‘Drip Irrigation in the City’ | A Case Study

An Efficient technique largely used in Greenhouses and Agriculture, could be ‘Adapted’ to serve ‘Emerging’ City Needs – Assist Aging Populations and Address Water Shortages.
Looking at a City Case Study, Details, Pros and Cons.

This week we document Drip Irrigation used for balcony garden irrigation. The Case study is a 1000 sqft. flat dwelling, housing 2 aging persons. Having a large ground garden, while living in a metro city is a luxury most cannot afford. So, many people nurture beautiful balcony gardens. Often aging parents or grandparents may be living alone and looking after these spaces. They may or may not have access to domestic help for daily watering of plants. New developments are often also plagued with water shortages. Tiled balconies can become messy and slippery with pipe or bucket watering, thus posing a danger to aged people living alone.

We thus explore this technology, used in our case study, that may be able to address the above issues. It could remove unnecessary risk and make life a little more convenient for aged people.

The Nuts and Bolts

Looking at 3 main details –

1) Origin – Tap, Tap Connector, Elbow Connector, Main Pipe

2) Route – Main Pipe, Elbow/ Tee/ Straight Connectors

3) Destination – Main Pipe, Feeder Pipe, Stake/Anchor to hold Feeder Pipes in the soil of pots, Drip Emitter

Some advanced kits also include automatic timers for scheduling the watering cycle.

Cost

The whole kit could cost between ₹ 300 to above ₹ 7000 (around $4 – $100 depending on company, number of plants)

Pros and Cons

The Pros and Cons are based on feedback for the technology by the owners. 

Note: The products utilized by the owners in the Case Study are by a company called CINAGRO™.  We are spreading information about the ‘adaptive’ use of this technology to solve important city issues. We however, are NOT endorsing the products/ company in question. You could search for Drip Irrigation Garden online. There are various companies that sell/ install such products.

Hope these details help you make decisions for your homes and the homes of other aging people with similar requirements.

Have you used a similar technology in your projects? Tell us about your experience. Did you face any other issues than the ones described above?

Do you think this ‘Adaptation’ can help address Emerging city needs?

Let us know!

Video Source: 

The ꓥrchitecture Gazette

Music Source:

“My Best Melody” catatau5 | Link

References:

  1. Alliance for Water Efficiency
  2. CINAGRO™ Products

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