100% cannot drip that much water if you have a septic tank. Very good point
300+ gallon water drip question
- Thread starter Nyrkorey
- Start date
I'm thinking of setting up a constant drip auto water change system like this one for my 600 gallon system. My sump filter tank is already drilled and plumbed direct into my city sewage pipe. What I'm having issues with is how to assure consistency in the flow rate of the drip into the tank - I'm dripping in water from an RO water barrel located about 10ft away from the tank (3ft away from the sump). I'm aiming for a 2gph drip running 24/7 for roughly 10% water change daily. First issue is what pump would be able to pump such a small flow rate? I could use a valve to regulate flow but wouldn't the huge back pressure cause the pump to malfunction rather quickly? Next issue is that even with a valve it's hard to be precise with gph, plus such pumps usually degrade over time so how do I ensure a steady 2gph flow long term?
Alternatively I could run a line through a chloramine filter then into the tank similar to what has been shared here, but tap water pressure is even more finicky for me. It rises and drops based on how many taps I'm running in the room and house at any point in time. For example if the RO barrel is filling and I'm taking a shower elsewhere in the house, the tap would slow to less than half the usual pressure compared to when nothing else is running.
Would an irrigation pressure compensating valve work in both situations? Something like this: https://shopee.sg/product/338380142...UyO2aCDTrmKsR2LzsuzQ7E8aNG7UV29RoCXwAQAvD_BwE
Ultimately I'd rather do water changes from the RO barrel, but I can also set up the tap water system instead if needed.
Alternatively I could run a line through a chloramine filter then into the tank similar to what has been shared here, but tap water pressure is even more finicky for me. It rises and drops based on how many taps I'm running in the room and house at any point in time. For example if the RO barrel is filling and I'm taking a shower elsewhere in the house, the tap would slow to less than half the usual pressure compared to when nothing else is running.
Would an irrigation pressure compensating valve work in both situations? Something like this: https://shopee.sg/product/338380142...UyO2aCDTrmKsR2LzsuzQ7E8aNG7UV29RoCXwAQAvD_BwE
Ultimately I'd rather do water changes from the RO barrel, but I can also set up the tap water system instead if needed.
You could use a pressure regulator and set it to something like 25 psi. You would always have the same water pressure going in the tank.
But good reliable regulators are expensive, at least they are here in Canada, and add a potential failure point to a system that doesn't need to be that complex in my opinion.
So what if the flow slows down for 15 minutes a couple times a day. The remaining 23 1/2 hours are pretty consistent and the goal of changing the water will still be achieved
But good reliable regulators are expensive, at least they are here in Canada, and add a potential failure point to a system that doesn't need to be that complex in my opinion.
So what if the flow slows down for 15 minutes a couple times a day. The remaining 23 1/2 hours are pretty consistent and the goal of changing the water will still be achieved
Yeah I think the best thing is to figure out how much time people are using water and subtract that from 24 hours and use the new number to calculate a 10% water change.
I'd also avoid the pump. Usually a valve after the pump doesn't hurt the life of it, but that's for sumps where they aren't reducing it to 3% of it's capability. At that point the pump would almost certainly overheat since they dump their heat into the flowing water. Maybe there's something saltwater people have come up with. I keep my saltwater tank lightly stocked (currently four 3-4" fish in 200 gallons of water) so I only have to perform a monthly change.
You shouldn't need the ro water barrel unless you lose clean drinking water often. If you need to make a sudden large water change, you could just remove or adjust the valve that limits flow into the tank... but if in your area there's a good chance of losing power in a storm and the drinking water being contaminated then yeah I'd keep the RO barrel for emergencies, but in a separate system. You could just have a tee going to both the sump and the barrel and a closed valve going to the barrel until you need to fill it.
