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Hopefully not as daft a question as it sounds. I would like to fill a tank, but the water I want to use is level with the bottom of the tank. I don't want to use a powered pump.
Having had a look on Google I've come across Ram Pumps, which look brilliant and can lift water without any power. The problem with those is that they require a constant flow of water to work (I'm not bothered that they only lift a fairly small proportion, that's fine for me)
So, is there anything like a ram pump which works with intermittent water flow, rainwater in my case?
Thanks
Archimedes' screw?
A screw would work but requires power to turn it unfortunately. I'm trying to do it without external power if possible.
That was what I liked about the ram pump, it just uses water pressure
A screw would work but requires power to turn it unfortunately. I'm trying to do it without external power if possible.
That was what I liked about the ram pump, it just uses water pressure
By “flow” all it means is the desire for the water going into the ram to be elsewhere. So if you take a feed from below the surface of the lower container, it’ll have a small head which you can use to power the ram. They’re pretty wasteful but do work well. Astonishingly old technology, with evidence both the romans and the ancient Egyptians used them.
Water wheel, or if you want to get exotic - capillary action or transpiration. Or if you don't mind a spot of legionnaires disease passive thermal. All of which will provide a pathetic flow rate, except the water wheel but guessing you dont have the flow to turn it? Rain water from a water butt?
If you're expecting water to pass the pump, you could harness that as your power supply for the screw
Or try a Whirtz oump, same thing applies
You don't want powered, but how about low voltage solar powered pump?
If you're expecting water to pass the pump, you could harness that as your power supply for the screw
Or try a Whirtz oump, same thing applies
Little solar thing like in those cheap garden ornaments.
bit more info might help,
Can’t you divert it into the correct tank when you capture it. ? Hose run or something similar
On a less practical front
- can you raise the original capture tank so you can flow it from there
- put a diverter at the top of the original tank at the feed point that flows to the top of tank 2
- get a hand pump
- get a drill pump, get a few fit hamsters and fit their exercise wheel to the pump
How far do you need to move it and what is the difference in height
Bury the tank?
Oh, also, can we get some pitchers? It might help.
(geddit? geddit?)
A furnicular is probably the closest to perpetual motion?
youd have a pair of ‘carriages’ on tracks.
if you could find a means to collect the rainwater, the upper carriage would fill with water. Gravity would pull it down, pulling the lower carriage upwards.
it would empty its contents, ready to be filled with rainwater, pulling the other carriage upwards, ad infinitum.
is this for a garden watering system? if so just buy a solar pump
if you could find a means to collect the rainwater, the upper carriage would fill with water. Gravity would pull it down, pulling the lower carriage upwards.
But he wants to move the water up, not down.
The latter is fairly easy!
Thanks everyone.
What I'm actually trying to do is to build a rainwater toilet flushing system. I had one at my old house which was easy as there was a gutter a story above the bathroom, I could feed water from there into a tank in the loft above the ceiling, with an overflow and a ballcock to fill from the mains if it dropped below a minimum level
At my new house the only nearby gutter is at the same level as the floor of the loft where the tank will need to go. It's a very small bathroom so there isn't room to put a tank above the toilet height but below the gutter height, so I'm basically trying to fill a tank from a gutter which is level with the bottom of the tank.
I could put a barrell in the garden which fills from the downpipe and then a solar pump to send it back up to the loft (could a small solar pump lift water two stories, and are they ok being left when they run dry to 'wake up' again next time it rains?) I'd rather not do this as the barrell would need to be where the path is next to the building but it's an option if we can't think of anything else. I'd rather just take water straight from the gutter into the tank if possible
Someone above mentioned capillary action, could we get water from a gutter up and over the lip of a tank probably two feet high It will occasionally run dry when there's no water in the gutter, although it is Scotland so not often
Capillary action will lift water a short distance but it won’t create a flow.
What you describe needs an energy input. So i think solar looks like the best option.
I’m in the dangerous position of no expertise but some knowledge
The pump needs to be at the bottom
You’d want two inputs to control it.
Float in the bottom tank mounted low in the tank. Pump can run if float is in the water
Float in the top tank at the top. Pump runs only if float doesn’t detect water
Looks like these could work. They’ll just need to be different ways up in the tanks save connected in series. 10 minutes with the bath full, a battery and a bulb would be all you need to test it
You’d want two inputs to control it.
Float in the bottom tank mounted low in the tank. Pump can run if float is in the water
Float in the top tank at the top. Pump runs only if float doesn’t detect water
Looks like these could work. They’ll just need to be different ways up in the tanks save connected in series. 10 minutes with the bath full, a battery and a bulb would be all you need to test it
Or, if you're feeling nerdy, two of these for £21 each (cheaper from aliexpress) and a shelly Uni (£15).
Ampthill's idea probably would work, and is probably how I'll end up doing it I think, but I am looking for the lowest tech solution possible, hence really liking the idea of a ram pump
