Manly Hydraulics Laboratory

NSW Public Works

Manly Hydraulics Laboratory

Irrigation Water Meter Testing

Know the Flow Test Facility

The facility was established with a grant from the federal Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities as part of the National Water Initiative. The facility has been designed to carry out pattern approval testing of irrigation water meters as described in the National Measurement Institute documents NMI M 10-2 and NMI M 11-2. Both open channel and closed conduit meters can be tested at flows up to over 100ML/day and up to heads of 60m. The new facility replaces an earlier irrigation testing facility developed at MHL in 1998 as part of the Know-the-Flow project which MHL has used to test irrigation flow meters in flow conditions as near as possible to those in the field.

Photos of the Interior

The rig, which utilises water from Manly Dam, re-circulated at all flow rates other than extremely low flow rates, allows testing of complete installations over a range of conditions. Complete flow measurement installations, including the common arrangement where the flow meter is installed in a short pipe from an open supply channel, can be tested, as well as flow meters in closed conduits. Testing can include evaluation of the accuracy of installations and their sensitivity to the various adverse flow conditions that occur in the field and head loss measurements over a range of flows.

MHL is an independent testing authority, testing for manufacturers, water providers and water users. For further information and fees please contact Manly Hydraulics Laboratory +612 9949 0200 (mhl.reception@mhl.nsw.gov.au).