Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Stretch yourself........


When the going gets tough .... hang in there!


You know you can do it....

Excellent diagram SC! Worth the wait...
Thank You...

Single flout well drawn.... what drawing program you using?
AutoCAD but I just bought Solid Edge...Look for new 3D drawings coming soon.

I can see ease of use of 3 of the 5 outlets from you adapter.... you plan just to block the 2 facing backwards? Maybe can still use them if beds placed carefully.
Elbows will allow you to bring the rear facing outlets around to be useful.

I'm working on ideas for that. All of the outlets will be fully flooded for 98% of the discharge cycle, so the flow is divided very evenly. But if you don't need an outlet. just cap or valve it off and the others will see flow just a bit longer.

You know how to bend PVC piping? Saw it on a thread somewhere.... I have tried so many useless ways... was said to put sand inside before applying heat to bend... also suggested to over-bend a little cos tends to relax back a little into position.
I like to use a blanket heater from Greenlee. I cap both ends and pressurize the inside of the pipe with air to about 3 PSI, just enough to prevent it from collapsing as you make the bend, without distorting the pipe. I know it sounds easy from here and you should count on ruining lots of pieces before you learn the just the right touch. But it can be done even if it is more of an art then a task. An electrician working for me taught me how. He could bend coils. I never got that good. I can make a bell end though...

Make a nice jig if many needed with the same bend I guess... and same heat probably.
Yes a jig will help make each piece the same every time.

Why did you put the U-bend in the pipe after the flout.... that interests me.
Keeps the whole inlet to the divider fully flooded. Thats what makes the divider work every time. Up flow that fills all the outlets completely and evenly. Water will not compress so the same amount will flow out each outlet every discharge without air bubbles.

So glad you kept on till got it uploaded properly.
I had help. (Lots) But now I have learned what to do, it will be easier in the future.

Matt

That is neat. Will remember it.

Morning after........

River damage. River rises up to 10 meters within hours in a huge storm and re-landscapes. The reason I have to hoist a spiral wheel up in the rainy season.



I want to get a good hoist design that will not be carried away. I am constantly amazed at how powerful that water is. Not surprised that this piece of wall came down though. It was not well-built like the other wall.

Brought lots more river sand though!

10 m is an impressive level difference and will be a real challenge for hoisting up a spiral wheel.
would undoubtedly go beyond my technical ability

The water must be raging by during a storm
I see no way to find a cheap and easy and reliable solution to this
at least not for hoisting up 10 m high

I think a raft could be a solution
that would need a fixed or self adjusting rudder to avoid it washing up the shore when the water level drops again

two steel cables: one that holds it in place, a second one that keeps it above the low level river bed

frank

I don't see a hoist itself as being a problem. The challenge would be the tall structure to support the hoist while not getting washed away by the river itself.
Would perhaps some wheels on the water spiral frame and a winch further inland up the slope be an easier way to move it out of harm's way?

the advantage of a raft would be that it is self adjusting and continues to work in all circumstances
no need for hoisting any more either
but it must be thoroughly anchored on the shore

frank

Hi Frank,

Yes. It does rage. True white water and even waves....

I did investigate a floating horizontal water wheel made locally. It would float out in the river but be anchored to the bottom with a chain that wold give the necessary adjustments to river height and work continuously. Nice system but I wasn't prepared to risk the money on thier assurances that the river would not take it. Wanted ZAR20,000 for it. Might be more now... was a year ago that I looked into it. Too much of a risk I thought for the money.

I like the spiral wheel best now. Not too heavy.... I think. Metal outer frames and black piping wound inside. Relatively low cost to build should per chance the river take it. Also not tremendously heavy to lift I don't think.

Hi TCL



I think I can do it. This is the original wall... still standing after many floodings and behind it the water is much wider and quieter. The river has never risen over the bank behind this wall ... above the 50 year flood line. It has covered this wall many times though. We built it with rings of concrete in which steel was laid into the landfill, thereby using the landfill to hold the wall up instead of only putting pressure against the wall.

