Posted: 8/11/2012 9:49:04 PM EDT
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This may be the wrong forum for this but what the heck...
Anybody had experience with the old-style hand pumps for wells? I saw a few online that were capable of deep wells (mine's less than 100 ft fwiw) I live in a pretty remote area and the likelihood of power going out is a real possibility and we are low on the list for repair. I think it'd be good to have a backup means for pumping water even if its only into buckets. What are your thoughts? |
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Quoted:
How much less than 100'? If you in the <20' range for your static water level you can use a pitcher pump for pretty cheap. Lower than that and you'll probably need a "deep well" pump. The bison's appear to be the gold standard, but they're quite pricey... I think (I'll have to pull the paperwork to check) its like 70-80 ft. I saw the bison was like 800 or so. Is that about right? |
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I think they're about 2x that much. Keep in mind it's your static water level you need to be concerned about, not the depth of the entire well. One of these is on my wish list: http://bisonpumps.com/ |
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My well is 117-feet deep and I installed a Monitor 11HD Force Pump (these pumps can be used to a depth of 200-feet).
This required $1,744.65 worth of manufacturer’s hardware and $557.58 worth of miscellaneous support hardware and about 10-hours of labor to install. Hardware alone set me back $2,302.23. This isn’t cheap but is worth every penny when you’re thirsty. http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/5113/pump1g.jpg My static water level is only about 12 to 14-feet but I want to be able to always draw water. This summer has proven to be a test of that principle. |
| I've got the Bison, and built a 8x8 shed around it with a crushed stone floor. I can draw water in the coldest of temps. Its the only way to go if you are going fully non-electric in your preps - or if you dont have public utilities at your BOL. Seriously though, it never gets used now. When the power goes out and we need water, I just boot up the genny. |
| if you are a DIY and can get away with PVC... there is a good vid on Youtube by "babaloo42" on basic construction and an important modification by "sameggars1" on a deep piston pump that uses a 1 1/2" drop tube... I built one to reclaim an old well casing on the property ... |
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Quoted:
This may be the wrong forum for this but what the heck... Anybody had experience with the old-style hand pumps for wells? I saw a few online that were capable of deep wells (mine's less than 100 ft fwiw) I live in a pretty remote area and the likelihood of power going out is a real possibility and we are low on the list for repair. I think it'd be good to have a backup means for pumping water even if its only into buckets. What are your thoughts? Go To Engineer775 on you tube, all you need to know. |
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It is not necessary to spend lots of money to get water out of a well if you use an air lift pump design. See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJAUTjURjEY&feature=relmfu for a successful example at a producing well using a 1/2 poly pipe for the air input and 1 1/4 black poly for the water output. An ordinary compressor supplies the needed air. That fellow in Texas has pumped a lot of water using an air lift water pump.
If you don't have electricity at the well head, experiments have shown that a 1/4" air line and 1/2" water line can be used to pump 3 gpm from a well at 65 ft depth with 30 ft static water level using a tire hand pump for the air needed. The air lift pump operates when the little bitty bubbles at depth become much bigger as they rise to the surface pushing a slug of water in advance. Too much air and you get froth; just the right amount of air and you get pulsating output. Bubbles pushing water, bubbles creating lower water density, and upward inertial influence the flow rate. A tank valve at the input connects to the tire hand pump and prevents air under pressure from escaping from the air line. The secret is to be sure that the submerged level of the water intake is as least as great as the static water level. The deeper the intake the better, as little air bubbles get big as they move toward the surface. The air lift pumps work well at a fraction of the cost and complexity of a submersible pump or a sophisticated modern hand pump. Using an air lift pump as described here with a tire hand pump, I am certain that I could have had 2 or 3 gpm water out of Kmussack's well at 117 ft for only $50.00. I have concluded that the air lift water well pump method is not widely known because there is no profit in it! Do a YouTube search on "air lift pump" to see how successful folks have been in pumping water using this method. |
Definitely food for thought
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Quoted:
I think they're about 2x that much. Keep in mind it's your static water level you need to be concerned about, not the depth of the entire well. One of these is on my wish list: http://bisonpumps.com/ Big +1... but not cheap at all. |