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MAINTENANCE & REPAIR Leak-o-nomics


Meters are often perceived as a regulatory device and not necessarily as a conservation or management tool. Water management and conservation start with the meter. Once water is measured, it can be measured in inches per acre just like other inputs such as fertilizer per acre or the number of seeds per acre.


As all farmers are aware, every input in a farm’s operation has a cost tied to it, whether it’s seed, fertilizer, tillage or water. Flow measurement has a holistic economic component that can be often overlooked. Irrigation has a cost, and not just in water pumping. The cost to pump the water includes the electricity or the internal combustion engines that pump water through irrigation systems, which affect growers’ bottom lines. Overwatering can result in an economic loss of pumping costs as well as a loss of nutrients in the soil that can be mobile with water.


A well’s flow can fluctuate, and its constant flow can’t be relied upon for precision irrigation. Using a flow meter can help troubleshoot potential problems. For example, hydraulic problems can arise when the water table is drawn down in the local aquifer as a result of groundwater depletion. In this case, the well does not have enough water in the aquifer to meet the original design of the pump.


Other issues can be associated with the pump or the casing of the well itself. Older well casings can become corroded and fail, or perforations that allow water to flow into the well casing can become plugged. The pump column, which essentially is a pipe that carries the water up through the well to the surface, can become damaged due to corrosion or wear and tear and inhibit the ability of the pump to provide water to the irrigation system.


In these types of situations when an irrigation system doesn’t perform to its greatest capacity, that’s where a meter provides an advantage. The


Flow measurement is advancing in technology and has joined the ag-tech revolution.


12 Irrigation TODAY | Fall 2019


irrigationtoday.org


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