Posted: 10/20/2011 6:48:49 AM EDT
|
My parents have a well on their property that I'd like to get working again in case of SHTF or whatever. All I know about it is that it's 110 feet deep or so. I don't know the static water level. When my dad and I pulled old pump out there was 110' of pipe attached to it.
I'd like to set it up with a solar pump and use it to fill a tank or cistern. What's the best way to go about it? Who's a good company to buy from. I'm probably limited to around $1000. Any help is GREATLY appreciated!!!! |
| Given your budget, I would go with something like this and add the solar function at a later date. |
|
Quoted:
Given your budget, I would go with something like this and add the solar function at a later date. Thanks for the info. That would be almost $1800 for the well pump and solar motor. Then I'd still need a solar panel. There has got to be a better option than that. |
|
I'm a little curious as to why you pulled the old pump in the first place.
Any hand pump at 110' is going to wear you out pretty quick. I'd ask the locals who they use for service, and look for a good used electric pump. Just getting it working would be an improvement over your current situation. That is what we did at our camp.You can working about alternate power sources later. |
|
The house and land are now on county water. I'm wanting to get the well set up to work in a situation where the county water is off and there is no electricity. I don't want to run the house off the well, I know that would be very expensive. Just wanting to be able to keep a good size tank full.
Thanks for the info so far guys! |
|
Quoted:
if you are going to use it only ocationaly why not look into a gas pump that is definitely not going to work. it is not possible to draw water up from a depth of more than about 30 feet; with the OP's well situation he has to use a submersible at the bottom. ar-jedi |
|
Quoted:
Quoted:
Would you have a source of compressed air, and how much water do you need? How quickly do you need it, and do you need a pressurised flow from the storage tank? This would be my solution. My parents have an air compressor. I was thinking of keeping a 1000-1500 gal tank full. Pressurised flow would be nice. What are y'all talking about? |
|
If you pressurize a well casing with a separate isolated pipe extended down into the aquifer the pressure in the well casing will cause the water to be forced up the pipe. It's the same thing that happens when you drink a coke through a straw. You are lowering the pressure in the straw, which is the same as increasing the pressure on the aquifer (glass of liquid), and it forced the liquid up the pipe (straw).
So what you do is fabricate a fitting for the top of the well where you can seal off the casing. Have an air fitting installed in it to pressurize the casing. It also will need a pipe fitting which will then be attached to other joints of pipe to extend the supply line down into the aquifer. Think of this fitting as an elbow with a nipple in it welded into the fabricated fitting. If I didn't have a PoS computer I would draw you a nice picture to explain it. You'll need a check valve and a foot valve to make it work right. |
|
Pardon my ignorance...
What kind of pressures are you talking about? I assume it's based on the depth of the well vs water table vs...? And, do you maintain pressure all the time? Or, do you pressurize 'til the well pipe is empty, let it off, try again when refilled? I'm curious due to wanting options in case the lights go out versus the OP wanting to put one back into service. The deep well pump would be great, but out of my budget right now. Thanks, sgt_seti |
|
Well let's see...
First there's the static water depth, which is the level it rises to when there is no water being drawn from the well. Then there's the dynamic water level which is the level the water assumes when water is being drawn out of the well at no more than the well's capacity. Ok, say your well is capable of producing 10gpm and the dynamic level is at 99ft. To get the water to the surface you are going to have to raise it 99 feet, plus the pressure you want it to have in the line at the surface. 33' of water equals 1 atmosphere, or 14.7lbs. So, 99 feet equals 3 atmospheres, or 14.7*3=44.3lbs of air pressure plus a little more for friction loss in the line. So, 50psi of air pressure will get the water to the surface. If you want 30psi of water pressure to use, then you would add 30psi to the 50psi you need to get it to the surface. 80-85 lbs. of air pressure will work fine in our example. |