FREE WATER FLOW TOOL · BUCKET TEST
Garden Hose Flow Rate Calculator
Measure the water flow you actually get at the hose, tap or irrigation outlet. Time how long a known container takes to fill, repeat the test if useful, and convert the result into litres per minute, litres per hour and an optional watering runtime.
BUCKET TEST · MEASURED WATER FLOW
Measure the flow you actually get from the hose.
Fill a container of known volume and time it. Add two or three repeat tests if you want a steadier average, then turn the measured litres per minute into an optional watering runtime.
OPTIONAL WATERING RUNTIME
Turn measured flow into a water-depth estimate.
One millimetre of water over one square metre equals one litre. Enter the area and target depth to estimate the volume and runtime at the measured hose flow.
VOLUME / RUNTIME100 L5.0 minutes at the measured flow
FORMULAS
L/min = container litres ÷ average fill seconds × 60 · target litres = area m² × depth mm · runtime = target litres ÷ L/minA real bucket test captures the restrictions in the setup you are actually using.
Hose labels and household pressure figures do not tell you exactly how much water reaches the end of a particular setup. Hose length, internal diameter, quick connectors, valves, nozzles, pressure variation, elevation and other restrictions can all change delivered flow. A timed fill test measures the combined result instead of modelling every component separately.
For irrigation planning, measure at the point that matters. If a long hose feeds a manifold, test at the end of that hose. If a nozzle or fitting will remain in the system during use, keep the relevant restriction in place when the test is intended to represent that operating condition.
Use a known container, steady flow and the same configuration you plan to water with.
Choose a container whose volume you know reasonably well. Start with the water running at the normal operating setting, time the fill from a clear start point to a consistent volume mark, then enter the litres and elapsed seconds. A larger container or slightly longer fill time can make stopwatch errors less influential than a very fast two- or three-second test.
Repeat the test when accuracy matters. Tiny Mustard Seed can average up to three timings and shows the spread between the fastest and slowest result. If repeated times differ sharply, check whether the tap setting changed, the hose kinked, a pressure-control device cycled or the fill mark was inconsistent before relying on the average.
One millimetre of water over one square metre equals one litre.
This metric relationship makes area-based watering calculations straightforward. A 10 m² bed given a target depth of 10 mm requires 100 litres before considering rainfall, irrigation efficiency, runoff, soil intake rate or other real-world losses. Once the required volume is known, dividing it by measured litres per minute gives a simple runtime.
The optional runtime panel uses that direct volume relationship. It is most appropriate when the measured flow represents the same delivery setup used over the area. A wide-open hose test should not be treated as the flow through a restricted drip network or sprinkler unless the downstream system is included in the measurement or separately calibrated.
Litres per minute and water pressure answer different questions.
A bucket test measures delivered flow under the tested condition. It does not measure pressure, prove that every sprinkler will operate correctly or show whether a long drip zone has even pressure from one end to the other. Some irrigation equipment needs both adequate flow and a suitable pressure range.
For a multi-outlet system, compare the expected combined demand with the measured supply and then test the installed zone. If performance changes when several outlets open together, divide the garden into smaller zones or investigate the supply, pressure regulation and pipe restrictions rather than assuming the bucket-test number remains available everywhere at once.