When irrigating using center Pivot systems, it is important to avoid losing water due to wind dispersion and evaporation. Installing drops helps to solve these issues by allowing emitters to be placed closer to the ground. These drops are comprised mainly of metal or plastic goosenecks and pipes measuring 3/4” in diameter.

While plastic goosenecks are made of thermoplastic materials that are resistant to UV rays and the fertilizers dissolved in the irrigation water, metal goosenecks are made of galvanized steel piping, providing greater strength to the system as a whole.

The flexible pipes installed in the drops require a weight (metal or HDPE) at the bottom, which keeps the system upright.

On the other hand, rigid pipes guarantee verticality without the need for a weight.

Steel goosenecks for center Pivot drops

A plastic gooseneck is more fragile than a steel gooseneck against accidental impacts.

Made from 3/4” (19.05 mm) galvanized steel pipe (ISO-65 L2, UNE-EN10255), metal goosenecks are shaped using a bender to form a 180° bend.

They have one arm longer than the other for easy mounting on the main pipe of the center Pivot machine, and 3/4” NPT male threading is added at the ends by means of a threader.

Galvanized steel pipes

Wind can cause the flexible piping of drops to become tangled in the truss rods. Even when using fasteners on the hanging hoses to avoid becoming entangled in the truss rods and weights to improve verticality, the friction caused by the drops touching the crops below tends to alter the irrigation patterns of the emitters installed at the bottom. This situation can be avoided using rigid galvanized steel drops.

When it becomes necessary to install rigid drops, also made from 3/4” (19.05 mm) galvanized steel pipe (ISO-65 L2, UNE-EN10255), different lengths can be cut according to requirements (1 meter, 1.5 meters, 2 meters, 3 meters) and 3/4” NPT male threading is also added at the ends. These same pipes are also used as pipe riser or sprinkler stands in surface or underground sprinkler irrigation.

The steel galvanization process used to manufacture these pieces is carried out by immersing the material in pools of molten zinc at 450°C.

This procedure prevents oxidation and corrosion caused by humidity and environmental contamination on unprotected iron. It also provides greater durability over time to these components.