I would need to do something like this.... build a straight wall up against the tall bank behind this wall and build the hoist from this. In winter the river subsides a little more than in summer so best tackled then. Will be a big project but worth ustilising water power I think.

I would need to consult an engineer probably on a final yes/no... but want to research options first.



Maybe you can see here looking down the high bank. If I cut straight down into it in winter until I hit some rock hopefully.... enough rocks up top so must be some there somewhere! .... and propped the sides so no sand collapse as we mined down straight down... laid good foundations and built the wall up like the original wall and then removed the outer side facing the river.... have the hoist designed so that it is built as part of the wall....

I do think it is possible without costing so much it is not feasible. I have to develop that area anyway one day.

Hmmmm.... you have got me thinking Frank. I would have to anchor the raft below too or the normal flow would cause it to smash against the side all the time... but as you say... also anchored to the side. And pull it in in the rainy season. It would not last a flooding. I have had huge thick-trunked trees uprooted across my banks. In the quiet season this could be easily feasible though. And have wheels underneath to help bring it back on land or something. Worth looking into.. thanks.

Best Ram Pump schematic I have ever found.



And done in series even ustilising the water the ram pump wastes.... not sure how feasible this is though... enough head?



Spiral wheel from river to header tank.... ram pumps to AP system for water power and irrigation.

After seeing a tiny little stream (I mean tiny enough to walk or sometimes jump across without getting wet) at a friend's property turn into a raging torrent moving car size rocks and flinging the bridge off to the side (the bridge happened to be an old flatbed semi trailer.) I don't believe that a simple anchor of any sort in the bottom of that larger river would keep a raft intact during a flash flood event.

I could see using a raft that could float up and down on post guides being appropriate for normal operation but I would still probably want to remove it from the river in anticipation of a major storm event.

this was in fact what I first had in mind, but I had no idea you were thinking of a major investment, Chelle
if I understand well, you are thinking of building a quay, or rebuilding the existing one
what is the shore length you dispose of?
could you make an approximate sketchup drawing?

frank

Is there any way of bleeding off the river water through a pipe or concrete canal and have the wheel set up there. The river height would not impact the wheel only the speed that it turns. You could have a gate to direct more or less water through the pipe so when the river is low you can still increase the flow through the pipe. The return water goes back into the river. And if you need to have the wheel on a swing arm this would give you more control because the canal would only be a couple of meters wide with firm ground on each side.

Yes TCL. I have already lost a number of pumps down there that we thought would be fine. In the rainy season will just remove everything till sure is safe again. I have a philosphy now that whatever falls must stay fallen and I landscape over it. I used to have 2 walls like the one in the pic and after the second wall fall I left it broken against the first and am slowly shaping everything in new and interesting ways with it there. I know it acts as a buffer to the original wall.

Frank, I only have about 130 meters of river fontage. The small developed section in the pic is used for entertaining and so there is quite a bit left to be used. I do have in mind a large project finally but that will be when I am generating more finances. In the meantime your raft idea with a spiral wheel has got me thinking. The sooner I can get using this water power.... even on a small scale at first ... the better. I am keen to make a model first....
I wouldn't really know what to give you in a sketchup drawing. Just think of a slightly concave edge with a very high bank and that is what I have in the area I want to use.

Dufflight, your idea makes more sense than my original idea of a big beautiful water wheel set between 2 walls that is powered by re-directing the river.....
If a pipe feeds into a section behind a big wall... a wall higher than the 50 year flood line.... and really strong and thick....maybe built using gabions (wire baskets with which rocks are boxed) like a walled bank.... and piped back out again after the wheel........with gates as you say... cos then will close to keep the water out in a flooding when the pace of the water is so fast and destructive...
I am going to look into this more and talk to some people. This could be the way my final project goes. I might even get my big beautiful waterwheel this way! I know where the 50 year flood line is so know how high to go to protect the wheel. Maybe even put some-sort of structure over the thickened wall because the view down river will be lovely. A thick enough wall will resist the river and high enough will protect the water wheel... It definitely offers more controls. Might even attract paying visitors if done well enough....