OT cistern pump

notjustair · Jul 22, 2012

I use my cistern to water everything in the barnyard. Right now it means dragging hundreds of feet of hose.

Next year I would like to trench in some hydrants and put in a holding tank and pump in the milk house (which sits partially over the cistern). Originally it fed the whole farm this way but the pumps are long gone.

The milk house is not heated. Not really interested in doing that either. My question is: how easy is it to bleed off/drain a system like that in the fall? Am I better off hooking the hydrants to the pump line and plugging in the pump like I do now? That means an extra trip to the hydrant to open it before hand.

Any other options I should consider?

rrlund · Jul 22, 2012

Is digging a pit and putting the pump down in it out of the question?
An insulated "pump house" would do the trick too. You can heat one with a 100 watt conventional light bulb if it's well constructed and insulated. Building something like that right inside the milkhouse would be even better.

bo · Jul 22, 2012

I have a barn that I need to winterize. I gravity bleed the water to the lowest point, open a faucet in the barn to break the air trap and it drains. On every faucet, toilet and stuff, I have a drain that I open and get the water out and then I use compressed air to purge it for sure. I use antifreeze in the toilet/sink traps. 14 years and no problems. Takes me 1/2 hour or so.

paul · Jul 22, 2012

Pressure tank, not a holding tank......

Put the tank and pump in a pit. Might work better with the cistern anyhow?

Set it up to be very easy to drain. Then _remember_ to drain it.

One or the other.

--->Paul

Errin OH · Jul 22, 2012

I have a pump and tank in a un-heated building. All I did was build a box around it, insulated with foam, and have two 250w flood lights on seperate thermostats. One is set to 45, the other 40.

10 years and its been down to -15, no problems. However it does get new bulbs ever year regardless.

Line out to the garden gets disconnected and air blown thru it. Don't have to mess with the pump at all and still have water spigot in the building year round.

Have a simular setup in another building that protects a sink base where I can not drain the lines. I do not have to heat the whole thing, just around the sink base.

OT cistern pump

notjustair

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rrlund

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bo

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paul

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Errin OH

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