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My next fairly urgent project I would like to put together is a Ram pump. We’ve got a strong river that floods every two to three years. The house and vegetable garden, probably 250 meters away and about 10 meters higher than water level. Animals also being kept closeby the house at night for protection against wild animals.
I need to buy everything now, because there is no hardware shop for many kilometres. Waiting period for parts to be delivered to closest town can take a month. Will only know if it works after putting it together…on the farm.The previous sun pump got washed into the sea about two years ago during a flood. Water came during the night.. with rain from far far away.
So far I think I am going to go with something like this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzaInlFVq0s but would appreciate any inputThe Solar water pump we might buy from http://www.sustainable.co.za/solar-power.html Thinking about this pump, because it might be the only one I can afford http://www.sustainable.co.za/sustainable-solar-powered-submersible-pump-solar-power-kits.html
http://www.clemson.edu/irrig/equip/ram.htm
Leopard,
If the river has a strong current you could place a ram pump directly into the river using the current to povide operating pressure. Use an collection inlet pipe two or three times the size of the pump pipe parts to increase the pump pressure.The link above has complete design information. The actual construction is extremely simple. The amount of water the pump will move is dependent on the volume of water available and the pressure inside the inlet pipe.
Pump Performance:
Some information suggests that typical ram pumps discharge approximately 7 gallons of water through the waste valve for every gallon pressurized and pumped. The percentage of the drive water delivered actually varies based on the ram construction, vertical fall to pump, and elevation to the water outlet. The percentage of the drive water pumped to the desired point may be approximately 22% when the vertical fall from the water source to the pump is half of the elevation lift from the ram to the water outlet. It may be as low as 2% or less when the vertical fall from the water source to the pump is 4% of the elevation lift from the ram to the water outlet. Rife Hydraulic Engine Manufacturing Company literature (http://www.riferam.com/) offers the following equation:
0.6 x Q x F/E = D
Q is the available drive flow in gallons per minute, F is the fall in feet from the water source to the ram, E is the elevation from the ram to the water outlet, and D is the flow rate of the delivery water in gallons per minute. 0.6 is an efficiency factor and will differ somewhat between various ram pumps. For instance, if 12 gallons per minute is available to operate a ram pump (Q), the pump is placed 6 feet below the water source (F), and the water will be pumped up an elevation of 20 feet to the outlet point (E), the amount of water that may be pumped with an appropriately-sized ram pump is
0.6 x 12 gpm x 6 ft / 20 ft = 2.16 gpm
The same pump with the same drive flow will provide less flow if the water is to be pumped up a higher elevation. For instance, using the data in the previous example but increasing the elevation lift to 40 feet (E):
0.6 x 12 gpm x 6 ft / 40 ft = 1.08 gpm
74, I thought about you while posting and hoped you would have the time to respond. THANK YOU ! Will jump right in with my list and maybe post some pic’s with the end results. This will save diesel being used currently with small generator. And more food can be grown, meaning healthier people and animals.
Great posts, both!
Bad experience with house plumbing, where the previous owner had grafted a copper pipe to a galvanized system, makes me suspect that it would be better to bear the extra expense of brass nipples, tees, & angles, to use with the brass flap valves, or to use dielectric unions between brass and galvanized Iron pipes. I’d also avoid un-galvanized “black” iron parts for anything to be left in the weather. Black iron is usually reserved for gas or compressed air, because it can easily rust internally.
Cry, "Treason!"
LT, Good point regarding material choices. Most of the home built pumps use PVC with brass check swing valves for durability and proper functionality. I looked at a commercial installation on youtube where they used steel pipe which is common for industries and utilities to use for water supplies.
Youtube has a lot of these projects to study.
Ah ! Thank you L Tecolote.
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