Posted 5 years ago
hotairfan
(388 items)
My friend, Jim Crones made this is a half scale working model of a water ram. This machine (9" long & 8" high) can pump water higher than it starts out without any electrical power, only the power of flowing water. The hydraulic water ram was invented 200 years ago, and is still used in underdeveloped countries as well as Amish farms and remote cabins here in USA. All you need is a running stream. Here is how it works:
You lay a 25 ft. pipe up stream of the ram for water to supply the ram. Connect the lower end of the pipe to the inlet of the ram. The water flows through the ram and flows out the brass impetus valve at the end of the ram. as the water continues to pick up speed (velocity), the valve plunger will lift up resisting the water flow. When the velocity is such that the plunger slams shut, the fast moving water still has energy in it and jerks backwards through a one way flipper valve, forcing the water to enter the domed air chamber. As this backflow happens, the brass impetus plunger momentarily loses pressure and drops down, readying it for the next cycle. After several cycles, the water builds up in the dome and compresses the air in the chamber. This compressed air will eventually have enough power to push a percentage (about 20 percent) of the flowing water several feet higher than the stream. Lateral distance is no problem to push the water, and the elevated height of the pushed water is only limited by the size of the ram and the flow (head) of the stream.
A water ram of the size shown, can pump 25 or 30 ft. higher than the source, and distances more than 1/2 mile away.
All this is done without any other power other than the flowing water.
All you hear is the clicking of the brass impetus plunger every second or so. If no dirt enters the ram, it will pump continuously year round.
watched a man rebuild one on line to boost his water to a garden he had really high up on a hill said it ran for years free of trouble ... cool post..
Hi Wizred, I was hunting small game on an abandoned farm a few years ago.
I found no game, but as I walked around a small shed, I heard a strange noise coming from a small stream on the property.
Upon further investigation as to where this noise was coming from.
There, in the middle of the stream, sitting on a pile of elevated stones was a water ram pumping away. the outlet was pumping water in the air with no where to go. To this day, I don't know how long that the ram pump was working.