Well, welcome back to Base Camp WNC. It's been a while. I've got hours of footage on my phone that I need to download while I'm supposed to be resting. So, over the next week or so, I'll be trying to get a bunch of videos out to give the gang something to look at and comment on, and give the haters something to pick apart.
We’re working on a project where we’re pumping spring water up a hill with quite a bit of flow. This guy's setting up an Airbnb and a bunch of glamping campsites. I do homestead consulting, so this project was right up my alley. In this piece of pipe is a three-horsepower pump doing about 38 gallons a minute, and he's got some hills to pump it up. I’m going to take you along for the build. We’re starting with the pump, and I’m going to show you everything: the pump itself, all the check valves, and the fittings. The purpose of installing this pump is to draw water through one end, cool the motor as it passes, and then go into the intake of the pump. The water will come out this end and go up out of the tank. I’m going to set up all the pressure tanks and show you how to put them together. Once we’re out on site, I’ll pull that video and show you the full assembly and wiring process. This tank here is a 350-gallon tank I had sitting in the yard. If the pump were mounted vertically in this tank, the intake would be right there. So, out of a 350-gallon tank, you’d lose about 125 gallons that you’d never be able to pump out. But the tank is only 3 1/2 feet in diameter, so you can’t lay it down. When selecting a tank, you need to know what pump you’re using. Maybe I’ll do a video on pump selection, including horsepower, head (the pump’s ability to lift water vertically), and distance. This tank here isn’t ideal for a deep well pump because it’s not wide enough at the bottom. The actual tank for the pump will be 7 1/2 feet wide, enough to fit a 5T pump across the bottom. Let’s go over the setup. On the end of the pump is an inch and a quarter thread. We’ll attach a bushing, a check valve to prevent backflow, and then the pipe. We’re using 1-inch PEX pipe that goes up from there. We’ve built caps for the PVC slide with an inch and a quarter hole drilled in the center for the bushing and pipe. I have two holes here. This white nylon tape is for pulling out the pump if needed. We won’t pull on the power cord but on this pull cord. There’s a piece of conduit that runs through, with two holes to tie it off. This keeps the pump from wiggling and cutting the power cord. Let’s assemble it and see how it looks. The pump will sit on the bottom of the pipe, with a 6-inch space off the ground to avoid sediment. This setup ensures the motor is cooled while running, just like in a well. The purpose is to direct water flow across the motor and into the pump intake. I use 10-pound weights from an old weight set to hold the pump off the bottom. These weights, bought from Habitat for Humanity, are much cheaper than the $600 commercial option. Now, let’s build the saddle mounts. I never throw anything away, so we’re using an old piece of 6-inch PVC pipe. After cleaning it up, we drill a 5-inch hole with a hole saw bit and cut it off in the middle. These mounts fit on the pipe, secured with galvanized bolts and a strap. This setup is cost-effective and does an excellent job. Thank you for watching. If you made it to the end, please leave your comments—good or bad. Share ideas or improvements. This is just one in a series of builds, and I’ll show you the complete setup with pressure tanks and wiring. Visit our site at: Carolina Homestead Planner and contact us about self-reliant consulting.
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