If a proper water storage is important to farm owners, it is equally important to have a suitable irrigation system for the crops. Indeed, a good irrigation system can be essential for the well-being of the plants and thus needs to cover the whole area. Unfortunately, traditional water distribution solution can fail to meet all the needs of the farm due to a lack of pressure. This can be quite impractical, especially if the plants require a regular and reliable irrigation. Thankfully, this can be fixed with an irrigation pump. With an irrigation pump, it is easier to cover larger areas of lands, even if the water is obtained from numerous sources, including an underground water source, a lake or a water tank. However, as practical as it is, an irrigation water pump will only be useful if it meets all the needs of the farms without any exception, highlighting the importance of choosing one carefully.

Irrigation Pump Purchase Guidelines

The first thing to do is to create an irrigation plan. Designing such a plan will make it easier to identify all the needs of the farm, and thus optimizing the purchase. Unfortunately, many first time farmers tend to make the mistake of purchasing an irrigation pump before considering their needs, causing some to underestimate their needs and buying pumps that aren’t powerful enough, or in other cases to purchase pumps that are too powerful, and thus much more expensive than it should have been. It is recommended to such farmers to consult specialists before deciding on a model.

The second thing to consider is to ensure that you understand all the labels. It is indeed commonly known that the labels of irrigation can be misleading, especially in terms of the GPM and the PSI. Knowing what these two terms mean. The GPM (Gallons per minute) describes how much water the irrigation pump will use per minute, giving a good idea of the flow rate capacity of the pump. The PSI on the other hand stands for “pounds per square inch” and is basically a measure of the pressure of the pump. Examples of misleading labels include a capacity of “30 GPM at 55 PSI” and a capacity of “30 GPM or 50 PSI“, which can be confused with each other. The former however means that the irrigation pump exerts a maximum pressure of 55 PSI when it is set at 30 GPM, while the latter means that the pump has a maximum capacity of 30 GPM or of 50 PSI, depending on the settings.

Finally, it is essential to understand that there are two main types of irrigation pumps. The first one is the basic irrigation pump, best used with sprinkler heads attached to hoses and commonly used on smaller farms. Secondly, there are the high-pressure irrigation, compatible with most common sprinkler systems, and best used on larger farms.

Following these guidelines can have a huge impact on how useful the irritation pump purchased will be for the farm, and will ensure that there will be no need to get a new one.