SteveB wrote:
On 1/16/2014 12:12 AM, David Hare-Scott wrote:
It has been dry lately so I have been irrigating the orchard. I
moved the sprayers this morning and then started the pump. One of
the four heads wasn't working at all. These are the type with two
nipples, one has a tapper, a spring loaded arm that rotates the
whole assembly using the pressure of the water. Normally they will
give out some dribble of water from either of the two jets even if
blocked with organic matter sucked through the pump from the river. On
closer inspection something slimy was being squeezed out of each
jet. I pulled at it but did no good as I couldn't get hold of it. So
back to get some tools and take the head apart. As I lifted it
off the stand what should be hanging down out the inlet side - legs.
Green legs with webbed feet. Imagine you are a frog and have curled up
inside a bit of pipe for a
kip. Then a gush of high pressure water hits you and you are
travelling at speed down the main pipe, waterslide! Then you take a
branch into a much narrower pipe and round a few bends, upside down,
wow water rollercoaster! Then you reach the sprinkler head where
some of you goes out one jet and some goes out the other....


D

A simple diverter device would channel any oversized material out of a
relief pipe. If said pipe was mounted vertically, and the pressure
kicked up a tick or two, I would bet one could get performances up in
the 9.3 th 9.7 range, with a bonus for height.

Steve

This is a polypipe system not steel. There is a limit to the pressure it
will take (for those who are interested the pipe itself is quite strong it
is the joints that pop under excess pressure) and so the pump is not very
powerful, not that it needs to be as I am not raising the water far nor
trying to pump or spray it long distances. The diverter idea only works if
the intruder gets in the inlet end, if it gets in down stream (as in this
case) it will be past the diverter already. This has only happened once in
ten years I think I will leave the system as it is.

D