Alien Invasion - I want my pond back !

[Wagtail]

Is there a DVD or something to skip a chapter ahead?

Shame on you, CM. You'll just have to wait like the rest of us.

Just think of it like the days before VCR technology or the family gathered around the living room radio waiting for the secret message to decode from Little Orphan Annie...

D-R-I-N-K--Y-O-U-R--O-V-A-L-T-I-N-E

 

[Luke'sScreenName]

Ok.
Option 1: You give the outlet to a politician and tell him if he sucks hard enough you'll give $10 to his campaign. (won't work because the OP self-reports to be too cheap).
Option 2: you give the outlet to a politician but this time tell him it's a microphone. A very large and constant stream of hot poop will immediately begin to flow from his mouth hole. This high rate-of-flow stream will be perpendicular, and in close proximity, to the hose outlet orifice. The Bernoulli Principal suggests a venturi vacuum will be created thereby drawing water into the hose! Simple!
Give the politician something to filibuster and you can drain the whole pond in a few hours. Or just use it for primeing.

 

[dave1949]

I'd loop the hose half way down the hill and keep both open ends by the pond. Then I'd just work a short loop into the pond, dipping it full and lifting, dipping and lifting, until the hose had enough water to get over the hump. Then I'd plop one end into the pond and drag the empty half down the hill. It will fill on its own by the time you get the end extended. Piece of cake! :thumbsup:

I'd have to see the video. What keeps the already dipped and lifted water in the pipe on the next dip?

Just out of curiosity, the water in a 2" pipe weighs 1.36 pounds per foot of pipe. 0.163 gallons per foot.

200' of pipe X 1.36 lbs/ft = 272 lbs -- not including the weight of the pipe itself. Eric, that's 19.43 stones.

 

[RedNeckGeek]

Somewhat late to the party, but so far, Eric, the story doesn't suck:thumbsup:

 

[SPYDERLK]

Interesting....and the reason would be...? Or are you going to allow future thread revelations to enlighten us?

The whole tube must move to and fro and the pull stroke must move the water. Greatly a practical issue having to do with long length and the weight of the tube as it fills with water. Also, to the very small compression ratio you start with in an empty 600' tube. Also the large tube dia will favor the water flowing w/i the pipe, seeking its own level and capturing pockets of air.

,,,A mechanical device could be made to accomplish priming in this way. Yould want to coil the tube probably and oscillate the coil. Uncoiling the ~ 1k# tube would take special considerations.
larry

 

[txdon]

?and no closer to who the aliens are. Is there a DVD or something to skip a chapter ahead?

Eric, In Texas we have an Amusement park called Fiesta Texas. They have a system that for extra money you can buy a "Flash-pass" and do not have to wait in line like everyone else, you can go right to the front of the line. Maybe you could sell Flash-passes to the impatient members and can finish the story in a PM to them.

 

[alchemysa]

I might have missed something but it seems you have a 15 yard fall and a couple of hundred feet (or maybe yards) of pipe.

The thing is, you only have to get the siphon happening to wherever the first point on the pipe is thats a few inches below the pond surface level. That might only be, say, 20' feet from the pond. Everything beyond that point is just 'run-off'.

So, cut the pipe 20' from the pond, get your suction happening, then rejoin the pipe. You dont have to try and fill 200 yards of pipe to get a siphon happening.

This might also work... Once you've got the siphon working, rejoin the pipe but leave a hole at the join so air can escape. Then plug the far end of the pipe and allow it to fill with water. When water backs up to the air hole, plug it and remove the bung from the bottom end. You should then have a more powerful siphon.

 

[SPYDERLK]

I might have missed something but it seems you have a 15 yard fall and a couple of hundred feet (or maybe yards) of pipe.

The thing is, you only have to get the siphon happening to wherever the first point on the pipe is thats a few inches below the pond surface level. That might only be, say, 20' feet from the pond. Everything beyond that point is just 'run-off'.

So, cut the pipe 20' from the pond, get your suction happening, then rejoin the pipe. You dont have to try and fill 200 yards of pipe to get a siphon happening.

This might also work... Once you've got the siphon working, rejoin the pipe but leave a hole at the join so air can escape. Then plug the far end of the pipe and allow it to fill with water. When water backs up to the air hole, plug it and remove the bung from the bottom end. You should then have a more powerful siphon.

Good ploy! Now, how far is it to the 1st place a little below surface level ... and does the land rise any from there. Does it undulate allowing air pockets to develop. Level changes by undulation with air pockets atop are additive.

 

[alchemysa]

Good ploy! Now, how far is it to the 1st place a little below surface level ... and does the land rise any from there. Does it undulate allowing air pockets to develop. Level changes by undulation with air pockets atop are additive.

Hopefully the pond wall or somewhere not too far from it is the highest point. It shouldnt be too hard to get a siphon happening over a short distance. Plenty of ideas have been provided. Any other high points could be pin pricked to allow air to escape. When they are all 'bleeding', plug 'em and pull out the big bung at the bottom. (Sounds good in theory anyway.)

 

[SPYDERLK]

,,,,,,,,:thumbsup: ... Would be easiest to accomplish with transparent pipe.

 

[KevT]

Wow Eric, you have 7 pages all ready and don't even have the water flowing, let alone gotten to the aliens. This post will pass the Good Morning one. You have us all hooked now. :thumbsup:

 

[Eric Salop]

I did a bunch of science fair experiments with siphons when I was a kid. I still use siphons about every other week to drain our pool cover of rainwater. Also transferring gasoline from a vehicle to a can. Simplest method is as I mentioned above. Only requires one valve if the pipe is larger than your palm. No valve if you can cover the pipe with your palm. Watch this video. Its the closest I can find to what I do. Siphoning begins at 30 seconds. Guy starts 20 siphons in a couple minutes. No pumps. No valves. Don't over-complicate things.

