Dowdens Pumping and Water Treatment have designed, built and commissioned a nursery irrigation system for the Sarina Landcare Catchment Management Association.

Project Requirements: The Sarina Landcare Catchment Management Association were experiencing problems with their existing irrigation system, including:

• Uneven water application
• Excessive use of town water
• Damage to germinating seedlings via misdirected sprinklers

To resolve these issues Dowdens Pumping and Water Treatment proposed the following design features:

• Water to be drawn from two water sources:
  • Primary Source - Poly Rainwater Tanks
  • Secondary Source - Potable town water supply
• A GRUNDFOS JP5 horizontal multi-stage booster pump with the ability to automatically switch between the tank water and potable water sources
• Installation of a TORO 'TMC' controller:
  • Automatically starts and stops watering at specific times on specific days
  • Three independent programs for varied seasonal irrigation requirements

Key Project Features:

• The new irrigation system has allowed Sarina Landcare Catchment Management Association to better manage the application of both onsite tank and town water
• Has led to an increase in the average germination rate of all nursery seedlings
• Has allowed the Sarina Landcare Catchment Management Association to be better equipped to meet the growing needs of current and future community revegetation projects