Post by tjwilhelm on Aug 2, 2012 18:54:34 GMT -7
Dink! OUCH! The depth of the well and the placement of the pump are not really critical in this case. What is critical is how far the water level is, below grade. Specifically, how far down the water level is while the pump is running. Your well driller should be able to tell you what the "static pumping rate" and "static pumping level" were when the well was drilled.
That said, if the water level is indeed 200' below grade, you've got a whole lot of "total dynamic head" to overcome. This means you're NOT looking at a cheap system.
Personally, I'd go with a relatively small, solar-powered pump and a very large, non-pressurized storage tank (like a large livestock tank). I would size it and set it up so the pump would run full-time in the sunshine, storing the pumped water in the large tank. This is sometimes called "slow pumping." Here's an example of how you might size it:
Let's say you need 200 gallons of water each and every day. Let's then say you live in an area that receives an average of 4.0 "peak sun hours" per day. This means you need a pump that will deliver AT LEAST 50 gallons of water per hour (200 gpd/4 hpd). Divide this by 60 minutes/hour, and you come up with a pumping system that delivers about 1 gallon per minute. That is a low and slow flow -- a typical garden hose delivers about 7 gallons/minute. Keep in mind, these are just example numbers and it's not exactly this simple and straight forward...but this is a good approximation.
The trick will be to find a pump that will deliver your 1 gpm against a "head" that exceeds 200'. It will most certainly need to be a sumbersible pump; and, probably a positive displacement pump. This is where pump-curves need to be studied to select the proper pump.
One of the best pumps for this kind of system is made by Grundfos. It's their SQ-Flex Solar Pump. Here is a website for you to explore and study: www.grundfos.com/products/find-product/sqflex.html
That said, if the water level is indeed 200' below grade, you've got a whole lot of "total dynamic head" to overcome. This means you're NOT looking at a cheap system.
Personally, I'd go with a relatively small, solar-powered pump and a very large, non-pressurized storage tank (like a large livestock tank). I would size it and set it up so the pump would run full-time in the sunshine, storing the pumped water in the large tank. This is sometimes called "slow pumping." Here's an example of how you might size it:
Let's say you need 200 gallons of water each and every day. Let's then say you live in an area that receives an average of 4.0 "peak sun hours" per day. This means you need a pump that will deliver AT LEAST 50 gallons of water per hour (200 gpd/4 hpd). Divide this by 60 minutes/hour, and you come up with a pumping system that delivers about 1 gallon per minute. That is a low and slow flow -- a typical garden hose delivers about 7 gallons/minute. Keep in mind, these are just example numbers and it's not exactly this simple and straight forward...but this is a good approximation.
The trick will be to find a pump that will deliver your 1 gpm against a "head" that exceeds 200'. It will most certainly need to be a sumbersible pump; and, probably a positive displacement pump. This is where pump-curves need to be studied to select the proper pump.
One of the best pumps for this kind of system is made by Grundfos. It's their SQ-Flex Solar Pump. Here is a website for you to explore and study: www.grundfos.com/products/find-product/sqflex.html