land drainage

adne

thinking of laying drainage pipes in some fields...... everyone has a different opinion on how deep to lay the pipe, how much stone to cover the pipe with... the size of stone... One guys told me to put stone under the pipe and another said there was no need.

whats everyones thoughts

snowman707

Thankfully we don't have much heavy land, (well we have 35 acres but it is in forestry) so I haven't much experience of draining land.

however most of the contractors around here do not use pipes here any more, just dig the tile drain & fill to a couple inches of the top with stone & then level off with chips, in a year or 2 the grass will grow over

Seems to work very well

I am sure others on the site will be give better info.

Oldtree

No point in draining our bit as it can be under 2 foot of water in winter.

My experience is with a domestic situatuion and pipes have two problems, they can block up and they have a limit of the amount of water flow.

I prefer open drains, no limit on water flow, easy to maintain and the lowest cost to install. If safety is an issue they can be fenced off.

cork1

best job ive seen was dig a trench about 3 foot deep put in 2" of stone then a 6" land drainage pipe then about 16" of 2" round stone and backfill the top with earth

the al kid

Adne,
as you can see there is a wide variation in replies to your post and this reflects the widely varying conditions on farm.If I were you I would get some retired local guy with a good knowledge of local needs etc to give an assessment of your field and work from that.As a general rule your ditches should be cleaned down to a solid bottom-the depth of your field drains will be dictated by overall falls ,presence of backfalls within the field etc but in general you should find that 2ft 6ins will be adequate.Pipe size will be determined by area draining into that particular set of pipes but unless you are dealing with huge fields and long pipe runs 60,80 and possibly some 100 mm should be adequate.I agree that 20mm stone is good cover for your pipe but above all an experienced digger man is paramount.Also get him to use a proper trenching bucket as there is a huge saving on stone versus the typical 9ins or 12 ins bucket that are widely used.If you are working to a tight budget (who isnt?) my advice is to go for a smaller area and do it well.

adne

the al kid wrote: »

Adne,
as you can see there is a wide variation in replies to your post and this reflects the widely varying conditions on farm.If I were you I would get some retired local guy with a good knowledge of local needs etc to give an assessment of your field and work from that.As a general rule your ditches should be cleaned down to a solid bottom-the depth of your field drains will be dictated by overall falls ,presence of backfalls within the field etc but in general you should find that 2ft 6ins will be adequate.Pipe size will be determined by area draining into that particular set of pipes but unless you are dealing with huge fields and long pipe runs 60,80 and possibly some 100 mm should be adequate.I agree that 20mm stone is good cover for your pipe but above all an experienced digger man is paramount.Also get him to use a proper trenching bucket as there is a huge saving on stone versus the typical 9ins or 12 ins bucket that are widely used.If you are working to a tight budget (who isnt?) my advice is to go for a smaller area and do it well.

Cheers for the info Al kid

I am looking for a V bucket but they are generally dearer than a 12" bucket which would have more uses..... Its my own machine so i am the digger driver, not an expert but it will be a work in progess over the next few months.... going to get 10 tonne of 20mm stone.... Any idea on the cost of Land Drainage Pipes??
Good pint regards the depth of the drain, the fall of the land will determine this but generally hoping 3 foot will suffice

the al kid

Adne,try and source a second hand trenching bucket -you will probably have to adapt it to fit your digger.Drainage pipe is approx 87 euros for 60mmx150 metres,80mmx100 metres is about the same..but 100mmx100 metres is about 130 euros.If you are buying make sure it is fresh stock as plastic piping exposed to frost and sunlight becomes brittle over time. Dont think 10 tons of pebble will get you far -I did some drainage 2 weeks ago and used 9 loads of approx 20 tons each over 1400 metres .I didnt use any under the pipe but put approx 15-18 inches over them and that was using a trenching bucket.You can skimp on stone where the pipe is only being used to carry water eg going through high ground to get to a low area behind this.Hope all this makes sence.Final bit of advice -whatever you do do a small area and do it right.

the al kid

Adne,

I see a guy from Kilkenny has a 2nd hand tiling bucket advertised on the donedeal.ie website under tools and equipment.

adne

cheers Al Kid...

I was looking for 1 over the last few weeks... The Average price was 400 Euro..... I sourced a new one in the North for 260 Euro......

On another note Its time for Us in the South to realign the cost of things and become more competitive

the al kid

Thats an unbelievable difference and new to boot.We defnitely have lost the run of ourselves down here as regards value and competition but all this starts at the top. Anyway happy digging!:)




Al

johnstown

When draining land, does anyone know can the cost be put down as an expense (all claimed in one year) or does it have to go down as a capital cost and be spread over a number of years (8 I think)?

