Drip Irrigation Fertilizer Injectors And Fertigation Systems
Watering and fertilizing are two tasks that can take the most amount of time in any greenhouse. Fertilizing is also one of the most important. You want to get the job done quickly but also accurately. This means you want an injector that is easy to install and maintain.
What are fertilizer injectors?
Fertilizer injectors are devices used to apply water-soluble fertilizers to crops. Fertilizer injectors can also apply pesticides, plant growth regulators, wetting agents, mineral acids, and anything else that is fed to plants. They are a vital part of modern greenhouse or nursery operations.
These devices inject a small quantity of fertilizer into the irrigation line or water supply. The result is that the water leaving the hose supplies the proper amount of nutrients to the plants.
A fertilizer injector precisely controls nutrients. Because of this, it is a fast and accurate way to feed plants in a drip irrigation system. These injectors deliver liquid nutrients only where plants need it most, which is directly at the roots. Because of this, fertilizer injectors are also the most efficient way to feed your plants.
How do I select the correct fertilizer injector?
Size and flow rate
It is crucial to know know your flow rate. One of the most important decisions you can make is to choose the right size injector for your flow rate. Flow rate is measured in gallons per minute (GPM), which is the rate water flows through water lines.
Flow rate can be determined by pipe size and water pressure, which is measured in PSI (pounds of pressure per square inch). This would only help estimate the flow rate.
Injection rate
The injection rate is the second question you need to answer. Having many injection ratios is desirable for most types of pumps. It allows different amounts of solution to be fed to crops with different nutrient requirements.
Injection rates fall into four different ranges. Very low (1:4000 - 1:250, 0.025% - 0.4%), low (1:500 - 1:100, 0.2% - 1%), medium (1:200 - 1:100, 0.5% - 1%), high (1:100 - 1:20, 1% - 5%) or highest (1:50 - 1:10, 2% - 10%). A low injection rate means that a small portion of concentrated solution will be injected into the irrigation line. On the other hand, a high injection rate means a large portion of concentrated solution is being injected into the water.
Water Quality
Particulate matter such as grit, sand, or other solids in your water sources are a problem! These solids can be very rough and will wear away the water measuring tool. If you have problems with solids, install a filter upstream of the injector.
You can also place pressure gauges before and after the filter. You can use the difference in pressure readings to tell when the filter is plugged up.
What are some different options of fertilizer injectors?
Dosatron
Dosatron has many types of injectors for hundreds of fertilizer applications. It does not matter if you need one injector for a single garden or ten injectors for an entire greenhouse. Dosatron has a setup for all of your nutrient application needs.
These injectors work without electrical conductivity, using water pressure as the power source. These water-powered injectors are the easiest and most reliable way to inject nutrients into water lines.
Dosatron injectors work using volume proportioning. This process makes sure that the mixture remains the same throughout, even if there is a difference in pressure and flow.
DIG Irrigation
DIG’s Add-It proportional fertilizer injectors are made for use with drip irrigation or standard sprinkler systems with traditional fertilizer. These fertilizer injectors work by mixing fertilizer and feeding plants without a pump or hose. Available with up to one one-gallon tank and with half-inch, three-quarter-inch, and one-inch inlet and outlets. The DIG fertilizer injectors are affordable, flexible, and easy to use.
They can be used with any brand of liquid fertilizers for residential, commercial, agricultural, and greenhouse applications. The injectors are made of heavy, UV-resistant PVC without any moving parts, which allows for easier maintenance.
The DIG fertilizer injectors also come with a backflow preventer option. This will help prevent pollution of your water sources due to backflow.
Final thoughts on fertilizer injectors
The main benefit of using fertilizer injectors is the ability to lower costs and improve yields in large-scale grow operations. This happens by mixing the right amount of fertilizer, which reduces fertilizer waste. This also makes sure that plants are safe from the issues that come from over or underfeeding.
Small-scale operations can still benefit as well. There is no limit to the number of applications growers can take advantage of.
