crsublette
coyotes call me Charles
1) Well after searching for a hole for hours, I decided to add a bit of water and see if it ran out. It didn't. So I added a bit more, still nothing. So maybe the hose syphoned the water out ...??? I don't know.
Yep, you're lucky the hose was not at the bottom of the pond.
It is likely two things happening at once: 1) once you turned off the well, water falling down the well's column pipe starts the suction; 2) basic siphon was started so to continue to drain the pond.
1) When a water well is turned off, the water inside the column pipe falls down into the aquifer or reservoir creating a quite significant vacuum. This would start the siphon.
2) Then, the basic siphon continues to flow until the well's column pipe is full of water. This siphon is created whenever there is a difference in elevation from each end of a hose/pipe while there is no air inside the hose/pipe. When the hose is connected to the well, the column pipe down deep underground becomes the lowest elevation point and your hose is the highest elevation. So, once the suction started as mentioned in point #1, then gravity pulls the water from the highest elevation to the lowest elevation point. The siphon will only stop once the difference in the elevation, in addition to other resistances, equalizes.
Lesson's Learned? : Take the hose out of the pond if the well is going to be turned off or you can install a check flow valve or an air relief valve at where the hose connects to the well.
A check flow valve prevents the water from going in the reverse flow; in other words, it stops the suction. If one can be found cheap enough, then I would go ahead to install a check flow valve. Most underground water wells should have a check flow valve to prevent contamination of the ground water, but not all of them may have them. I know it is required by law for us to have them here.
An air relief valve is a valve with hole on top and a ball below the hole sitting in a chamber. While the hose/pipe is pressurizing, then the air will escape. Once the hose/pipe is pressurized, then the ball closes the hole. Once pressure is lost in the hose/pipe, then the ball falls and this causes air to be sucked in, which then breaks the suction. Most residential wells should have these, but some do not.
2) I was doing a trickle as advised, BUT my husband said he thought it would take me a week to fill the pond at the rate I was going.
That's funny. You must have had it flowing at a really slow trickle. I should have clarified...
Since your pond is 2,200 gallons, lets say we're going to do a 50% slow water change. 50% of 2,200 is 1,100 gallons.
To determine the flow rate of adding the new water slowly, then we are going to add the new 50% water slowly over a period of 12 hours. In other words, this means 1,100 gallons per 12 hours; now, lets simplify this to minutes. So, 1,100 gallons per 12 hours is 1.527 gallons per minute or 0.0254 gallons per second.
Now, get a container and use a stop watch or clock to determine how long it takes to be filled. Then, adjust the valve at the hose so that the water coming out of the hose only fills up that container within the above particular time duration.
For example, if you have a 5 gallon bucket, then divide the bucket's gallons by one of the ratios above. This gives us 3.274 (or 3:16 minutes) or 196.850 (or 197 seconds) the time to use with a stopwatch or clock.
While using a stopwatch or clock, adjust the hose's valve so that it only takes 3 minutes and 16 seconds to fill up the 5 gallon bucket.
Once you have this figured out, use a pen or marker or something to make a mark on the valve to tell you where the valve should be set the next time you fill up the pond with water.
Properly adjusting the proper amount of flow can be a pain, but, once you have it figured out, then you shouldn't need to figure it out again once the valve is properly marked.
Now, every time you need to fill up your pond with water for a water change, just turn that water hose valve to that mark and you will be good to go.
Yep, you're lucky the hose was not at the bottom of the pond.
It is likely two things happening at once: 1) once you turned off the well, water falling down the well's column pipe starts the suction; 2) basic siphon was started so to continue to drain the pond.
1) When a water well is turned off, the water inside the column pipe falls down into the aquifer or reservoir creating a quite significant vacuum. This would start the siphon.
2) Then, the basic siphon continues to flow until the well's column pipe is full of water. This siphon is created whenever there is a difference in elevation from each end of a hose/pipe while there is no air inside the hose/pipe. When the hose is connected to the well, the column pipe down deep underground becomes the lowest elevation point and your hose is the highest elevation. So, once the suction started as mentioned in point #1, then gravity pulls the water from the highest elevation to the lowest elevation point. The siphon will only stop once the difference in the elevation, in addition to other resistances, equalizes.
Lesson's Learned? : Take the hose out of the pond if the well is going to be turned off or you can install a check flow valve or an air relief valve at where the hose connects to the well.
A check flow valve prevents the water from going in the reverse flow; in other words, it stops the suction. If one can be found cheap enough, then I would go ahead to install a check flow valve. Most underground water wells should have a check flow valve to prevent contamination of the ground water, but not all of them may have them. I know it is required by law for us to have them here.
An air relief valve is a valve with hole on top and a ball below the hole sitting in a chamber. While the hose/pipe is pressurizing, then the air will escape. Once the hose/pipe is pressurized, then the ball closes the hole. Once pressure is lost in the hose/pipe, then the ball falls and this causes air to be sucked in, which then breaks the suction. Most residential wells should have these, but some do not.
2) I was doing a trickle as advised, BUT my husband said he thought it would take me a week to fill the pond at the rate I was going.
That's funny. You must have had it flowing at a really slow trickle. I should have clarified...
Since your pond is 2,200 gallons, lets say we're going to do a 50% slow water change. 50% of 2,200 is 1,100 gallons.
To determine the flow rate of adding the new water slowly, then we are going to add the new 50% water slowly over a period of 12 hours. In other words, this means 1,100 gallons per 12 hours; now, lets simplify this to minutes. So, 1,100 gallons per 12 hours is 1.527 gallons per minute or 0.0254 gallons per second.
Now, get a container and use a stop watch or clock to determine how long it takes to be filled. Then, adjust the valve at the hose so that the water coming out of the hose only fills up that container within the above particular time duration.
For example, if you have a 5 gallon bucket, then divide the bucket's gallons by one of the ratios above. This gives us 3.274 (or 3:16 minutes) or 196.850 (or 197 seconds) the time to use with a stopwatch or clock.
While using a stopwatch or clock, adjust the hose's valve so that it only takes 3 minutes and 16 seconds to fill up the 5 gallon bucket.
Once you have this figured out, use a pen or marker or something to make a mark on the valve to tell you where the valve should be set the next time you fill up the pond with water.
Properly adjusting the proper amount of flow can be a pain, but, once you have it figured out, then you shouldn't need to figure it out again once the valve is properly marked.
Now, every time you need to fill up your pond with water for a water change, just turn that water hose valve to that mark and you will be good to go.
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