Changing Pipe...

It's that time of year again, time to start up the irrigation system for the hay field.  We are both totally excited and a little apprehensive that another irrigation season has started.   It does mean early mornings, wet feet, and sometimes frustration when things don't go together quite right.  While it is a lot of work to change pipe daily, we choose to be very thankful we have the privilege to change those pipes.   Why should we be so thankful?  It means we have irrigation rights, and around this area, those are like gold!

Come along with us as we set them up for the first time in 2013!

After setting the pipes in the general position we wanted them, we had to flush them out by taking out the end cap section.  Here we let the water flow for a few minutes to clear out the major junk that could clog up the sprinkler heads. 

This helps to flush out wads of things like this, that the mice and critters pack in there during the off season.

Starting up the pipes for the first time isn't without it's challenges.  After we turned on the valve for the irrigation main line we discovered this rebellious riser needing to be tightened down a little more.  

Several pipes needed some adjustments to fit snugly together for a good connection.  Spud Man had that fixed in a jiffy with his wrench!

Then we had to haul out the supply line we use to attach the pipes to the riser.  Of course it is quite heavy and it was stored in the shed by the house so the lawn mower was needed for this chore.  Why not just pull the wagon while driving the lawn mower, apparently it makes perfect sense to 12 year old and 9 year old boys.  

Right after this, we talked about driving around the edges of the field from now on.  It does make for a neat picture but I'd rather not see tire marks through the field. 

Once all the pipes were set up, flushed out and ready to go, it was time to put the plug in the end and start building pressure. 

What do we have here?  Oh my, enough of that!  Moving on...

Eventually the pipes did get up to pressure, they set together tightly, and we walked away listening to the rhythmic ch-ch-ch of the sprinklers with a sense of satisfaction and a feeling of being deeply blessed for all God has provided us with.

 Thanks for joining us on this special milestone of our year, irrigation season at Summerfield Acres 2013 is underway!