Off the Grid Farming – Cistern and Irrigation Tricks : chicken farming

Setting up a solar powered, off the grid, irrigation system is a wonderful way to water your garden. Many folks just wait for the rain if they are far from the power lines; but with the right know how and a little hard work you can set up a self sufficient irrigation system.

First of all, make sure to own the land before making this huge improvement. If you do not own land yet, now is a great time to buy. Look into buying tax lien properties, tax foreclosure properties, or using any means you can to get a bargain price. My success in real estate has allowed me the time and money to follow my passion developing an off the grid organic farm.

Start by finding your water source. Is there any moving water like a river or creek? If so, make this your source. Is the water table close to the surface? Try digging a pond. You can usually drive a well as a last resort. The goal is to find a water source which can be used to steadily fill your storage cistern. You can expect to gain .433 psi for every vertical foot that your cistern is elevated above your irrigation lines. If you can only elevate your cistern a few feet, consider low flow drip irrigation lines such as soaker hoses and t-tape.

Make an effort to clean the source water before it enters the cistern. Who wants to climb in and clean that sludgy mess. Also, sediment filled water leaving your cistern will quickly clog your drip lines or emitters.

One way to get the sediment to drop out is to run your intake water through a sealed 55 gallon drum with both the line in and the line out near the top. The plastic screw top type drum works best. The water will flow through the drum and drop a lot of sediment to the bottom. Make sure you have a drain at the bottom to make emptying out the sediment regularly an easy task. You could also create a sand filter by packing a drum with sand first. Put an filter or two in the trunk irrigation line once water exits the cistern on the way towards your field to make sure your irrigation lines stay clean.

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