I assume all the components involved are eligigle for a Vat refund, digger work, drainage stone, piping, haulage etc and do they all have to be on one receipt?

leitrim lad

im a contractor and i do a lot of land work reclaimation/drainage,
depending on the ground ,but i find the 3inch yellow land drainage pipe great, dig your drain with the tile bucket, about a meter deep, hop in your pipe and fill it up with 2 - 4 inch clean stone,
if you had 2 men you should do 1500 meters a day, with a 12/13 ton machine, and when back filling fill the drain right up to the top with stone and gently grade the spoil evenly around it, dont let the digger driver plaster it ,because he will end up pushing in the side of the drain, or filling it up with muck,
i know others have other ideas but we are doing that a life time and never had any complaints yet about blocked drains, or water not geting down fast enough, and the bigger stone is better than pea gravel, as pea gravel tends to mix up with the muck and could clog the drain, where as the big stone once the grass covers it over, will always naturally drain the ground, and its alot cheaper than pea gravel with better results

Hangsangwich

thanks for the posting guys.
I am getting some drainage work done too.
Good info.

pakalasa

Guys, have a look at the following.... Farmers Journal - always a good source.
The first in particular is very good. I am looking at doing some farm land drainage myself. 1 1/2" clean stone seems to be better than pea gravel. Also it is well worth watching the weather forcast.
I imagine doing this kind of work on a wet day would get very messy.

http://www.farmersjournal.ie/2009/0404/farmmanagement/farmbuildings/feature.shtml

http://www.farmersjournal.ie/2009/0314/farmmanagement/farmbuildings/feature.shtml

tom1z

Hi did any one here of the new pipe that is out now. it has a filter on it and you do not need stone or chips, as long as your land or soil will allow water to migrate through it, i used it on black soil and it is working fine so far , it is 9 times more porous than the conventional yellow piping ,
you can check it out on connachtagri.ie

adne

what is the cost per metre?

xt40

i need to put some drains in my back 1/2 acre back garden/swamp. i was thinking that it might work batter if i put down plastic sheeting underneath the drainage pipe/gravel. my logic is that the plastic would direct more water towards the drain pipe. opinions?

leg wax

xt40 wrote: »

i need to put some drains in my back 1/2 acre back garden/swamp. i was thinking that it might work batter if i put down plastic sheeting underneath the drainage pipe/gravel. my logic is that the plastic would direct more water towards the drain pipe. opinions?

no way dont do that it will only stop natural drainage and what happens if you cover over a spring, water will find the quickest way to flow or move eg through your pipe,

roosterman71

I've drained nearly 50 acres in the last few years and used the yellow pipes in most of it.

We dug the trench, put in the pipe, filled it with clean stone (or 3/4" chipping) up to withing a few inches of the top and then put back the soil. I used 6" pipes for the main drains, and a combination of 3" and 4" pipes going to the main one (or direct to the river if possible). Any little side shores then were just filled with stone.

The trick is to catch the water in its natural flow, and divert it to the pipes. Shores of stone will do that too as the water will flow easier through stones than clay.

MfMan

In last weeks journal there's a firm (from the west of Ireland I think) who won an award at the Balmoral show for a new type of drainage pipe that doesn't require stone filling. They're waiting for the patent on it AFAIK. Could be of interest......

tom1z

MfMan wrote: »

In last weeks journal there's a firm (from the west of Ireland I think) who won an award at the Balmoral show for a new type of drainage pipe that doesn't require stone filling. They're waiting for the patent on it AFAIK. Could be of interest......

connachtagri.ie is the company

tom1z

adne wrote: »

what is the cost per metre?

it works out cheaper then stone or chips .

vanderbadger

Adne did you ever give the drainage a try after or how did you get on?

adne wrote: »

Cheers for the info Al kid

I am looking for a V bucket but they are generally dearer than a 12" bucket which would have more uses..... Its my own machine so i am the digger driver, not an expert but it will be a work in progess over the next few months.... going to get 10 tonne of 20mm stone.... Any idea on the cost of Land Drainage Pipes??
Good pint regards the depth of the drain, the fall of the land will determine this but generally hoping 3 foot will suffice

pakalasa

I recently got a trench cleaned out at the edge of a fairly wet field. Like a lot of fields mentioned here, we cut silage in it once, but now it is covered with rushes. What amazed me when we opened the trench was the amount of old stone drains that flowed into it.

I remember my father telling me that these type of drains were dug by hand, a stone was put down on each side with a flat one on top. They could be hundreds of years old. I could put my hand in, arm deep into these.

A lot of heavy machinery used now, especially in the last few wet years may have closed in these drains. It could explain why once dry fields are now so wet.;)

vanderbadger

pakalasa wrote: »

I recently got a trench cleaned out at the edge of a fairly wet field. Like a lot of fields mentioned here, we cut silage in it once, but now it is covered with rushes. What amazed me when we opened the trench was the amount of old stone drains that flowed into it.

I remember my father telling me that these type of drains were dug by hand, a stone was put down on each side with a flat one on top. They could be hundreds of years old. I could put my hand in, arm deep into these.

A lot of heavy machinery used now, especially in the last few wet years may have closed in these drains. It could explain why once dry fields are now so wet.;)

ya have seen old flag drains on our farm, probably the heavy machinery of today that has broken them all