How do I make a water driven pump that will move water from a swiftly running stream up several feet to a garden area? Will a series of check valves do the trick?

-- Waterboy (H@2.0), June 03, 1999

Answers

You either purchase a sling pump, an interesting little gadgete that floats in the current and pumps pretty well, or you find a pump called a water ram pump.

C

-- Chuck, a night driver (rienzoo@en.com), June 03, 1999.

Check these folks out for ram pump information

http://lifewater.ca/ram_pump.htm

-- j (sandpine@juno.com), June 03, 1999.

There are several possibilities. The best ram pumps I've seen are at Rife Manufacturing Co (do a search on the net) Made of cast iron, and very nearly indestructable. Or you can build your own, but design can be critical, depending on the situation, like how high you have to pump and how much flow and head you have available in the stream.

I've built my own ram for about $40, back in early eighties, and from a five foot drop in my stream it pumped about five gallons per minute to a garden fifteen feet above the creek with enough pressure to run a rainbird. Only two moving parts, too.

Rife also sells other types of pumps, even some that cows can learn to operate!

If anyone has technical questions about this, either contact an alternative energy company or Rife Manufacturing. If you still have questions, I'll be glad to answer them, assuming I don't get 500 requests all at once :)

-- malcolm drake (jumpoff@echoweb.net), June 03, 1999.