I'd also avoid the pump. Usually a valve after the pump doesn't hurt the life of it, but that's for sumps where they aren't reducing it to 3% of it's capability. At that point the pump would almost certainly overheat since they dump their heat into the flowing water. Maybe there's something saltwater people have come up with. I keep my saltwater tank lightly stocked (currently four 3-4" fish in 200 gallons of water) so I only have to perform a monthly change.
You shouldn't need the ro water barrel unless you lose clean drinking water often. If you need to make a sudden large water change, you could just remove or adjust the valve that limits flow into the tank... but if in your area there's a good chance of losing power in a storm and the drinking water being contaminated then yeah I'd keep the RO barrel for emergencies, but in a separate system. You could just have a tee going to both the sump and the barrel and a closed valve going to the barrel until you need to fill it.
I use the RO barrel firstly because I keep wildcaught fish that require very soft water conditions (South American blackwater), and also because of water pressure issues. My RO system comes with a pressure regulating auto shut off that regulates the water pressure so I can connect it to the tap, open the tap at full blast and leave it 24/7 with no worries. Direct from tap with just a normal sediment and carbon block filters set I have to keep fiddling with how much I open the tap - too much and the hose bursts open because the pressure is too high, spraying water everywhere; too low and the water doesn't have enough pressure to force its way through the filter blocks, and the varying pressure throughout the day just makes things very difficult. That's why I just have a 400gpd RO system keeping a 75 gallon barrel full 24/7 using a simple float valve. I rarely ever have to use so much water in a day that this system can't keep up with. In real emergencies (happened less than 5 times in the past 3 years) I just use direct tap water with antichlorine which can fill my tank from empty to full in 90 minutes.
For reference, I've been doing 5% daily water changes using 2 XL sized calibrated dosing pumps - one pumps water in from the barrel and the other pumps water out directlyinto the drain pipe drilled into my sump. It's just a pain to keep 2 dosing pumps calibrated exactly to each other, and having to replace the dosing pump tubing every few months, so I'm thinking of streamlining the system into a 24/7 drip water change system instead rather than small water changes several times a day via the dosing pumps.
For reference, I've been doing 5% daily water changes using 2 XL sized calibrated dosing pumps - one pumps water in from the barrel and the other pumps water out directlyinto the drain pipe drilled into my sump. It's just a pain to keep 2 dosing pumps calibrated exactly to each other, and having to replace the dosing pump tubing every few months, so I'm thinking of streamlining the system into a 24/7 drip water change system instead rather than small water changes several times a day via the dosing pumps.
You can very easily still autodrip with a septic system. Ive been doing it for over 10yrs in cold climate. I drain into a sump basin that pumps the water up and out of my basement negating the septic system all together. I ran 100’ of 4” pipe underground to a storm drain. Before that i filled outdoor ponds with the water. Before that i just shot it into my yard 
… Many ways to use and disperse fish water thats not going down a normal drain.
… Many ways to use and disperse fish water thats not going down a normal drain.
You can very easily still autodrip with a septic system. Ive been doing it for over 10yrs in cold climate. I drain into a sump basin that pumps the water up and out of my basement negating the septic system all together. I ran 100’ of 4” pipe underground to a storm drain. Before that i filled outdoor ponds with the water. Before that i just shot it into my yard
Lol, you can definitely do it...but, depending upon the terrain, it isn't always easy. I'll have to ask you to trust me when I tell you I've tried many methods, and for me they just don't work.
I live in a province where a pile of gravel left over from construction would be called a ski slope in winter. We are flat...flat...FLAT! In my previous house, I had a nice slope on one side that easily carried the waste water away. Here....it just sits there. In the summer, my yard would be a swamp. In the winter, a skating rink.
Storm sewer??? Lol, you city folk make me laugh...
I do indeed have about 250feet of (barely) buried pipe carrying water out into the field...but the end of the pipe is exactly on the same level as the point where it comes out of the house. The water can't go "down" anywhere; there is no "down". I have trenches radiating outwards from the end of the pipe, to disperse the water as it exits. It's created a swamp out there, which is okay, but as soon as the winter freeze occurs that pipe is unusable as it will freeze solid.
