[TheForge] OT - Water pressure problem.

[Lynn and Susan Lang]

Bruce
Why not just collect the water in a stock tank and when water is needed
have a small pump to charge your garden hose.....Not knowing your task
makes suggestions a shot in the dark...

lynn 

-----Original Message-----
From: theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Bruce Freeman
Sent: Sunday, May 15, 2011 8:45 PM
To: Blacksmithing List Sponsored by ABANA
Subject: Re: [TheForge] OT - Water pressure problem.

I've had two ideas since first asking.  One is to mount a plastic
barrel horizontally on four or six legs as a water tower, but lean
this structure against the back of the garage, which (1) hides it from
casual view, (2) provides the extra rigidity from the existing
structure, and (3) allows me to use the space beneath as a "shed", if
I enclose it.

But on reading Peter's contribution, it struck me that I could
pressurize a tank using air from an air compressor.  When the water
level got too low, the air pressure would be released until low enough
for the water pump to handle.  The water pump would refill the tank,
then the water pump would shut off and the air pump would come on and
pump the tank back up to operating pressure.  Clearly, one would want
a tank large enough for the watering job at hand.  And a manual switch
to initialize the refill cycle would be handy. Main advantage -- no
tower structure to build and worry about.  Main disadvantage --
obtaining a suitable tank.  Anyone know a source of such tanks --
cheap?



On Sun, May 15, 2011 at 4:18 PM, peter fels <artgawk at thegrid.net> wrote:
> Storing water under the house in sealed tanks has thermal mass
virtues.
> or short term use, an external  tank ,with water above pressurized air
> ought to suffice. No bladder necessary....just drain and recharge
every month or 2.
> I've about 300 gallons available for fire fighting like that.
> The pump could be electric on a pressure switch..all commonly
available and modestly priced...
> Or a small solar powered piston pump might suffice as well.
> A tank atop a n upright pipe promises the least upkeep and lots of
design freedom.
> I think you can go to about 30' up with a centrifugal pump. Beyond
that you'll want a piston or roller pump.
> I've long wanted to build a rigid, flat, black tank with glass
covering,
>  that would pump with no moving parts, by the daily heating and
expansion of the water...
> OK the check valve is a moving part.
>
>
> On May 14, 2011, at 3:05 PM, Bruce Freeman wrote:
>
>> Once again I'm using the broad knowledge base represented by this
>> group for an OT problem.
>>
>> I have just installed rain barrels at all my downspouts, including a
>> 250-gallon tank at one of them.  I plan to siphon or pump water
>> between them to maximize capacity.
>>
>> However, none of these are more than 16" above the ground -- two
>> cement blocks.  That means that there's little water pressure
>> available, making using the water inconvenient.  I could rig a pump
to
>> go on anytime I need water, but a more elegant solution would be to
>> use that pump to keep an elevated tank (water tower) filled between
>> limits.
>>
>> What I'm thinking is to use a fairly small plastic tank -- 15 or 20
>> gallons (i.e., ~150 lbs maximum), and to mount it high enough to
>> provide reasonable water pressure.  In use, the pump would probably
>> come on every once in a while, because the tank would be fairly
small,
>> but at least it wouldn't be running continuously or with no flow.
>>
>> Now, to get 15psi I'd need a tower of over 30', and that's out of the
>> question.  I'd like something as low as possible and as small as
>> possible.  So, the first question is what is the lowest useful water
>> pressure for use around yard and garden?  I don't need to run
>> sprinklers, but would like to use drip hoses.
>>
>> Possibly a water tower isn't the proper solution.  What other
>> solutions exist?  What I'm aware of is a pressurized system, in which
>> the pump fills an accumulator tank, or something of the sort, which
>> then discharges for a while before the pump comes on again.  This
>> strikes me as expensive, and i'd like to keep expenses low.
>>
>> If it were possible to do, one potentially elegant solution would be
>> an accumulator tank that would be filled either with city water or
>> pumped rain water.  There'd have to be a barrier between them, and
the
>> side that would accept the city water would have to be clean and
>> isolated from the rain water side (which must be assumed to be
>> contaminated with various environmental contaminants, not the least
of
>> which would be bird feces).  If I put a check valve to keep the "city
>> water" from backing up into the city piping, this might even be
legal!
>> I toss it out mainly for discussion, as I really don't see much
>> advantage relative to an air bladder accumulator.
>>
>> So, regale me with your wisdom, o metalworkers and artists of
reality!
>> --
>> Bruce
>> NJ
>> ______________________________________________________________
>> TheForge mailing list
>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/theforge
>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
>> Post: mailto:TheForge at mailman.qth.net
>>
>> TheForge mail list group photo site is
>> http://www.photoworks.com
>> Login: blacksmithblacksmith at hotmail.com
>> Password: anvil
>>
>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
>
> ______________________________________________________________
> TheForge mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/theforge
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
> Post: mailto:TheForge at mailman.qth.net
>
> TheForge mail list group photo site is
> http://www.photoworks.com
> Login: blacksmithblacksmith at hotmail.com
> Password: anvil
>
> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
>



-- 
Bruce
NJ
______________________________________________________________
TheForge mailing list
Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/theforge
Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
Post: mailto:TheForge at mailman.qth.net

TheForge mail list group photo site is
http://www.photoworks.com
Login: blacksmithblacksmith at hotmail.com
Password: anvil

This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html