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Kutztown, PA

My well water comes out at around 70 F/21 C. I can fill my two 250 gal. containers at the end of each day and heat the water using a submersible heater made for that purpose, If I need to.

Do you heat your water? If you do - how? If you don't - why?
What temperature are you shooting for? What Temp. might shock you plants?

12/14/2022 2:06:19 PM

Western NY

Are you sure that's correct - it comes out at 70? Even after running a while?

Mine comes out at 57 in the summer. It warms up in the 2" line out to the patch in between waterings. I'd like to water in the low 70s, maybe even warmer early on when the soil is cooler.

12/14/2022 2:44:52 PM

Lodi, California

Get your electric bill ready, water heaters are 100% efficient, but it requires an ungodly amount of power to heat up that much water, every day. We have an instant water heater that pulls 20KW, which is probably about 3x what most homes use at any given time, and that is only capable of creating hot water at low volume (ie a slow trickle out of the hose).

If you have a submersible 1500w heater, expect to have it running all day, and the temperature to only increase about 10 degrees

12/14/2022 2:54:22 PM

On a cliff in the desert

Store water in a black container with a couple of hundred feet of dark hose full of water. Nature will heat it up for you for free.

12/14/2022 3:53:10 PM

Grittyville, WA

70 is plenty warm isnt it? My well water is 50 degrees or so. Heating water will be expensive... 24 hours in the sun might be a better route? I hope you'll keep a diary of your progress.

12/14/2022 4:01:42 PM

Kutztown, PA

I'll check it again, but I recall close to 70 F. If 70 is good then I wont worry about it.

Gritty - you live almost on the North Pole - I'm surprised you don't need to thaw ice for water :) LOL

12/14/2022 4:09:01 PM

Watlington, UK

Don't overdo it: warm water = less disolved oxygen + more disease

12/14/2022 5:22:09 PM

Syracuse, NY

Yeah, wile c, I was thinking that the Joel Holland Method of
circulating the H2O through any piping, in 'our' case a neatly-coiled, in-the-sun length of hose of as much as could be mustered would be step one, whereas I don't think ANYone has raised the issue of roasting the plants with water than has been heated unknowingly - the hose that is exposed and whose solarization basically scalds the plant until proposed warmed water comes through in moderation. You put your hand in that initial water stream and I'll bet most times that you wouldn't wanna shower in it, lol---
This may be likely for anything other than drip irrigation, where the water is so slow that it acclimates upward anyway;

I propose that an effort to bury the HOSES is needed, whereby ultimately, the irrigation water should be at the same temperature as the plant/soil. eg

12/14/2022 5:39:24 PM

Torrance, Ca.

Lots of growers heat their water, Andy Wolf knows many of them.:)
Look it up online, there's many ways to do this free with above ground tubes and a nice black tank.

12/14/2022 8:44:00 PM

Mill Bay, British Columbia

Our water comes out of the tap from 52-55 degrees and no warmer. We fill 250 gallon totes to warm the water up before using. 70-75 degree water would be great for watering with.

12/14/2022 10:23:28 PM

Anchorage Alaska

Ok my well water comes out in the mid 40 degree range , so my hose running to the patch is connected to a simple tempering valve used for toilets , so they don't condensate, its a Beacon 600 valve , it mixes the cold water from the well, with the hot water heater tank to around 70 for a nice non shocking temp..but most of the time I try to circulate my well water, thru the IBC tank into my solar collector, 1 sunny day is all it takes for 275 gallons to go from 40 to 80, the drawback is consistent sunshine...

12/14/2022 11:23:27 PM

valtierra/spain

In summer here, we have to be very careful with the black pipes, the water gets very hot, and if you water by dripping, or by misting if the hoses are black, the water can come out very very hot at first, and it can damage the roots. , and the leaves. This winter, I have changed all my misting pipes to white. The pipes that I have where the dosatron, I paint them white with spray paint. If you have very hot water in the pipes, and the soil is at an ideal temperature, if you water with water at 120F, or more... what can the water reach inside a pipe, the thermal shock will stress the roots, the plant, and pumpkin.

12/15/2022 3:00:35 AM

Lodi, California

I'm glad this isn't something I have to worry about. My well water comes out at probably around 50f, but if anything that's a blessing when it's 110 outside. The water goes down slow enough that I doubt it affects soil temperature as the air heats it up.

12/15/2022 12:46:00 PM

Kutztown, PA

OK - my water was really 53 degrees, not 70. Don't know where I came up with 70.

12/16/2022 4:16:04 PM