Ritchie Livestock Water System

[Havey]

Hello, I am looking to install a Ritchie Water System on the farm. I have a well with a submersible pump that runs 400 feet through the pasture and into the pressure tank in the house. The well line comes up through the floor in the basement. I also have water in the barn running from the same well. Somewhere along the way they must have put a T in the well line to run water into the barn because I do not see a second line running from the pressure tank in the house back outside. Between the house and the barn there was a frost free faucet coming out of the ground but that began to leak so the previous owner removed it. I believe that line was also the one that feeds the water in the barn. I am not sure if there are any check valves down along the way other than in the well itself so my question is, can I tap into the well line running through the pasture (100' from the house) and put a check valve on the well side of that T so that my pressure tank takes care of the Ritchie and the barn (assuming there is not a check valve between the house and where I would T off the well line). Or would it be better to tap into the line as it goes into the barn and put a check valve before the T? Sorry if this is confusing, the well system on the farm went to a old house they tore down, then was rerouted into the new house and into the barn somewhere along the way. I would be happy to answer any questions that you may have to better clarify what I have going on.

Thank you for your time and help!

 

[Valveman]

You can tee into the line anywhere you want as long as you do not add any check valves. The only check valve you want is the one on the pump. If there wasn't one on the pump it would not be working now, so don't add anymore check valves.

Oh, did I mention not to add anymore check valves. Lol!

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Havey]

Lol, thank you valveman. I will not add any check valves but leave the one that is at the pump itself. So the pressure tank is good to charge the entire system all the way back to the well pump and I do not have to worry about burning out my well pump from trying to keep my Ritchie full because the pressure tank will do that?

Will save me some expense cause digging the line around the barn and into the pasture will require more than just digging it over in the pasture a few feet. Now I just need to dig down the my well line to see where that runs.

Thanks again, I appreciate the help!

 

[Bannerman]

I do not have to worry about burning out my well pump from trying to keep my Ritchie full because the pressure tank will do that?

You may be confused about what will damage the pump. A pump is designed to run non-stop 24/7 as long as some water is actually moving across the motor to keep it cool. It is frequent Start-Stop cycles that are most damaging to the pump and many other water system components.

Water to fill the livestock water tank is obtained from the well by the pump. The pressure tank's purpose is only to reduce the number of pump Start-Stop cycles.

 

[Havey]

Thank you bannerman for the clarification. Sounds good, yes, the pressure tank fills up with water and brings it up to a certain pressure, as the demand for water around the house and barn is met, water is drained from the pressure tank until it reaches a low pressure point at which time the pump switches on to pressurize the tank until it reaches its set pressure therefore minimizing the amount of times the pump has to switch on. So with a check valve back in the pump itself, the pressure tank takes care of the rest of the system which alleviates the demand on the pump itself.

Thanks again, much appreciated!

 

[Valveman]

Like Bannerman said, water comes from the pump, not the tank. The tank just limits the number of on/off cycles. If all you have is those little low volume float valve systems, you would want as large a tank as you can get, and two would be better. You could offset the need for the really large tank by using a Cycle Stop Valve. With a CSV as long as more than 1 GPM is begin used the pump stays on and doesn't cycle. On a system like this I would use at least a 44 gallon size pressure tank, even with a CSV. Without a CSV I would use two 86 gallon size tanks. Even then the CSV would be better for long uses of water than the big tanks.

 

[Havey]

Ah, thank you valveman for the excellent video. I currently have a 44 gallon pressure tank. Would you recommend getting a larger one to run the farm or install a CSV? Makes sense to have that. So, your recommendation would be to break the water line between the pump and the pressure tank, install a T there and have that run to the Ritchie. Then inside the house install a CSV? Would that make a difference in the flow to the Ritchie since it will be installed further down the line from the Ritchie? Our water use is minimal the inside the house and the animals probably drink about 20 gallons a day. I appreciate the help, local people have told me conflicting things saying that I need to run the line to the Ritchie after the pressure tank, others say I can tie it directly into the well line before it reaches the pressure tank. I did a bunch of research but wanted to ask you guys on this forum for your advice. I appreciate the wisdom.

 

[Reach4]

Ah, thank you valveman for the excellent video. I currently have a 44 gallon pressure tank. Would you recommend getting a larger one to run the farm or install a CSV? Makes sense to have that. So, your recommendation would be to break the water line between the pump and the pressure tank, install a T there and have that run to the Ritchie. Then inside the house install a CSV?

The CSV would have to be before any tees.

 

[Havey]

The CSV would have to be before any tees.

Thank you Reach4!

 

[Valveman]

Yeah you can tee into the line anywhere, as long as there are no check valves. But the CSV would need to go before the first tee. We make the CSV125 to fit in the well in circumstances like that. Or you can put the CSV1A just before the tank, and tee everything off after the tank.

 

[Havey]

Thanks valveman, I think I will need to tee off somewhere in the pasture. Otherwise I would need to dig down along the foundation wall of the house, run a new line back through the hole coming into the house, through the yard and into the pasture to get a line after the pressure tank. Otherwise I can dig a 50 foot trench down 7 feet and just tap into the well line coming from the well and tie that directly into the Ritchie. I will definitely look into one of those CSVs too as I would like to prolong the life of the pump and hardware under the ground. Thanks for your help, much appreciated!