# subsurface drip line adjacent to concrete?



## MMoore (Aug 8, 2018)

Hey guys,

im in the planning stages of my irrigation system and im contemplating a subsurface drip line adjacent to my pool. the area gets so much sun and the concrete gets hot making the grass beside the pool skirt go dormant while the rest of the grass is fine.

Is this something anyone else has successfully done with rotators serving the majority of the watering?

thanks!
Matt


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## hsvtoolfool (Jul 23, 2018)

It should work. I know buried drip line is often used on street strips. I'd use at least a double-row, maybe a triple-row around your pool just to keep the border area soaked. Drip line is pretty cheap, so a double or triple row won't break the bank. Of course, you'd have to put the drip line on it's own zone. Drip line uses lower pressures and runs longer periods than heads.

I used Rainbird sub-surface drip line in my mulch beds (it's buried under the mulch). Follow all the install rules. Use a 200 mesh inline screen after the valve and install a hidden in-ground valve box at the end of the run to flush the line each Spring.

How can you tell if a buried drip line is actually running? There's no water visible when the zone is on, right? Do you trust the controller is right? Just install one of these Pop-Up Drip Indicator Flags in the PVC pipe from the valve to the start of the drip line. Mine both worked great for the past 3 years and it's a real comfort knowing when the drip zone is truly active. This clever gizmo can be replaced easily since it has a standard 1/2" NPT male thread. I used a 1/2" slip-slip-threaded PVC Tee in the line. I can easily dig down and screw in another one if needed. In this photo, the pop-up flag is barely visible in the top-left area. Can you see it? It's not easy....


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## MMoore (Aug 8, 2018)

thanks!

it all makes sense.

I wonder... being in the lawn and all... if I could put a normal sprinkler body in the lawn without a nozzle on it to just pop up to show the drip line is active. that little pop-up you listed would definitely not last very long in the lawn.


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## hsvtoolfool (Jul 23, 2018)

I would put the pop-up right at the valve box in a mulch bed if possible.You could always run a side-line to a mulch bed just for the indicator, although that would be rather extreme. I decided to put mine out in the beds because I had plenty of room and that's where my drip line was anyway. I agree that if your irrigation valves are in the lawn and you have no mulch beds, then a 6" pop-up spray head would probably work fine. Especially if you can block off the spray nozzle to avoid waste water. The pressure for drip line is normally lower than a spray head. So a spray head may not pop-up below 35 PSI. Then again, the indicator is really not a requirement for drip line, just a nice thing to have.


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## Krs1 (Apr 2, 2020)

Was there any success in this sub surface system? I have a small odd area that I'm considering this for.


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## MMoore (Aug 8, 2018)

I never had it installed. The installer was far too expensive.


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## Krs1 (Apr 2, 2020)

I had the ecomat quoted, $550.00 for a 32"x100' roll, stuffs expensive. Even the sales guy joked and said "let me get a roll of that eco-Matt"


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## TSGarp007 (May 22, 2018)

You can get 500' of the rainbird tubing (what @hsvtoolfool used above I think) for under $200. No fleece wrap or mat, it just relies on the water distributing from soil capillary action.


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