I missed most of this thread but perhaps this was not mentioned before.

Go to google and enter http://www.dripworksusa.com/ . Then at the left side
of their site request their mail-order catalog. It provides lots of
instruction and covers all types of irrigation supplies. Also go to google
and enter http://www.berryhilldrip.com/ . Request their mail-order catalog.
Both are good companies to deal with. Drip Works will design a system if
requested and its free. Berry Hill does not have the largest selection of
parts for home use. Get both catalogs and you have both coasts which may
mean lower shipping costs.

Do not buy the drip kits sold at retail big box stores. They seldom include
a filter and a pressure regulator which are needed for long-term survival of
the drip lines and emitters. Yes, city water does have "lumps" in it which
will clog the emitters. These retail systems need a pressure regulator to
lower the city pressure and avoid the opening of new holes (blowout).

I have several thousand feet of drip lines from NetaFim which have been in
for 16 years in beds of perennials, shrubs and trees. These drip lines are
above ground. I tried some underground but the joints (lock fittings) do
loosen over winter and also by roots growing in and opening the joint. In
the spring do a one time check to tighten loose fittings. Winter freezing is
not a problem in the drip lines but the filter, pressure regulator and
automatic valves need to be removed in the winter to prevent damage.

I tried some soaker hoses but over time new larger openings appeared and
allowed water to spew out (over-watered spots). Some problems are reported
with calcium blocking the holes in soaker hose. The emitters in drip lines
are designed to create turbulence in the emitter which reduces clogging.
Also if soaker hoses are used on hilly ground you do not get uniform
watering (lower is wetter). The drip line systems do provide uniform
watering and I have never had a drip emitter clog.

Drip works and it beats the heck of dragging a hose around in hot weather.






"dps" wrote in message
...
Mr Gardener wrote:
.... When water is below the surface, gravity no longer
determines the direction of flow, and the water disperses
horizontally, by capillary action, I think, wetting an area about a
foot to two feet on either side of the hose....


Not quite. While capillary action disperses the water better from a
buried hose, gravity acts on it all the same. The advantage to a buried
hose is that the water can go up as well as out. However, if you try
this in pure sand, you fill find the moisture goes predominantly
downward. The extent to which the moisture will spread depends strongly
on the type of soil you are using.

On the subject of soil type, I ran across a simple test to find your
soil's place on the old soil triangle.
http://everything2.com/?node_id=1698166