how far down?

[hunterridgefarm]

Randy,

If you can find your property on Google Earth it will show the elevation. All you do is move your mouse from "point a" to "point b" and you can see the elevation readout at the bottom of the screen. I have used this on my property and it is fairly accurate.

Do a search for Google Earth it was a free download. The only problem is some parts of the country will not let you zoom in. I can zoom in on every part of my county but move one county over and can only zoom in on certain areas.

earth.google.com

David

 

[randy41]

i cant zoom in very far on it....it just gets blurry.

 

[randy41]

so i've decided that a spring box is overkill for irrigation since i dont really care if the water is potable or not. if i wanted 1000 gallons available for irrigation i figure i would need to dig a pit of about 135 cu ft...or something that is 7'x7'x3'...since 3' is probably as deep as i want to dig by hand. anyone able to check me on that? i know that i dont have to make it square but just looking for verification of the cu ft calculation.
that is that 1 cu ft of water= about 7.5 gallons.
thanks.

 

[TedLaRue]

My calculations match yours. 135 cubic feet is just a little over 1000 gallons.

Of course your 7' x 7' x 3' hole is 147 cubic feet, but I'm sure you know that.

 

[tommu56]

randy41
cant you get any equipment up there?

What about IBC container they are about 300 gallons just use 3 of them ?

here is a link
Reusable Transport Packaging - Everything you need for convenient, cost-efficient reusable packaging...and it's all in one place. Your source for bulk containers, attached lid containers, pallets, export pallets and more!

but locally around here they are about $75.00 ea or $50.00 for 2 or more.

tommu56

 

[TedLaRue]

Randy,

If you decide to dig the hole and want to dig a round hole, here are the dimensions:

If you dig a circular hole with the sides going straight down, you'd need a diameter of 7'-7" with a 3' depth to hold your 135 cubic feet.

If you dig a circular hole with the sides gently sloping like a spherical bowl with a maximum depth of 3', you'd need a diameter of 11'-7" to hold 135 cubic feet.

The gently sloping sides are more likely to promote cattails along the edges, but are less likely to trap an unfortunate critter. I'm pretty sure straight-down sides would be sloped sides after a few years anyhow.

 

[randy41]

i reckon i could hire someone with a backhoe to dig out what i need in no time but i'm one of those idiots who gets satisfaction from doing it all the hard way myself. thanks for the link tommu56...looks like a good way to store it after it gets pumped uphill. how do you think those hold up exposed to the elements? and thanks for verifying my math ted.

 

[TedLaRue]

how do you think those hold up exposed to the elements?

For other readers, IBC = Intermediate Bulk Container

I think UV exposure from sunlight would be your biggest threat. Apparently some IBC's are UV-stabilized (probably like the gray PVC electrical conduit).

Here's a quote from a PDF file I found at Francis Ward IBC's (which is apparently a British site):

Outdoor Weathering
Most plastics are highly resistant to weathering agents such as oxidation,
extremes of temperature, humidity, wind, precipitation, chemical impurities in
the atmosphere, fall-out, biological agents and light. They will however undergo
some chemical transformation and consequent degradation when exposed to
sunlight or fluorescent light for long periods. The result is discolouration, loss of
clarity, loss of gloss, and tensile, impact strength reductions. Visibly
polyethylenes will exhibit crazing, cracking and become increasingly brittle. In
order to prevent this UV photo catalytic degradation the polyethylenes used in
the manufacture of Francis Ward IBC’s are UV stabilised by adding a high
strength HALS type UV stabiliser to the base polymer. Even greater protection
can be provided by the incorporation of a small percentage of carbon black
which effectively blocks out UV light.

 

[orezok]

If you have enough garden hose to reach from the top elevation to the bottom elevation, stretch it out full of water and put a pressure gauge at the bottom elevation. The hose MUST be completely full of water so fill from the bottom if possible. After filling, leave top open to atmosphere. The gauge will read 1/2# per foot of elevation difference. i.e. 100' difference in elevation reads 50# on gauge.

 

[tommu56]

randy41

I have 3 that have been sitting out side for over 10 years the tops have a little crazing but if you put some tin sideing over them to keep sun light off that would stop it.
One is on a trailer that I fetch water with and even with the josseling the tank has been fine I did have to replace skid it rotted out I made one from pt wood.

tom