Network friction loss
Three-tier hydraulic path — mainline + sub-main + lateral — summed to a total head requirement at the pump. Useful for sizing irrigation, manifold and pressurised-distribution pumps.
Scope of this tool
Models one critical path from pump to a single emitter run: one mainline → one sub-main → one lateral. For networks with multiple parallel branches at any tier, run the tool against your worst-case path (longest run, highest elevation, smallest pipe) to size the pump conservatively. Multi-branch network design — pressure balancing across zones, simultaneous-zone peak flow, per-zone critical pressure — is the engineering work the HidroVerse team handles directly.
Mainline · Source → manifold
Head loss
1.31m H₂O
Pressure drop
0.129bar
Velocity
1.13m/s
Sub-main · Manifold → zone valve
Head loss
1.31m H₂O
Pressure drop
0.128bar
Velocity
1.27m/s
Lateral · Zone valve → emitters
Head loss
3.48m H₂O
Pressure drop
0.341bar
Velocity
1.63m/s
System pressure components
Total friction loss
6.1m H₂O
= 0.599 bar
Sum of all three tiers.
Static head
8m
= 26.2 ft
Outlet pressure (head)
20.4m
= 2 bar
Pump head required (TDH)
37.9m
= 34.5 m pre-margin·3.72 bar
Includes 10 % safety margin. Spec the pump curve at this head.
Network pump head specification
Mainline + sub-main + lateral friction = 6.1 m at the critical path. Static head 8 m + outlet pressure 2 bar (20.4 m) + 10 % safety margin → pump TDH = 37.9 m (3.72 bar) at 5 L/s.
Single critical path only — multi-branch networks need a per-segment graph analysis.