FAQ - All About LeakyPipe
What are the dimensions of your Leaky Pipes?
LeakyPipe® size : Nominally they are O.D. 13.5mm and I.D. 9.6mm (They fit the size12 barbed fittings seen on our website, which is one size smaller than 16, which makes a tight fit in garden hose and is often the size that fits many other porous hoses).
Our work with LeakyPipe
Over 30 years, supplying goods and systems to Landscape Gardeners and the Professional Horticulturalists across the UK. We were initially involved in developing the various types of LeakyPipe® and over the last ten years, wholly responsible for manufacturing. We are happy to have the whole process of development, manufacture and supply under our roof to ensure the highest possible standards in this field.
We have also been selling online since the 1990's!
Are you doing LeakyPipe?
Yes, we make it here in Kent.
We keep manufacturing 'in-house' to ensure high standards.
How the Leakypipe is made
The major component is high-quality reclaimed car tyre rubber and a few other things to make it really good porous hose, not a pipe with holes in!
Why use the leakypipe?
Because it is a reliable, accurate way of applying an increasingly expensive resource direct to its target, without interrupting the use of that area.
It will last for many years, aid plant establishment and is the most water-efficient way of watering plants.
Lifetime of a LeakyPipe
In the UK, LeakyPipe has a proven life of many years. It is not unusual to find watering systems with LeakyPipe still working well after 10 years.
Is the LeakyPipe blocked by dirt?
No, it doesn’t. It is a porous hose not a pipe with holes in it and that makes it a bit different to a drip system where the pipe is a 'pipe-with-holes-in'.
Is the leakyPipe being damaged by roots growing in it?
Because the LeakyPipe is made to be porous , as opposed to "a pipe with holes in”, roots can grow up to the outer pipe wall, but do not penetrate the LeakyPipe, as they do with trickle pipes that have holes and emitters.
How long do I need to keep it watering for?
With LeakyPipe, watering times for general soft landscaping is about 30 minutes per day, every day through a dry period. Start watering early in the season and keep putting small amounts in. Plants establish and grow-on strongly with this approach. Adjust this guide depending on the specific site requirements, either manually or by simply amending your timer settings. Of course, this is just a guide and you can apply your own schedule as you see fit. Just be careful not to over-water as this can be as bad as not watering at all!
Can I use LeakyPipe in a Hosepipe Ban?
Yes you can! In some areas, it is necessary to add a timer and/or a pressure regulator to comply with this exemption. (Of course, a timer helping program your watering, is always going to be a good idea to improve water efficiency).
Check out our Guide+
Is the LeakyPipe affected by hard water?
As with many things, it can do a bit, just the same as the carbonate salts in hard water affect all tools to a greater or lesser extent.
But our LeakyPipe system offers solutions to reduce hard water effects on it. Check out our specific guide.
Should the LeakyPipe be used under the surface?
It doesn’t have to be. Most users who are new to the product will place the LeakyPipe onto the surface, just so they can see what it does. There’s nothing wrong with that. You just loose a bit of efficiency as the exposed, top surface of the pipe that isn’t being touched, tends to dry-off and is "slower” than it would be if it was covered. Once you are happy your system is working, we recommend covering with a mulch or soil as LeakyPipe works most efficiently this way by 'wicking' water into the soil around the whole of the pipe, rather than just where it lies on the ground.
Sometimes surface-placement is just more convenient both for installation and to allow easy repositioning at a later date. Repositioning may be necessary for either a change in the planting, or to make for convenient digging, or perhaps it is finished with for that area and can be relocated to another site, getting more value from the product if you’re a Professional.
LP12UH runs to 20metres (the type of LeakyPipe you will find in Vegetable Watering Kits)
LP12H runs to 50metres (and is the most popular pipe for general landscape watering use).
LP12L runs up to 100metres (the type of LeakyPipe in the Hedge Watering Kits)
These are recommended maximum lengths for single laterals of LeakyPipe, from where the water is introduced, (plugged at opposite end). This isn't a limit on the amount of LeakyPipe that forms a system, as several laterals can be used at once.
To help put a perspective on this, a typical domestic water supply is capable of running a cumulative total of about 300metres of LP12H at one time. (In any combination of lengths of up to 50m each).
If you want to water more than 300m in your garden, design your layout into 'zones' with different zones being watered at different times. A dual output tap timer can help with this.
How to save money with LeakyPipe
If you are on a metered water source, efficient use of that resource will save money. Timers & irrigation control methods are particularly good at helping you tune this approach.
LeakyPipe will help save money with labour costs of watering any landscape. Also, a big saving can be made by ensuring that new plantings are efficiently established with minimal loss and replant costs.
Landscapes can double their growth over the period of the first four years if a judicious watering plan is applied. This benefit is particularly useful to Clients who are looking to develop and maintain quick Shelter Belts and Green Screens as a part of their Development Plan.
How can I estimate what I need?
Placement as a general "Rule-of-thumb” is not critical. With LeakyPipe spaced at between 600mm-900mm (2-3 foot) apart you could estimate the LeakyPipe meterage by estimating the total soft landscaping area and multiplying this by 1.5 to give you a total. Connectors and supply pipe polytube are not that expensive and are usually something best estimated plus a percentage over.
Can LeakyPipe be installed by Leaky Pipe Systems Ltd?
We do install in some commercial landscaping situations. Sometimes we work to consult, advise and train Contractors, on sites to do their own installation.
In gardens, systems can be easy to DIY or perhaps employ a local garden maintenance firm who are familiar with our products. ('Local', reduces cost).
You can leave LeakyPipe and the supply pipe polytubes out in the frost. Water can freeze solid in LeakyPipe and it won’t effect the pipe for the next time it’s needed to irrigate.
Do remember to bring tap timers inside during the winter to avoid frost damage.
Does Leaky Pipe degrade in sunlight?
There is no significant U.V. degradation of LeakyPipe in direct sunlight in the UK. LeakyPipe lasts many years and has proven to give good service where sensibly maintained.
Why can I find Leaky Pipe cheaper on amazon and ebay?
Because we know from our experience, to keep the high quality, we need to put more of the good stuff into it and take a lot of care along the way. We pride the fact that it is the genuine, original porous rubber hose, LeakyPipe®. Much like 'Hoover' is often said to describe any vacuum cleaner, the phrase 'leaky pipe' can get used generically for a number of different porous, soaker or weeper hoses.
LeakyPipe® is made is under our own quality rules, honed from thirty years of experience. We manufacture from materials that we won’t drop our standards on. It is a product designed essentially for professional use, so we won’t degrade it to compete with the "foreign” sourced copies and risk the trust of our customers.
We don't currently sell on eBay or amazon, so please be wary of products you find on online marketplaces and check who the manufacturer is. Look for the LeakyPipe® logo to find the original product.
