Anyone pump water from a pond

[woodlandfarms]

We are in the midst of water issues on our property. Minor, but inconvenient.

We have a pond on the property that appears to hold water year round. It is about 100 feet down and about 300 feet from where we would like it. I have been mulling trenching a pipe down to it and putting a pump on top of the hill and filling up barrels so that the water can be used in a greenhouse.

Just wondering what sort of problems I might not have thought of (too big of a distance or pump not priming).

I think as the responses to this evolve my questions will be come clearer.

 

[Danno1]

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The pump can't be any higher than 33 ft above the water. And at that distance it would be pretty much useless anyway. You need the pump at the bottom and push the water. And it sounds like you'll need a big pump. Due to time constraints I'll let someone else do the calcs.

.

 

[Tig]

I agree that a pump at the bottom of the hill would be less problematic. Is this to be a permanent solution?

 

[schmism]

youll need a standard deep well pump to make a 100 feet of head.

which means its submersiable in the pond at the bottom. Id say your looking at $2K

 

[woodlandfarms]

What is happening is that we are going onto "city" water. There is an Arsenic issue in our area and the entire road is chipping in (with state and fed support) on a filtered water system.

One of the rules is that you must abandon your existing well (Shallow at 80 ft but clean of arsenic - but low producing - under 2 GPM) or have your well inspected every year at the tune of $50 a year.

I really don't dig people inspecting my property, and we have already taken on a lot of responsability on this project. Also, I am not sure when we will have the greenhouses up so the well may be sitting for a couple of years (thus might fill up with junk).

But the greenhouses are a fair distance away from the main house.

I was thinking of taking the existing pump out of the current well and using it in the pond. Any thoughts? I don't know much about well pumps so...

 

[WarrenF]

Here is a site that gives all sorts of info about pumps and how to hook them up......don't know if this is against the rules here.....but they also would like to sell you something. The information however is very very helpful.....

YOU CAN INSTALL YOUR OWN WATER WELL SUBMERSIBLE PUMP SYSTEM

 

[Shmudda]

You have to remember that its always better to have a flooded suction inlet on a pump then try to create the pressure drop to pull the fluid into the pump. For the latter, it all depends on the "net positive suction head" of the pump and they are all different depending on the make, model, size and configuration of the pump itself.

I pump water from a pond to water flowers, lawn, garden, and even wash machinery, its very convenient and my well doesn't get stressed! I do it with a small 2-stroke Shindiawa centrifugal pump. You have to remember that for every foot of elevation you need .433 PSI of pressure or head just to get the liquid up to that level, this doesn't include the frictional losses due to the hose or piping, which adds additional pressure requirements depending on the length of the run and the number of elbows or connections.

I personally would not drop a deep well pump into the pond as you will no way be able to keep it vertical and off the muddy bottom. They are not built for that. You are better off to get a 4 cycle I/C engine trash type pump from Northern Tools that can handle the job and fill your barrels when you need them filled. Again, look at the specs of the pump and select the correct one for the job. Remember too, they all rate the pumps in GPM (Gallon Per Minute) and this rating is at zero head, that means it is sitting right next to the pit or pond you are pumping and it's spewing the water directly out from the discharge connection. It can be misleading, so be careful.

Good luck...........

Craig

 

[MarkV]

How about rigging a system that would let you take the barrels to the pond with the tractor for filling? You could then use an inexpensive trash pump to fill the barrels.

It is going to take a lot of pump, pipe, power and $$$ to bring water the height and distance you need to. You could pay the $50 inspection for many a year and still be ahead.

MarkV

 

[6sunset6]

How about going on town water for the house and using the existing well and pump for the greenhouses. Might just need a bigger storage tank.

 

[ToadHill]

My system requires some work but isn't that complicated. 2-50 gal barrels in the bucket and a small gas powered pump. Pump water from the pond into the barrels, move the barrels to the garden and drain them into the permanent water tank which is plumbed into the irrigation system. It takes about 1/2 hour to complete a 100 gal switch.