Agriculture

Secure water for your crops.

Covex® is a hexagonal floating cover that seals the water-air interface. It cuts evaporation by up to 97%, blocks the sunlight that feeds algae, and removes the open water that attracts birds. The water you paid to pump, capture or buy stays in your reservoir until your crops need it.

97%
Evaporation reduction
95%
Algae growth reduction
98%
Surface coverage
100 km/h
Wind resistance
The root of the problem

It all starts at the water-air interface.

Wherever your stored irrigation water meets the air, the same three things happen, regardless of what you grow: water evaporates, light feeds algae, and the open surface draws in birds. In arid regions a reservoir can lose up to 3,200 mm of water column per year to evaporation alone.

Irrigation reservoir losing water to evaporation and wind
01

Evaporation

Water you pumped, captured or were allocated disappears into the air: up to 3.2 m³ per m² of exposed surface per year. On a one-hectare reservoir that can exceed 30,000 m³ per season, water that never reaches a single plant.

02

Algae and clogged irrigation

Sunlight on the open surface fuels photosynthesis. Algae blooms clog drip emitters and filters, force backflushing and chemical treatment, and degrade the quality of fertigation water.

03

Birds and water quality

The open water surface attracts birds whose droppings introduce pathogens and nutrients into water destined for food crops, a recurring finding in food safety audits and a constant load on filtration.

The solution

A cover that self-installs and self-adjusts.

The hexagonal HDPE modules float, interlock, and settle on their own to the reservoir level. They require no structure, anchoring, or maintenance. Each unit carries water ballast that keeps it in place even in extreme wind.

97%

Less evaporation

The physical barrier of the hexagons cuts the mass exchange between water and air. 98% coverage of the liquid surface.

95%

Stops algae growth

By blocking light, it inhibits photosynthesis in the stored water, protecting drip emitters, filters and fertigation quality.

98%

Virtually eliminates the open water surface

With no visible reflective surface, birds are far less likely to detect the reservoir, keeping droppings and pathogens out of irrigation water.

60%

Delays freezing on frost nights

The air chamber inside each module acts as an insulating barrier. Water stays liquid and pumpable longer, exactly when frost-control sprinklers need it.

Covex hexagonal module in hand
Irrigation reservoir covered with Covex
Your operation, your gain

The same cover, the value that matters to you.

The physics of the water-air interface is universal, but the priority changes with the crop and the climate. Find your operation below.

Vineyards & Orchards

Wine grapes · Fruit trees · Nuts
  • Water security through peak demand: the m³ you store in winter and spring is still there when the crop needs it most, instead of evaporating through summer.
  • Algae control protects drip irrigation: blocking light inhibits photosynthesis, which means fewer clogged emitters, fewer filter backflushes and less chemical treatment.
  • Cooler water in summer: by blocking 98% of solar radiation, the covered water stays several degrees below the uncovered surface, slowing both evaporation and algae metabolism.
  • Bird exclusion keeps droppings and pathogens out of water headed for food crops, supporting food safety audits.
Installed at leading wine producers.

Irrigation Communities

Shared reservoirs · Irrigation districts · Canal-fed storage
  • At scale, evaporation is an allocation problem: in arid climates a shared 5-hectare reservoir can lose over 150,000 m³ per year, water every member already paid for.
  • Modular deployment with no civil works: no structure, no anchoring, no need to drain the reservoir. The cover is operational the day it is launched.
  • Water-efficiency funding: floating covers can qualify under irrigation modernization and water-saving subsidy programs in several jurisdictions.
  • Self-adjusting to level: the hexagons follow the water as the reservoir drains through the season, with no maintenance crew required.
Ask us about subsidy frameworks in your region.

Greenhouses & Intensive Horticulture

Rainwater storage · Recirculated water · Frost control
  • Algae control at the source: stored rainwater and recirculated water stay dark, reducing the biofilm and algae load on fertigation systems.
  • Less treatment cost: blocking light reduces the need for algaecides and filtration downstream, instead of fighting algae after they bloom.
  • Frost protection readiness: on freezing nights the cover delays the freezing point by 60%, keeping water liquid and pumpable for sprinkler frost control at dawn.
  • Bird and debris exclusion over water destined for high-value crops.
See the temperature section below for the freeze-delay curve. Not sure where your reservoir fits? Tell us in the form and we will advise.
Temperature and frost · Irrigation reservoirs

Cooler water in summer, liquid water on frost nights.

