •Allow almost immediate and
    continuous coverage
    •Require medium to high psi
    •High operating cost

    Common in fruit
    and turf
    production where
    quick coverage
    and frost
    protection are a
    benefit.
    Solid set
    • Excels at truck crop irrigation.
    • Flexible irrigation of subsets of
    field.

    • High initial investment


    per acre on small
    plots.
    • To keep uniform
    applications run time
    needs to increase as
    pressure decreases.
    Linear Move
    • Operates much the same as center pivot but
    center point is moved slowly forward with the
    rest of system following straight in line.
    • Allow coverage of rectangles.
    • Water source must move.
    Linear
    Move

    • Uniform
    coverage
    • Avoids dry
    corners
    • Researcher
    best friend
    • Recommended
    when Length
    2.5 x > width
    • Increase labor over pivot due to hose move
    • In general higher per acre cost than pivot.
    Big Gun Travelers
    • Typical field layout is
    300’ x 1320’ providing
    about 10 irrigated acres

    •Distance between runs


    needs to decrease as
    pressure is reduced by
    distance

    •Small amount of wind can


    compromise designed
    overlap
    Big Gun Travelers
    • Fairly standard design
    • Flexible for future use in other
    fields
    • Lots of used equipment available
    • Limited hose life – replacement hose cost are
    often higher than used equipment cost
    • High pressure
    requirements
    • High energy and
    labor cost
    Impact driven

    Gear driven

    Hard and soft hoses


    available
    Center Pivots
    Over 80% of the
    irrigated acres are
    covered by center
    pivot irrigation

    •Size and shape dependent


    •Least labor and operating cost
    •Most uniform and rain like
    coverage.
    •Economics are size dependent
    Total Acres
    Center 126acres
    96 acres
    Pivots 71 acres

    49 acres
    31 acres
    18 acres
    8 acres
    2 acres
    Acres/acre
    165’
    330’
    495’
    660’
    825’
    990’
    1155’
    1320’
    Feet from center
    Center Pivots
    • Spans lengths 154’ – 184’ common
    • Spans lengths - shorter length and spans
    up to 205’ available, short obstacle can be
    spanned.
    • Current system can run clockwise and
    counterclockwise making partial circle
    possible.
    • May have higher initial cost/acre than
    many other options
    Center Pivots + End Gun
    • Inexpensive coverage of field area beyond
    pivot length
    • 80 to 100 psi needed for good coverage.
    • Booster pump often used to increase
    pressure at the end gun (2,5 or 7 hp)
    Impact driven

    Gear driven
    Center Pivots + Cornering System
    • Allows system length to expand by up to
    200’ with a single arm or 350’ in a Z
    configuration.
    Corner arms
    Added 53 acre if used 100% of time, 48 acre if used 90% of time

    126acres
    35 additional 96 acres
    35 acre if acres
    used 71 acres
    66% of 49 acres
    time. 31 acres
    18 acre if 18 acres
    used 8 acres
    .33% of 2 acres
    time.
    165’
    330
    ’ 495’
    660
    ’ 825’
    990’
    1155’
    1320’
    1520’
    Tow-able Center Pivots
    • Allow greater coverage by the same
    distribution equipment.
    • Exactly matching circle and tow pattern must
    be planned.
    • Total pump time and
    down time for towing
    the system need to be
    planned for.
    • End tow system allow
    use in partial circles.
    Tow every third day

    Consider two circle maximum per season


    Tow each application cycle or annual tow.
    1320’

    annual tow

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