Inlaid Patch Drip Irrigation Tape

How the emitter gets inside the tube

On an inline emitter drip tape, the emitter is a small flat patch bonded to the inside of the tube wall as the tube is extruded. The patch is a separate moulded part: its face is a grid-type filter window, and the labyrinth passage is formed on the patch itself. The tube wall carries the water and the pressure; the patch meters it out.

Patch colour is specified rather than fixed, and it is worth using: assign one colour per flow model and the models can be told apart on the reel and after laying, without measuring spacing in the field.

The emitter brings its own defenses: a filter window at the inlet, and a wide labyrinth passage behind it. Water is screened before it reaches the flow path, and the passage itself is long enough to keep particles moving instead of settling.

Clogging resistance on this tape is built into the emitter, not added at the filter station: the filter window screens the water first, then the wide labyrinth passage dissipates pressure step by step. Uniformity is backed by quantified CV — flow stays even from the head of the line to the end.

Extruding with the emitter already inside also settles a logistics question: the tape is light, packs into flat rolls and loads efficiently — a real container-cost line item for importers.

Maximum run length

The catalogue publishes maximum laying lengths at 10 percent flow variation, by emitter spacing and flow rate:

Run length does not hold flow constant at every emitter. Where the ground slopes or output must stay even end to end, that is a job for full pressure compensation — see Pressure Compensating Drip Tape.

Emitter models and pressure–flow curves

The emitter comes in four nominal models — 1.0, 1.38, 2.0 and 3.0 L/h — each with its own pressure–flow curve in the catalogue. Request the curve sheet with your quotation and match the model to your available inlet pressure before fixing spacing.

Wall, spacing and roll combinations

The pairing below is identical for the 16 mm and 22 mm series — the diameter changes the first column of your order, not the spacing, roll length or flow pairing:

Mil brackets are printed in the catalogue for the 6, 7 and 8 mil gauges; unprinted gauges are converted at 25.4 micron per mil (⚠ verify against the printed catalogue). Combinations shown with a dash are completed from the printed catalogue before quotation, not guessed.

How to specify your order

The catalogue's ordering code combines five choices: emitter type (CF-01, flat emitter patch inside), nominal diameter (16 or 22 mm), emitter spacing, wall thickness and flow rate. Send the five values and the quotation comes back line-itemised — no ambiguity about which gauge or spacing was priced.

Three checks before you order

1. Bench flow at the rated value. One-minute volume per emitter on a sample from the actual batch, read against the rated value of the model you are buying.
2. Emitter bond check. Cut a sample open: the patch should sit flat and fully bonded to the wall, the filter grid intact, and no gap at the patch edges — the patch-to-wall bond is this construction's specific risk, so check it specifically.
3. Spacing pitch count. Count emitters over a measured length of roll and compare against the spacing on your order.

Send us your target specification and we will confirm roll lengths, loading quantities and lead time.