Set Volume & Water Applied per Set
Irrigate drip
“One accepted answer here saves a hundred people an hour each.
Enter the system flow in L/s, the run time in hours and the irrigated area to get the water applied per set in cubic metres and the depth in millimetres. Volume m³ = flow L/s × hours × 3.6.
Enter your irrigation set
Next: compare the 35.6 mm applied depth to your crop's allowable depletion — most field crops want 25–50 mm per irrigation, so adjust the run time or flow to hit that window without runoff.
Volume = flow × time × 3.6; depth = volume ÷ area.
Irrigation set volume — key facts
- Set volume
- flow L/s × hours × 3.6 (m³)
- 1 L/s for 1 h
- = 3.6 m³
- Application depth
- volume ÷ area (mm)
- 1 mm over 1 ha
- = 10 m³
- Flow unit
- litres per second
- m³/h to L/s
- ÷ 3.6
- Gross vs net
- apply efficiency factor
- Privacy
- Runs in your browser; nothing uploaded
Know exactly how much water each set applies
Every irrigation set delivers a fixed volume of water, and the only way to schedule properly is to know it. A flow of one litre per second carries 3.6 cubic metres in an hour, so run time and flow together fix the volume. Spread that volume over the irrigated area and you get a depth in millimetres — the same unit as crop water need, rainfall and evapotranspiration — so you can tell at a glance whether a set over-waters, under-waters or lands just right.
This tool gives the set volume in cubic metres, the application depth in millimetres and the irrigated area from the flow rate and run time. Use it to size sets to soil capacity, budget pumping volumes and avoid runoff. Pair it with the Drip Zone Scheduling, Emitter Flow and Water Hammer tools for a full irrigation plan.
Match the soil
Apply a depth the root zone can actually hold.
Budget the pump
Know the cubic metres each set will draw.
Avoid runoff
Stop before the depth exceeds infiltration.
Compare to need
Read depth in mm against crop water demand.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is the set volume calculated?+
From the flow rate and the run time. A flow of one litre per second delivers 3.6 cubic metres in an hour, so the volume per set is flow (L/s) × hours × 3.6. The tool multiplies your system flow by the time the set runs to give the total water applied in cubic metres.
How is the application depth in millimetres found?+
Depth is the volume spread evenly over the irrigated area. One cubic metre over one hectare is 0.1 mm, and one millimetre over one hectare is 10 cubic metres. The tool divides the set volume by the area and converts to millimetres, so you can compare it directly with crop water need and rainfall.
Why convert volume to a depth in millimetres?+
Crop water demand, rainfall and evapotranspiration are all quoted as depths in millimetres, so converting your applied volume to mm lets you check whether a set meets the crop's need without over- or under-watering. A set that applies 25 mm against a 30 mm depletion, for example, leaves a small deficit you can plan around.
What flow units does it use?+
The calculator works in litres per second for flow, which is the common unit for irrigation pumps and channels. If your meter reads in cubic metres per hour, divide by 3.6 to get litres per second, or use the equivalent figure — one cubic metre per hour is about 0.278 litres per second.
Does this account for irrigation efficiency?+
The volume and depth here are gross figures — the water leaving the system. Real application efficiency is below 100 percent because of evaporation, wind drift, runoff and deep percolation. To get the net depth reaching the root zone, multiply by your system efficiency (often 0.6–0.95 depending on method) using the related efficiency tools.
Can I use it for drip, sprinkler or flood?+
Yes — the volume and depth maths is the same for any method, as long as you enter the flow actually delivered and the area actually wetted. For drip, the wetted area is smaller than the field, so enter the wetted area to get a meaningful depth; for sprinkler and flood, use the full set area.
How do I find my system flow rate?+
Read it from a flow meter on the mainline, or sum the rated discharge of the emitters or sprinklers running in the set. For pumps, the pump curve gives flow at the operating head. If you only know cubic metres per hour, divide by 3.6 to enter litres per second.