Even if I run heat trace along the pipe....I've done that in a previous house...the water freezes as soon as it exits the pipe...and since the terrain is so flat, the ice quickly builds up and encases the end of the pipe, so no more flow.
I own more Big O drain line that any sane man should ever need.
Here's my little outdoor pond during the summer, when things have dried out:
20170626_171824.jpg
Here's how it looks in springtime, after the snowmelt:
20150705_080626.jpg
I'll always have a couple utility pumps in action, just pumping out my yard each spring. I use that water to fill my stock tanks; I sure as hell won't be pumping more into the yard from the basement.
Lol, sorry to the OP for the derail...I just wanted to point out a potential issue that might require consideration depending upon your circumstances.
Lol, you can definitely do it...but, depending upon the terrain, it isn't always easy. I'll have to ask you to trust me when I tell you I've tried many methods, and for me they just don't work.
I live in a province where a pile of gravel left over from construction would be called a ski slope in winter. We are flat...flat...FLAT! In my previous house, I had a nice slope on one side that easily carried the waste water away. Here....it just sits there. In the summer, my yard would be a swamp. In the winter, a skating rink.
Storm sewer??? Lol, you city folk make me laugh...
I do indeed have about 250feet of (barely) buried pipe carrying water out into the field...but the end of the pipe is exactly on the same level as the point where it comes out of the house. The water can't go "down" anywhere; there is no "down". I have trenches radiating outwards from the end of the pipe, to disperse the water as it exits. It's created a swamp out there, which is okay, but as soon as the winter freeze occurs that pipe is unusable as it will freeze solid.
Even if I run heat trace along the pipe....I've done that in a previous house...the water freezes as soon as it exits the pipe...and since the terrain is so flat, the ice quickly builds up and encases the end of the pipe, so no more flow.
I own more Big O drain line that any sane man should ever need.
Here's my little outdoor pond during the summer, when things have dried out:
20170626_171824.jpg
Here's how it looks in springtime, after the snowmelt:
20150705_080626.jpg
I'll always have a couple utility pumps in action, just pumping out my yard each spring. I use that water to fill my stock tanks; I sure as hell won't be pumping more into the yard from the basement.
Lol, sorry to the OP for the derail...I just wanted to point out a potential issue that might require consideration depending upon your circumstances.
ahh… just need to make that pond bigger, u got room lol. I know ur an extreme case in the great white north. Even on septic, could probably drip a tank or two that equates to the w/c water ur already using for the week/day.
duanes
used to use “surplus” for flushing toilets . 1 tank would be under normal water use IMO for most any septic system. 10-30gal for 24hrs is nothing.15,20,25,30,45 PSI Preset Pressure Regulators Reduces Pipe Water Pressure(2Pcs) | Shopee Singapore
Name:The preset pressure regulators Type:Garden Water Connectors Garden Water Connector Type:Female Connectors Material:PLASTIC Plastic Type:ABS Model Number:10360,10361,10362,10363,10364 Type:3/4 inch female Connectors Size:3/4” female hose thread x 3/4” male hose thread (FHT x MHT)...
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Would something like this give me a similar outcome to an RO system auto shut off valve such that I can switch on my tap at full pressure and not have the hose/piping burst even if I shut off the water downstream or reduce it to a trickle (2gph)?
I drip about 180 to 200g per day, I only meant that putting that much water per day of excess water through your septic system might not be a good idea lol. Of course you can drip if you have a septic tank if you bypass it and don't send the "dirty" water inYou can very easily still autodrip with a septic system. Ive been doing it for over 10yrs in cold climate. I drain into a sump basin that pumps the water up and out of my basement negating the septic system all together. I ran 100’ of 4” pipe underground to a storm drain. Before that i filled outdoor ponds with the water. Before that i just shot it into my yard
