Desperate: I Need Help In A Hurry!! (Off-Topic)

I hope someone out there can help me.

Without going into blow by blow details, the problem is this:

I'm putting a center pivot on one of my places which has been in flood irrigation since 1948. It already has a well and the underground pipe is already in place.

I pulled the well in about 1980 or so, and put in a Western Land Roller 4-stage set of bowls. These replaced the original 2-stage bowls, which had been in operation since the well was drilled in the early '50s by my Dad.

The young man who is renting the place tells me that the people who are installing the pivot want to first test the well (which is fine with me) and then pull it and install a set of 4-stage bowls.

My question is this: Is there a difference in bowls? Is there a "pressure" bowl vs an open discharge bowl?

I think the well already has the proper bowls, because we had to turn the thing down because it was pumping way too much water to handle(1000 gal) at that time (1980).

Can someone help? Anyone?

Thanks,

Allan

Find out from the pump man if a booster pump after the water gets to the surface would help.

Yes there is a difference in bowls.

When we put in our system in about 1978 we encountered several problems, one of which was a 200' elevation difference in one 1/2 mile wheel line.

We ended up using 3 booster pumps, 3/4 mile of epoxy coated steel line and flow control nozzles throughout the system.

It may be cheaper and simpler to install the booster than to replace the bowls and it will give you more flexibility.

Hope this helps.

Dan

Thanks for responding.

It is the $2300 boost pump I'm trying to stay away from if at all possible, because this is going to involve an additional outlay in costs for the motor, wiring and not to mention the extra monthly charges. I'm trying to keep from paying for two motors on one well.

Since that 30 horse electric pump motor at the well has to be replaced anyway to get the flow back up to around 800 gpm or better, wouldn't it make sense to just drop a 50 horse motor on the wellhead and try it?

I remember the well man telling me back in the '80s when they were putting in the 4-stage bowls that I could push a circle if I wanted. At that time, this seemed completely absurd to me.

Now, technology has proven that the pivot is far more effecient, hence the installation. But, I'm more than positive that the correct bowls are already in place.

Can they test the pressure using a run of gated pipe or something?

Thanks for your help,

Allan

Dan

Thanks. That's just what I thought. You just saved me about 8 grand.

After I made the post, the young lad called and told me that they were going by the plate on the wellhead, which is stamped a two-bowl pump (installed in ’52).

The guy that put the four-bowl in for me never changed that plate; consequently, a year ago when the electric motor had to be replaced, this same info was used and a 30 horse electric motor was mistakenly installed.

So, when they set the bowls to produce the correct amperage pull, it was turned down to the point that the flow is clear down to 620 gpm. He is only using 1/2 of the damned well!

We are going to go with the Reinke System, are pumping from 147’, use 50 hp electric motors and need 40 lb at the pivot for low pressure drop nozzles. We too are on the Ogallala Aquifer; we are on the north end here in Nebraska.

That is one huge ocean down there. I checked with the Natural Resources office, and the water table has only dropped 1 foot in the past 53 years. That with all these wells in use. One huge pond!

Thanks for the holler, I owe ya

Allan

The farm is actually 180 irrigatable acres with two wells and also, water from the irrigation district. It is a man killer to gravity irrigate due to the lay of the land, although there are no hills in site.

It lays on an old ocean sea-bed and there is no end to the top soil. Trouble is, there just is no rain in this part of the country. Our annual rainfall is only 17 inches.

So, we want to put up this 130 acre non-tow pivot on one well and use the rest of the water sources to catch the rest with gated pipe as in the past. We are one of the last farms in the area to put up the circle.

Before they start putting it up, they of course, want to make sure that the old well is in order.

I'll mention this 20 lb Ultra Low pressure to them and see what they say.

Thanks for your input,

Allan

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--->Paul

Too much politics over there for me. I'll stick with this forum.

--->Paul