What is a typical irrigation set depth?+
It varies widely — a light sprinkler set might apply 8–15 mm, a heavy flood or furrow set 50–100 mm. The right depth refills the soil to field capacity without exceeding the root zone's holding capacity, which depends on soil type and crop rooting depth. Use the depth output to match the set to the available water in the soil.
Are the figures precise?+
The volume and depth are exact for the inputs you enter. Accuracy depends on knowing the true flow and the true wetted area — measured flow and a checked area give reliable numbers. Treat the depth as a gross figure and apply an efficiency factor for the net amount reaching the crop.
Related farming tools
1900+ free tools, zero sign-up
Calculators, developer & SEO utilities, data, content, hardware and farming — all instant, private and in your browser.
Rectangle Area Calculation
Open FarmingTransplant Age Calculator
Free transplant age calculator. Enter your nursery sowing date and crop to get the optimal transplant date and
Open Dev & SEOGraphQL Schema Visualizer
Advanced GraphQL schema visualization tool with interactive graphs, multiple view modes, smart filtering, and
Open NicheContent Marketing ROI Calculator
Diamond-grade content ROI calculator with a top-funnel-to-won-deal attribution waterfall. Per-content-type ROI
Open ContentFont Tools
A precision typography suite: score, preview and export font pairings from 82 Google Fonts. Transparent harmon
Open HardwareHardware Specifications Explorer
Faceted CPU & GPU specification explorer: filter by type, brand, process node, release year and TDP, then read
Open ProductivityPassword Tools
Test password strength against real standards (NIST 800-63B, OWASP ASVS), check against known breaches via k-a
Open ProLLM VRAM & Speed Estimator
Interactive LLM estimator: drag sliders for parameters, quantization, context, batch size, memory bandwidth, V
Open CalculatorRhombus Calculator
Free rhombus calculator to find area, perimeter, and height from side length and diagonals. Easy-to-use tool w
Open FarmingTransplant vs Direct Seeding Calculator
Free transplant-vs-direct-seeding decision calculator. For your crop and acreage, compare net margin, seed and
Open Dev & SEOJSON Schema Explorer
Paste a JSON Schema and explore it as an interactive tree — every property, type, required flag and constraint
Open NicheCustomer Success ROI Calculator
Diamond-grade customer success ROI calculator with a dual-needle NRR gauge (gross retention vs net retention)
Open ContentGoogle Fonts Pairing Tool
Find the perfect Google Fonts pairing with a transparent scoring engine — harmony, readability, performance, a
Open HardwareCPU & GPU Tier List Pro
The hardware hierarchy measured five ways: 130+ CPUs & GPUs (2015–2025) ranked into live S–D tiers by performa
Open ProductivityPassword Strength Tester
Open ProLocal LLM Hardware & Model Directory
Browse every GPU, model and best-of guide in the Local AI Advisor: what each graphics card can run, hardware r
Open CalculatorScientific
Open FarmingTransplanting Calculator
Free transplanting calculator. From your field area and spacing get the plants to transplant, the seedlings to
Open Dev & SEOOpenAPI / Swagger Documentation Generator
Generate beautiful, interactive API documentation from OpenAPI and Swagger specs. Endpoint references, request
Open Niche10-10-10 Decision Making Tool
Diamond-grade decision making tool with the 10-10-10 framework dial (Suzy Welch), Monte Carlo regret-score pan
Open ContentBulk Image Converters
Convert images to PNG, JPEG, WebP, AVIF, PDF, SVG, HEIC and + more formats in bulk. Free, no signup, no waterm
Open HardwareSilicon Architecture Explorer
Explore CPU and GPU silicon: group every part by microarchitecture (Zen, Ada Lovelace, RDNA, Ampere, Blackwell
Open ProVigyan Bhairav Tantra
Open CalculatorSector Area Calculator
Free sector calculator to find sector area, arc length, and perimeter from radius and central angle. Perfect f
Open