Utility water is too expensive to put in at the farm

[Egon]

How will you empty the tank on the P/U. ?

Will you set up a shut off when filling the tank at home?

Does the P/U need more springs in the back?

 

[SimS]

..... Problem is how do I get a 8ft diameter 250lb tank off the freight truck without damaging it....

I would hire a rollback truck and slide the tank from the freight truck onto the rollback. Then you could have the rollback spot the tank anywhere you wish. Also at 250 lbs, you could get some friends and a case of beer. Just sayin'

Good luck

SimS

 

[lhfarm]

No easy choices on this.
I can get a water meter put in at the road for $3500 plus assuming its on the right side of the road and thus no boring charge but then have to deal with a 2000 foot run to the barn that goes uphill about 40 feet which means I would likely have to install some sort of pump with a very long electrical run from the barn......
The tanks seem pretty workable to me at a cost for both of around $850.

I went through the process of getting reliable water to our house with very different circumstances, but did involve storing water in tanks. You are going to end up managing your own water system (delivery and safe storage) which will involve real long term cost beyond the initial investment. I would really consider working with the water utility to see if they can tell you how much pressure you would have at the end of the 2000' run.

You may not require a booster pump more than a couple of hundred feet down the line, and a pump and pressure tank aren't that expensive. I'd invest some more time researching all your options.

Good luck.

 

[The Haymaker]

Problem is how do I get a 8ft diameter 250lb tank off the freight truck without damaging it....

I deliver freight, and I would just pull it 1/2 way off, get on the ground, and lower an end to the ground. These things are pretty rugged, you're not going to hurt it. I always hate seeing them on the truck because they are so BULKY!

 

[Mousefield]

So I am thinking of buying a 1500 gallon water tank at TSC to put by the barn like this one:
Water Storage Tank, 1,500 gal. - 2126917 | Tractor Supply Company
I will also purchase a pickup truck style 250-300 gallon tank to tote water from my house which is about 40 minutes away. Since I go to the farm 2-4 times a week keeping the large tank filled should be doable.
What needs to be done to support the 1500 gallon tank on the ground?Why are the black tanks priced higher than the white ones?

12 years ago when we moved here and had a well drilled, it did not produce that much water so went and got a 2,000 gallon green fiberglass tank. Looks like your black one. As we had clay in the area we had dug down about a foot and filled the whole area with gravel, the tank and well are next to the portable classroom I had put there as a shop and storage building. Under the tank we put sand so that it had "soft" material to sit on. It in next to the shop (north side) and has a roof over it so does not get sunlight on it. Wouldn't put it straight on the gravel as we did not want a sharp rock making a hole in it. Filled with water there is a lot of weight on the bottom of the tank so make sure it is sitting on firm ground, you do not want it to start sinking or tilting.
Why not at least ask how much it would cost to bring water to your farm. Hauling water may get to be a pain after a while. If you have the money to bring in piped water it would increase the value of this property.

 

[jenkinsph]

Warhammer,
I would recomend installing the 2000 ft water line in lieu of the tank scenario. This distance and head (lift) is very doable, I would consider running a 1.5" pvc line from the road to your barn. With this size pipe you can get 10 gallons a minute with a friction loss of about .3 to .35 lb/100 ft. Since the pressure will drop incrementally the farther you go down the line I would expect about a 10 psi drop instead of 7 psi. To lift the water 40 ft expect an additional 18 psi drop. This totals about a 25 to 30 psi drop in pressure at 10 gallons a minute delivery. If the water main at the road has a delivery pressure of about 50psi that is the way I would go.

At the barn you would have a couple of options, you could still have a large storage tank and have a float valve to fill from this main line and/or a simple 1/2hp pressure tank and pump setup. There are advantages to both, the large tank would be better if you needed a lot of water at once and the pressure tank setup would be easier to protect from freezing (being smaller) and would provide you with increased pressure and less contamination to the water supply.

Hauling water involves alot more cost in a year or two's time than the line will cost you, and you can't haul it as fast as it will flow up the line either.
A 100 gallon water tank filled on your truck and mounted down will weigh close to 1000 lbs figure 830lbs of water alone. Lots of wear on your pickup over time.

Good luck whatever you do.

 

[Jimbrown]

I agree that running the water line is going to be cheaper and far more user friendly in the long run. Black poly pipe in rolls is fairly cheap and OK if buried.

I have two of those tanks at my well site. I use for storage because the well is solar powered. I ran 1200 ft of pipe to the house.

The tanks are black to stop alge growth. The clear ones will be solid green from alge in a month. I just built a pad of sand and set my tanks down right on the sand. I also stacked sand about half way up the sides with my loader to keep the sun off as much as possible and for some freez protection. But I got all the sand I want free from my sand wash.

 

[warhammer]

Lots of good info.
I agree utility water is the best way to go. I just don't have $3500 plus the pipe run at this moment as I have been fencing and putting 12 acres into pasture. It is good to hear that the elevation rise is not a killer.

 

[warhammer]

Good point on the weight may have to scale the pickup tank back a bunch. Maybe 100-125 gallons. Since the truck is rated to 1500 pounds in the bed I would think 1000 pounds would not be abusive to it.

How will you empty the tank on the P/U. ?

Will you set up a shut off when filling the tank at home?

Does the P/U need more springs in the back?

 

[dcyrilc]

Yup. Been looking at a tank for my remote property also...right now I have 4 55 gallon drums there, two I keep filled with well (drinking) water from home and 2 with spring water off the property. I haul a 55 gallon tank full in the pickup every time I go, which is about a 300 mile round trip.
TSC around here does not stock the black tanks, but they do in some parts of the country I'm told. I actually found I can buy a tank online and have it shipped in for much less than TSC. Problem is how do I get a 8ft diameter 250lb tank off the freight truck without damaging it....

Roll it. They're a lot tougher than you think.