That's a good demonstration of priming by hand.

Perhaps I should have explained earlier that I had to get the water up a small hill, across the top and down the other side before gravity would become my friend. For the first 100 yds it is on a constant rise.

Did the pump make it complicated ? My 30+ year old lawn mower has a little Briggs & Stratton engine. I have always been able to rely on it, although it has a personality all of it's own. It has always started, but I never know exactly when it will start. Usually a couple of pulls, sometimes threes or four, occasionally it wants me to take 30 seconds rest, then it will go second pull. All the Honda engines I've used are the opposite, no personality whatsoever. They just work. This pump had a Honda, a very well used Honda. I checked the tank had plenty of fuel, everything in correct starting position, pulled the cord and ...... it started first time, then ran happily ever after. Well it was a Honda. So no, the pump played no significant part in this, other than to, err, pump.

 

[Eric Salop]

SIPHON TIME

With the Honda warmed up I set the pump running. I guessed water was going up the hill as the engine sound gradually changed from easy-peasy to a steady determined throb and I set off along the pipeline to double check each joint as the water ran through. All looked good and by the time I made it over the hill water was pouring out of the other end of the pipe. So far so good. Walk back to the sump, pull out the pump connection while keeping the ends under water. A little stiff, pull and twist and pull again and out of the sump came the pipe and into the sump goes my boot. Oh dear, I had just let air into the pipe and water in my boot :ashamed: Empty boot and start all over again.

It was a nice day and I'm the patient type, so nothing really lost. Right, again, pump on pipe, water running, squelch back over hill to check it's coming out, yep, back to sump. This time I made double sure I kept the pipe in the sump as I pulled out the pump. I put my palm over the end and could feel it tug hard. SIPHON Found the end of the flexible suction hose from the filter box and tried to get it on the pipe. It was a bit tight and awkward to get on from my position on the bankside. I probably tried too hard to keep the other foot dry when I should have accepted fate and climbed fully into that sump from the outset, but we live an learn and eventually the hose went on. Turn off the pump and peace descends again. Back over the hill to the discharge end to see it running - except it wasn't a discharge end. It was more like an empty-pipe-laying-on-damp-grass end.

The siphon had stopped. :confused3: What had I done wrong, apart from wearing boots instead of waders

Back to the sump and check filter. Nope that looked ok. Had I miscalculated the relative heights of each end of the pipe ? Didn't think so. I remembered something I had read about dissolved gasses preventing siphons from working. You know how bubbles fizz out when you open a bottle of lemonade ? The same thing can happen in a siphon, gas is released because the pressure in the pipe is lower than outside. Was that it ? Why hadn't I looked into that in more detail. If this water was so gassy it couldn't be siphoned, I would need to go out and buy a few things - lots of fuel and a big slice of humble pie to eat while I tended the pump for days on end.

There could be a much simpler answer. I had put my hand over the end of the pipe to check it was running and then probably obstructed it again as I fumbled with the filter hose. In that time water would still be running out of the discharge end. Could that have been long enough to let air up the outlet ?

Ok, try again and this time make it a smoother change over. Also I reasoned that if I partially bunged up the discharge end until I got it started, it may help restrict the flow enough to prevent air coming back in while I swapped over the pipe in the sump.

Engine on, pump on, let water run for 10 minutes (I'd had enough walking by then to care about checking it was coming out on the other side), smooth changeover, turn pump off, walk up the hill, down other side.

Oh yes, running water. :dance1: Pulled out the restriction and the water came gushing out. :dance1::dance1::dance1:

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

Ok.
Option 1: You give the outlet to a politician and tell him if he sucks hard enough you'll give $10 to his campaign. (won't work because the OP self-reports to be too cheap).
Option 2: you give the outlet to a politician but this time tell him it's a microphone. A very large and constant stream of hot poop will immediately begin to flow from his mouth hole. This high rate-of-flow stream will be perpendicular, and in close proximity, to the hose outlet orifice. The Bernoulli Principal suggests a venturi vacuum will be created thereby drawing water into the hose! Simple!
Give the politician something to filibuster and you can drain the whole pond in a few hours. Or just use it for primeing.

lol, He already got all the poop out of the hose once...

 

[dave1949]

SIPHON TIME

Oh yes, running water. :dance1: Pulled out the restriction and the water came gushing out. :dance1::dance1::dance1:

Great. The water is running via siphon.

A few of those sheep look like suspicious characters. Do they get involved somehow playing butt the bucket or such? Too much fore-shadowing to be coincidental, at least it would be in BBC crime dramas.

 

[texasjohn]

HOORAY!!!!

Inquiring minds want to know how many gallons per minute ??? That's a long stretch

 

[RedNeckGeek]

Nice touch with the yellow bucket, Eric. Might just save the siphon by preventing the down hill end from coming out of the water. Assuming, of course that the inlet for the pipe is lower than that exit hole?

 

[alchemysa]

SIPHON TIME

Just curious. Why put a hole in the side of the bucket?

 

[aczlan]

Just curious. Why put a hole in the side of the bucket?

I would guess that the hose is attached to the bucket and that way the end of the hose stays put (and perhaps the first hole was the wrong size, so he put in a 2nd one?).

Aaron Z

 

[dave1949]

I would guess that the hose is attached to the bucket and that way the end of the hose stays put (and perhaps the first hole was the wrong size, so he put in a 2nd one?).

Aaron Z

I agree with RedNeckGreek.
It could be to keep the end of the hose submerged so it doesn't suck air if the flow stops.