Raindrip

Raindrip drip irrigation supplies are for homeowners watering garden beds, landscape plants and containers. Tubing with individual emitters lets you put water beside scattered plants, while dripline places watering points along regularly spaced plantings. Start with where the plants sit.

Raindrip manufactures residential drip and micro-irrigation products. The company has more than 30 years of experience serving the residential irrigation market. Its range includes watering kits, tubing, emitters, fittings and timers.

Match the tubing to the planting

Supply tubing carries water to the outlets you add. Dripline already has emitters built into it. For separate pots and unevenly spaced shrubs, individual drippers let you position each outlet near the roots. With in-line drippers, match the tubing between outlets to the distance between plants.

Small tubing has limits worth respecting. Raindrip rates its 1/4-inch tubing for a maximum flow of 15 gallons per hour and a maximum run of 50 feet. Add up the flow of every emitter sharing a line, then check the distance too; stay within both limits.

Set the outlets for the soil

In Great Falls planting areas with expansive clay, Raindrip’s recommendation is a 1/2-gallon-per-hour dripper. Clay takes water slowly, so a faster outlet can leave water puddling before it soaks in. Watch the soil during a cycle and adjust the run time to how it absorbs water.

Raindrip’s mister and riser options serve a different layout: sprinklers and micro-spray jets suit broad areas of closely spaced, low-growing plants. Keep drippers and sprinklers on separate circuits because their flow rates differ.

Fit the connections before tightening

Raindrip’s 1/4-inch fittings are universal; its larger fittings work with other manufacturers’ tubing when the inside diameter falls within tolerance. Measure the existing tubing before matching a larger fitting.

Check the threads before tightening harder. Mismatched threads and cross-threading are the main causes of leaks. Match hose threads to hose threads and pipe threads to pipe threads, and start the connection straight.

A preset pressure regulator is required for a Raindrip drip system. Excess pressure damages the system over time, so keep the regulated operating pressure within 25–35 PSI.

Connect a kit and set the timer

For a basic installation, Raindrip offers kits for landscape flowers, shrubs and trees, containers and hanging baskets, or ground cover and flower beds, most with a battery-operated timer and connections designed to tighten by hand, though cutting tubing may require a knife or scissors.

With the Raindrip dial timer identified in the table, turn the dial from RESET at your desired start time, set frequency for how often watering starts and run time for how long it lasts, then avoid RESET when changing those settings to preserve the original start time.

Keep the tubing in place

Secure supply tubing along its route with stakes. Supply tubing and feeder lines can be buried, while emitter drip tubing belongs above the soil to protect its outlets from clogging. Cover emitter drip tubing with mulch if you want it concealed.

Specifications

GPH means gallons per hour; the tubing limits below apply to supply tubing.

Component	Specification
1/4-inch supply tubing	Maximum flow: 15 GPH; maximum run: 50 feet
1/2-inch supply tubing	Maximum flow: 150 GPH; maximum run: 200 feet
5/8-inch supply tubing	Maximum flow: 180 GPH; maximum run: 200 feet
Mini in-line drippers	1/2 and 1 GPH options
Drip-system operating pressure	25–35 PSI
Dial timer	R675CT; requires two alkaline AA batteries, purchased separately

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a Raindrip automatic watering kit come with a timer?

Most Raindrip automatic watering kits include a battery-operated timer, but the Vegetable Garden Kit’s timer is sold separately. If you want scheduled watering with that kit, include a timer in your setup. The brand’s timers work with that kit.

How do you program a Raindrip water timer?

On the Raindrip dial timer with a RESET position, turn the dial away from RESET at the time you want watering to start. Set frequency for how often it waters and run time for how long each cycle lasts; you can change those settings without moving through RESET and keep your original start time. If you set the frequency to every hour, keep the run time at 30 minutes or less. Use rain delay when you need to postpone watering without rebuilding the schedule.

How do you install a Raindrip drip irrigation kit?

Connect the timer and filter/pressure regulator to your outdoor faucet, then connect the supply tubing to the filter/pressure regulator. Secure the tubing with metal stakes and position the feeder lines or emitters near your plants. Raindrip kit connections tighten by hand, though you may need a knife or scissors to cut tubing. In the Flowers, Shrubs and Trees kit and the Ground Cover and Flower Beds kit, the component labels match the installation steps, so lay the parts out by those labels before connecting them.

Can you bury Raindrip drip tubing?

You can bury Raindrip supply tubing and feeder lines, but keep drip tubing with built-in emitters out of the soil because the outlets can clog. Mulch can cover that emitter tubing if you want it concealed. Leave the supply-line end closures accessible so you can open each circuit and flush it until the water runs clear once or twice a year.