Extracting water from a stream
Discussion
Morning all, I have a small stream approx foot deep at the bottom of my garden, with current water supply under pressure. Was thinking of getting a small submersible pump to fill up water butts from . Taking approx 200-300 litres to them up maybe twice a weekish, Am I going to be breaking any laws ? Not massive amount of water but don't want to risk anything !
skilly1 said:
From .gov website
Taking water from a surface source (such as a river, stream or canal) or from an underground source is called abstraction. If you plan to take more than 20 cubic metres (20,000 litres) a day, you are likely to need an abstraction licence from the Environment Agency
So you dont need a licence for what you plan to do. Taking water from a surface source (such as a river, stream or canal) or from an underground source is called abstraction. If you plan to take more than 20 cubic metres (20,000 litres) a day, you are likely to need an abstraction licence from the Environment Agency
My nan used to live in Scotland. Water came from a spring, really good stuff. Then the water companies came, the spring got disconnected and chlorinated horrible tasting water came in. And they call this progress.
Just take what nature intended.
Just take what nature intended.
Edited by Cockaigne on Saturday 27th May 07:43
Based on experience of doing similar, make sure you think through your pipework and any filtration needs. The flow and pressure losses if you undersize pipes can be very significant, so consider going up in size if there will be runs of any real length involved.
If you’re thinking of putting a filter in before and/or after your tank, have found that if there’s not much sediment being caught then the folded, washable, filters do a good job but if there’s a lot of fine sediment a bag filter will capture more and extend the time between changes/cleans). The bag filter housings are a lot more expensive though.
Avoid pumps that need priming, most submersibles won’t, as otherwise you’re into a lot more hassle with non-return valves etc needed on your intake.
If you’re thinking of putting a filter in before and/or after your tank, have found that if there’s not much sediment being caught then the folded, washable, filters do a good job but if there’s a lot of fine sediment a bag filter will capture more and extend the time between changes/cleans). The bag filter housings are a lot more expensive though.
Avoid pumps that need priming, most submersibles won’t, as otherwise you’re into a lot more hassle with non-return valves etc needed on your intake.
glennjamin said:
Morning all, I have a small stream approx foot deep at the bottom of my garden, with current water supply under pressure. Was thinking of getting a small submersible pump to fill up water butts from . Taking approx 200-300 litres to them up maybe twice a weekish, Am I going to be breaking any laws ? Not massive amount of water but don't want to risk anything !
All explained here (assuming you are an 'riperian owner'............."A Riparian Owner can abstract a maximum of 20 cubic metres of water
per day for the domestic purposes of their own household or for
agricultural use (excluding spray irrigation) without a license. Most other
types of abstraction will require a license from the Environment Agency. If
the water is to be used for drinking the abstraction must be registered
with the District or Borough Council."
https://www.westsussex.gov.uk/media/1984/riparian_...
Depending on the length of stream you have access to and the amount of fall, you may be able to get away with no pump.
The allotments close to my parents house have a length of alkathene pipe running up the river, with the inlet end higher than the outlet end and then to a tap. Not going to be getting my pressure, but fore filling watering cans it would be fine. Even better if just slowly and continually topping up a water butt with an overflow back to the stream.
The allotments close to my parents house have a length of alkathene pipe running up the river, with the inlet end higher than the outlet end and then to a tap. Not going to be getting my pressure, but fore filling watering cans it would be fine. Even better if just slowly and continually topping up a water butt with an overflow back to the stream.
A DIY ram pump from off the shelf plumbing components: A DIY ram pump
Buckfast Abbey, where Buckfast Wine is made, has an Archimedes screw. The area it is in isn't generally open to the public, so I asked one of the monks if I could have a look at it. He took me to see it, but seemed genuinely surprised that anyone would want to!
Buckfast Abbey Archimedes Screw
Buckfast Abbey, where Buckfast Wine is made, has an Archimedes screw. The area it is in isn't generally open to the public, so I asked one of the monks if I could have a look at it. He took me to see it, but seemed genuinely surprised that anyone would want to!
Buckfast Abbey Archimedes Screw
Edited by GliderRider on Saturday 27th May 23:05
Yeah if you're happy running from the water butts then a cheap submersible pump is probably the easiest solution.
There are a couple of potential alternatives though.
1) If there's a reasonable slope on the stream and the levels work out, you could buy a length of mdpe pipe and use it to move the extraction point upstream far enough that the water can reach you under gravity.
2) Hoselock (and others i'm sure) make a jet pump that can suck water from any source and provides you with a pretty decent pressurised water supply (3.5 bar). I did this a few years back before we got our main private supply sorted out and it was great having a proper hose that could run sprinklers etc.
https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/HZ7606.html?...
There are a couple of potential alternatives though.
1) If there's a reasonable slope on the stream and the levels work out, you could buy a length of mdpe pipe and use it to move the extraction point upstream far enough that the water can reach you under gravity.
2) Hoselock (and others i'm sure) make a jet pump that can suck water from any source and provides you with a pretty decent pressurised water supply (3.5 bar). I did this a few years back before we got our main private supply sorted out and it was great having a proper hose that could run sprinklers etc.
https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/HZ7606.html?...
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