35
Mr. Chapin had an innovative mind and a big heart for
people, their well-being and a desire to give back to his
community. He lived and worked in Watertown New York
where he founded his business, Chapin Watermatics. In
1950, Mr. Chapin developed the ‘Chapin’s Mist Watering
Machine ’system that ran on an overhead track distributing
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system, which he named the ‘Watermatic System’. This
system was designed to deliver water through a main
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to Ohio State University in 1960 and was well received,
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to start producing the systems for commercial sale.
Reducing the labor and delivering the exact amount
of required water per plant soon proved valuable to Mr.
Chapin as well as other greenhouse farmers.
Chapin Watermatics was incorporated in 1962 and the
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greenhouse in 1930. Focusing on the greenhouse needs,
Mr. Chapin developed different types of water delivery
systems, including pot weights, loop and spray stakes.
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water delivery system for row crops as he traveled around
the country. In the early 60’s, Mr. Chapin developed the
‘Dew Hose’ product and successfully marketed this to
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Dew Hose product was commercially introduced and
installed on Long Island with the help of Norm Smith, with
the crop being tomatoes.
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thru the mid 1990’s, including:
1964 - Dew Hose
• Single chamber.
• Drip outlet
• Well suited for residential, smaller
gardens.
1970 - Twin Wall • Two chamber type hose.
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• Could be used by the commercial
farmer.
• Introduced to the California market
in 1970 with pole tomatoes being
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• Squirt outlet.
Richard D. Chapin
one of the first pioneers of drip irrigation
Focusing on the greenhouse needs,
Mr. Chapin developed different types
of water delivery systems, including
pot weights, loop and spray stakes