Covex® regulates water temperature in both directions: by day it blocks solar radiation and keeps the water cooler, by night it retains heat and slows cooling. Both effects work directly for agriculture.

Day · water temperature under intense sun
40 30 20 10 °C 7°C 6 10 14 20 h
With Covex® Without cover
During peak radiation hours, Covex® blocks sunlight and keeps the water up to 7°C cooler than the uncovered surface, reducing evaporation exactly when it is most intense.

By day, it blocks the sun and keeps water cooler.

Under intense summer sun, the hexagons block solar radiation before it heats the water. The covered surface stays several degrees below the uncovered one. Since vapor pressure rises with temperature, cooler water evaporates less, exactly when irrigation demand peaks. Cooler, darker water also slows algae metabolism.

98%
Radiation blocked over the water
7°C
Up to 7°C cooler than without cover

By night, it retains heat and delays freezing.

On frost nights, frost-control sprinklers only work if the stored water is still liquid and pumpable when temperatures bottom out at dawn. Against a -5°C environment, Covex® keeps the water up to 5.2°C warmer than the uncovered surface during the first hours of the night.

The effect is decisive where there is freezing risk: uncovered water reaches 0°C at 7.5 hours, while under Covex® the freezing point is delayed to 12 hours, 60% more time. Intake pipes and pumps stay protected as well.

5.2°C
Warmer water with Covex®
+60%
More time before freezing
Night · water cooling with and without Covex® (-5°C ambient)
20 15 10 5 °C 0 0 4 7,5 12 14 h
With Covex® Without cover
Covex® cooling curve against a -5°C environment. Uncovered water reaches 0°C (freezing) at 7.5 hours; under Covex® the freezing point is delayed to 12 hours.
Thermal regulation in both directions · Water ready when frost strikes
Water quality and food safety

Cleaner irrigation water, by design.

Food safety standards increasingly look at the quality of irrigation water, and stored open water is the weakest link: sunlight feeds algae, and the open surface invites birds whose droppings carry pathogens and nutrients. Covex® provides a continuous physical barrier that removes both drivers at the source, an auditable measure that works 24 hours a day with no active devices.

Covex installed on a reservoir, protecting water quality
Physical deterrence

No open water, no birds

By covering 98% of the surface, birds are unlikely to perceive a body of water to land on or drink from. The deterrence is structural and does not rely on cannons, nets or lasers.

Light blocked at the source

Algae stopped before they bloom

Without light there is no photosynthesis. Blocking 98% of solar radiation inhibits algae growth by 95%, protecting drip emitters and filters and reducing the need for algaecides and chlorination downstream.

Evidence and backing

Independent technical validation

The system has evaporation and thermal-behavior validation through TRNSYS and CFD modeling, with academic institutions and water research centers.

Operation

Zero maintenance, automatic adjustment

The hexagons rearrange themselves as the level changes through the irrigation season. There is no structure to inspect and no anchors to fail.

Technical backing

Data measured on site, not catalog promises.

TRNSYS / CFD
Evaporation calculation software with accuracy calibrated through Eddy Covariance technology, plus water-savings reports for each site.
25+ years
Expected service life. The 1% carbon black is the same specification as HDPE pipes with a 50-year warranty.
Independent validation
Efficiency verified by universities and technical bodies specialized in thermodynamics and fluid dynamics.
-40°C to 85°C
Operates in extreme conditions of altitude, cold, dust, and extreme solar radiation.
They trust the technology

From world-class wine producers to the largest industrial water users.

Concha y Toro Pine Ridge Vineyards Finca Casa Bermeja New Farm Forestry

Let us calculate how much water your reservoir is losing.

Tell us about your reservoir and we will provide an estimate of evaporation, recovered water, chemical and labor savings, and payback for your site.

Request received.

A specialist will review your site data and contact you with a savings and payback estimate.