# How to pump water from lake



## jnorth34 (Mar 6, 2012)

I have a lake house with 3 cottages. Need to pull the water from lake for all but drinking. Would like to know what type and horsepower jet pump needed as well as size of pressure tank needed. Need to draw water about 100 feet from the lake to the first cottage where the existing pump is dead (about a 10 ft incline). There one bathroom and a kitchen in first cottage including 2 sinks, one dishwasher, one bath/shower, one toilet and a 40 gal hot water heater. Second cottage is just storage. Third cottage is about 60 feet up from the first cottage where the pump is (another 10 ft incline). There's a bathroom and kitchen in the third cottage (2 sinks, one toilet, small hot water heater - no bath). Wondering what pump/pressure tank configuration needed. Thx!


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## Missouri Bound (Apr 9, 2011)

If I'm not mistaken you can use the lake water for irrigation only. I'm sure there is some local AHJ that can confirm this. The pump you choose will be determined by the amount of head and pressure you require.


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## jnorth34 (Mar 6, 2012)

thx - all the houses on the lake without wells use lake water - it's perfectly legal. I would like to keep the pressure between 30-50 lbs.


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## Missouri Bound (Apr 9, 2011)

I can't tell you what size pump to use. That is determined by head. As far as tank size, the larger the tank the more reserve you have. Pumps are rated in gpm at specific head. You will need to determine distance, depth of intake line and distance in order to choose a pump.


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## jnorth34 (Mar 6, 2012)

ok - the distance from the lake to the house is 100 ft, the rise up the hill is 10 feet and the pipe is 1 and 1/4 inch. is that what you need?


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## Missouri Bound (Apr 9, 2011)

And how deep will the intake be?


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

http://www.watersystemscouncil.org/VAiWebDocs/WSCDocs/2567958WSC_INST_20.pdf

May want to concider two pumps not one. If the main one poops out your all out of water.
It could be plumbed so if one fails you could open and close a few valves and both buildings would still have water.
Also concider a pressure tank so the pump will not come on every time a faucet opens.


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## jnorth34 (Mar 6, 2012)

Missouri Bound - what do you mean by the intake? sorry...


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## titanoman (Nov 27, 2011)

Will the pump be submerged, a pusher.
Or in a...pump house, I guess. A puller?
I'm asking because a friend of mine wants to get lakewater up to his new garden, and he nor I have a clue where to start with the water.
At the moment he's finishing the garden fence. He'll have to figure out the water in the next couple of weeks. I told him I would get on the internet and see what I could figure out, and wala! I'm here.
The water is at least 100 feet away and about 50 feet lower than the garden.
We have no idea on what kind or how powerful of a pump we need.
Don't need huge pressure.

Thank you


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## jnorth34 (Mar 6, 2012)

jet pump - a puller under the cottage


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

Your also going to need an intake filter.
http://www.underwaterwarehouse.com/Pre-Filters/High-Volume-Intake-Filters-p-1165.html
It's best to make some sort of a stand to hold the end of the pipe up off the bottom of the lake. A simple stainless steel tripod would work.


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## titanoman (Nov 27, 2011)

jnorth34 said:


> jet pump - a puller under the cottage


Oh. I have a jet pump that's a pusher. A Berkeley, that is.
On the flywheel end of a 454.
In the back of a Anaheim Sidewinder with 4" pipes about a foot long.
Powerful enough to get water up the hill. 
I wonder if anybody would complain.
Of course with the price of gas, going into an 870 dbl pumper, running say...3 or 4 on the dial...
Those better be some good vegetables...

(lousy picture-of-pictures of me tearing up the lake. That roostertail is over a football field long, coming from a jettavated custom 3" nozzle reducer, high induction intake grate and about 500hpx7,000r's)
I know. Boring. Who cares.
Sorry. Getting excited about summer.

http://www.imgur.com/BdBdV.jpg


http://www.imgur.com/CfNUF.jpg


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## ben's plumbing (Oct 6, 2011)

jnorth34 said:


> I have a lake house with 3 cottages. Need to pull the water from lake for all but drinking. Would like to know what type and horsepower jet pump needed as well as size of pressure tank needed. Need to draw water about 100 feet from the lake to the first cottage where the existing pump is dead (about a 10 ft incline). There one bathroom and a kitchen in first cottage including 2 sinks, one dishwasher, one bath/shower, one toilet and a 40 gal hot water heater. Second cottage is just storage. Third cottage is about 60 feet up from the first cottage where the pump is (another 10 ft incline). There's a bathroom and kitchen in the third cottage (2 sinks, one toilet, small hot water heater - no bath). Wondering what pump/pressure tank configuration needed. Thx!


 you can go to lancaster pumps.com.....from what you are saying I would install 75-100 gal storage tank..I would use 1 hp submerisable 25 - 40 gpm with a lift of at least 250 ft...that should handle load...


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## Yoyizit (Jul 11, 2008)

The engineering toolbox site will help you with pipe resistance due to water flow. IIRC you want 2 to 5 FPS flow speed.

Grainger posts online specs on their pumps and from that you can figure elec. energy in vs. GPM x Head out. Their pump/motor combos seem to be 20% to 80% efficient, the "wires to water" efficiency.

City water delivers about 13 GPM at 20 to 80 PSI and less than 20 PSI is not recommended for sanitary reasons.


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## Bondo (Dec 8, 2007)

ben's plumbing said:


> you can go to lancaster pumps.com.....from what you are saying I would install 75-100 gal storage tank..I would use 1 hp submerisable 25 - 40 gpm with a lift of at least 250 ft...that should handle load...


Ayuh,.... As We all know,... Pumps do better at pushin' water than they do pullin' water....

I've built several different lake water systems,...
From the simplest, which was merely a gould pump mounted to a dock, 'n a garden hose on it's output,...
To full fledged domestic water systems into several camps...

If using a pump to pull water, mount the pump in a pumphouse as close to the water as reasonable, 'n use a foot-valve in the suction end...
The foot-valve will need to be Atleast a foot above the lake bottom, 'n several feet below the surface, so's it don't whirlpool, 'n suck air...
The pressure tank can be wherever is convenient for ya...

By far, the Best system I've built had an 1 hp submersible pump, mounted inside a 6' section of 8" gal. steel culvert, which has 18" legs welded to it...
It sits on the bottom, yet keeps the pump up off the bottom enough to keep the mud, silt, 'n sand outa the system... 

It feeds a 1" black plastic line up to the camps, where the pressure tank, water heater, 'n the rest of the system is...

The only Special thing that needed doin' is puttin' a slip together joint, right at the water level/ shoreline...
In the fall, ya just pop that joint, 'n drain everything up-stream of it for Winter....

Both the water line, 'n the pump wire can lay right where it is til Spring...
The remaining line goin' into/ under the water naturally freezes, but bein' frozen both inside, 'n out,...
No damage occurs...


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