Water distribution system - post #1

The planned water distribution system for our ranch. 
You may recall a previous post in which I describe a water well we had drilled this past summer and a solar powered water pump I installed in the fall.  This post is very much a continuation of that earlier post in that it will document my efforts to make use of the water extracted from the new well.

Initially I had planned to make one large post about my installation of the entire system.  However, the system is so large that I now think it will be better for me to create several smaller posts describing the different components as they are installed.  This post will be the first in that series and describe the project in general terms. 

The goal of this project is to provide the ranch with an off-grid pressurized water system that is available day and night and is frost resistant.  Because the water is pumped by a solar powered water pump with no battery backup, water pumped directly from the well can only be relied upon on sunny days.  To make water available at all times it will be stored in a reserve tank with the capacity to provide water for several cloudy days.  The tank will be located near the top of a hill to provide pressure and buried to prevent freezing during the winter.  From this underground tank or cistern buried water lines will carry the water to water troughs and hydrants situated at different parts of the ranch.

Most of the materials needed to complete this project have now been acquired and are ready for installation.  Subsequent posts will detail this installation. 

Comments

  1. Tall PinesDecember 21, 2016 at 10:30:00 PM EST

    How cold does it get there? How deep will you have to bury everything to prevent freezing?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Buffalo DanDecember 21, 2016 at 11:03:00 PM EST

    During the coldest time of the year the normal temperature range is 23 to 47 degrees Fahrenheit. It does get colder, but not for long periods of time. According to the NOAA map on frost depths, our ranch falls evenly between .25 and .50 meters. To be on the safe side I'm planning to bury the pipelines 1.5 feet down. This should get me through the coldest periods down here. If the temperatures ever do get unusually cold I'll probably just drain the line until things warm up.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Tall PinesDecember 23, 2016 at 11:00:00 PM EST

    You're fortunate. Our electric lines are a minimum of 18 inches, and water pipes are at minimum 6 ft deep.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Buffalo DanDecember 26, 2016 at 11:14:00 AM EST

      I can recall frost like that when I was growing up in Wisconsin - not fun. On the flip side down here the heat and humidity can make working pretty miserable down here during the summer. I don't mind the cold, but, if I had a choice, I think I would stay in Virginia. I didn't like the length of time we had to what for things to warm up in the north and weeks and weeks of cloudy weather.

      Delete

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