Making water pipe cover - fixings? Rebar?

[JaniceH]

Hi all
Having seen lots of people put the blue water pipe over their raised beds to protect things like carrots or brassicas, I have some questions please.

My pipe is 22mm and I wondered how to fix it to the bed. I don't want to screw into the wood of my raised bed as over the years and crop rotation it will make a mess of the wood. I've seen it mentioned that rebars work as you can hammer them into the ground. Has anyone done this? I'm on a fairly windy site with sandy soil so canes won't be strong enough.

Is enviro mesh the only thing that will prevent carrot fly or leek moth? How do you work out how much you need?

Are there any clips about that will clip the mesh onto 22mm pipe (seen plenty in America but not here)

Sorry about all the questions, just can't afford to buy in haste.

[Thelma Sanders]

These clips just slide on, don't need to screw them.

Contract Pipe Clip 22mm Pack of 100 | Pipe Clips | Screwfix.com

[Bigmallly]

Hi Janice, make a frame out of 2x2 the same size as your beds, fasten the clips below to the frame, then attach your pipe into the clips. Once netted, the cage can then be moved from bed to bed.

Talon Hinge Clip 22mm Pack of 20 | Pipe Clips | Screwfix.com

The cages would be similar to these only hooped:

[Bigmallly]

Haha............same clips as Thelmas only with a hinged door.

[Bigmallly]

These clips just slide on, don't need to screw them.

Contract Pipe Clip 22mm Pack of 100 | Pipe Clips | Screwfix.com

They still need screwing to the timber.

[Thelma Sanders]

eh? I only slide them over the netting to hold onto the plastic hoops *confused*

[Bigmallly]

Sorry Thelma, We're thinking of 2 different uses for them. I'm talking about using them to clamp the pipe in place instead of using metal bars............As you were..........

[Martin H]

To hold the blue hoops in place, I use pieces of sturdy bamboo cane about 50 cm long. I push these firmly into the soil then slide the end of the hoop over the protruding end of the cane.

I don't fasten the netting to the hoops, I just stretch it over and peg it to the ground. This means it is easy to unpeg and lift up to get at the crops.

My beds don't have edges but the same technique ought to still work with timber-edged beds as long as they are either deep or bottomless.

Here's a picture from last year:

[Florence Fennel]

That's how I do it too, but inside the raised beds

[snakeshack]

I just shove the pipe into the ground then hook the netting ( debris netting) onto felt nails on the outside of the bed

[Cadalot]

OK I have a number of different types, some smaller portable with debris netting, A large one covered in chicken wire and the others I push the end of the hoop into the ground having formed a hole with a rebar before. I brace them with plastic trim I salvaged from a closing window company and fix with cable ties. I did use 2.4m bamboo to start with but the plastic trim is so useful.

[Cadalot]

Here are a few more photos, I either roll up the netting and use galvanised tent pegs, or some I have used a similar plastic strip and cable tied and use milk bottles filled with sand or tent pegs again

[Jay-ell]

I have bmboo shoved up the ends of my pipes- mainly to help them go vertical for a bit rrather than bending straight away.

The pipes are then pushed into the ground inside the beds. I've tied a long cane to the top of the hoops to that when I pull the netting taught they don't bow together.



To hold the netting onto the pipe I cut a short piece of pipe then split it lengthways to make a clip which when pushed onto the hoop holds it it firmly. To keep the gaps between the supports down I just push a long cane lying flat in between the bed edging and the support

[Martin H]

To hold the netting onto the pipe I cut a short piece of pipe then split it lengthways to make a clip whic wen pused onto the hoop holds it it firmly.

Nice idea. I'll be nicking that one.

[Jay-ell]

Nice idea. I'll be nicking that one.

Where I've cut the pipe I round the corners off - stops it snagging the net and makes it easier to push on and off.

They also slide up and down the supports so I don't have to keep taking off the net to weed, harvest etc.