Design, Construction, and Evaluation of a Water Measurement Device for On-Farm Application

Abstract

There is an increasing need for much more effective water management than what has been applied in the past. The need for flow measurement accuracy has become of utmost importance because of lowering water tables from extreme use of the agriculture producers. An area of this problem that the farmer could direct his efforts toward, that would have a substantial impact on the misuse of water resources, would be to use flow rates from sprinkler heads or gated pipe as determined by the Soil Conservation Service. The two devices described are intended to be simple yet accurate systems of measuring flow that will save the farmer time and money over existing technology and other applicable devices. By providing the farmer with information on construction and calibration, a working model can be built and used as needed to directly benefit the farmer.