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Water timers

We're having an external tap put into a garden to make watering easier. I'm hoping this also means we're able to buy a timer to automatically water the garden whilst we are away. I just wanted to know how water timers work and if you have any recommendations?

Is it simply a case of fitting the timer and turning the tap on? How is the flow restricted when the timer is set to not dispense water? Do I need to have a particular type of garden tap for this to work? 

Posts

  • KT53KT53 Posts: 9,012

    I use Hozelock kit. The timer is battery operated and you set how long to water for, and how often. Once set up correctly it basically looks after itself. Mine waters about 30 baskets and pots.

  • TopbirdTopbird Posts: 8,352

    Hozelock for me too. The tap is left turned on and valves inside the timer control the flow of water.

    I think it's worth spending more for the more sophisticated top of the range which allow for watering every 2nd or 3rd day rather than just every day and also more than once a day if that's what you need. That way you can alter the watering routine with the seasons and different weather conditions

    Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
  • Rob LockwoodRob Lockwood Posts: 380

    HI - yep, as the other say, it's very striaghtforward (programming is more complex!) in that the battery controls a motor which opens and closes a valve for, say 30 mins at 8 o'clock in the morning and 8 o'cock at night. 

    My tips, having used one a few years is to invest in a good manifold (2- or 4-way splitter), by which I mean either a brass one or possibly Hozelock's (not used theirs) as the tap is on full-blast alll the time and has somewhat tested my cheapo plastic one such that it drips all the time through all 4 outlets!  The top of the timer has the standard screwthread for affixing to a standard outdoor tap and the bottom is the usual hozelock fitting into which I've stuck a length of hose, which is then buried under the gravel.  This emerges near the greenhouse.into a contraption which controls the pressure of water into very thin pipes which then deliver into my tomato pots.

    Programming is complex in that you've to set the current time, start hour, length of watering and frequency of repeat via various combinations of pressing buttons and twiddling dials, but I've stuck a little diagram up near the back door to remind me what to do!  I bought the time a few years ago, so it all might be  digital / controlled from a smartphone by now...

    Hope helps!

  • polyhivepolyhive Posts: 8

    Used Hozelock in the past and yes worked well. Last season went on line to buy a more complex one and was very pleasantly surprised at what is out there. Considerably cheaper too. Oh and worked just as well. ;)

    PH

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