# Retro fitting hand pump on existing well



## Jezcruzen (Oct 21, 2008)

Has anyone here installed a hand pump as a back up on an existing well?


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## goatlady (Nov 7, 2011)

This is the only one I have run across that can be installed without pulling the existing pipe and pump
Hand Water Pump, Motorized, by SIMPLE PUMP

It is off-set and wil slide down the well along side of the pipe, etc. already installed there.


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## backlash (Nov 11, 2008)

Here is one.

I would like one but they are not cheap.

Bison Hand Water Pumps


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## Moose33 (Jan 1, 2011)

Oh I SOOOO want to do this. I saw the Simple Pump in southernprepper1's You Tube video. I've looked at a LOT of options on line and this one seems so, well, simple. If someone has a really easy reliable way to get this done I'd really appreicate knowing about it. I've got to find something low tech that wont' freeze up. Jezcruzen, thank you for asking the question.
Take care,
Moose






Oh, my, I tried just to put up a link to the video, hope this is ok, if not please delete.


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## Jezcruzen (Oct 21, 2008)

I can run my well pump using my generator. But, what do I do once the fuel is not available? I have a Berkey, but hauling water from a creek, or out of possibly frozen rain barrels during winter would not be fun, and very time consuming.

I have looked at the Bison deep well pump. Its expensive - almost $1700, now. I wouldn't know where to start in installing it in a existing well. I have spoken with one well driller locally who didn't even want to entertain the idea of installing a pump.

This is a top priority for me.


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## JustCliff (May 21, 2011)

Try looking at this site. They have all the parts you would need.
Hand pumps to furnish drinking water from wells and cisterns
Look towards the bottom of the page for a hand pump set up.(right above the Pacer hand operated barrel pump)

I bought a #442 well pump off of ebay. I got my galvanized pipe from Lowes.
I am working on a pump head made of off the shelf plumbing parts.
It is very important to know your STATIC WATER LEVEL. That is how far down in the well is the top of the water. Just because someone has a 300' well does not mean they need to drop a well pump 300' down. 
Take one of my wells:
30' static water level 
135' deep well
I bought 60' of 1 1/4 " galvanized pipe. That should put me 30' under the water. That is about 44 gallons of water. There is no way that I can pump water fast enough by hand from my well to run the pump dry. 
Depending on how old your well is, there should be a tag on the side of the casing giving you this information. After you get the static water level hight. go from there. 
And something to consider for anyone with a well is a well bucket. Even the simplest or best made stuff breaks. In hard times redundency in your water system will make life much easier.


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## BillT (Oct 31, 2011)

Although there are some good examples out there, like above, I have decided not to use my existing well. I've checked into it pretty good. The kits are expensive, the homemade ones I find are a little complicated, and disturbing what you already have there is another factor. I am going to try to dig my own well at another place on my land which should have a higher water table. If I hit water at 23 Ft or less, I'm going to use an old traditional Hand Pump. If I don't hit it till 24 Ft or deeper, I'm going to go with a home made hand pump with a foot valve on the bottom end of it. This will be basically for utility water. If I have it tested and find out it would be good for drinking, that would be a bonus. In the meantime though, I want to get a Water Bucket for emergencies for good clean drinking water. I will have to pull out my electric pump to use it, but it will be worth it in an emergency. If money was no object, I would probably have another well drilled closer to the house just for a hand pump. 

I did call my Water Pump Service man and he said he could put one in my existing well with no problem. But with the cost of a good system, plus the extra material not included and paying my service man to do it right without disturbing what I have, would probably cost about $3000 by the time we were done. 

The additional problem in my case is that I have a Pump House with about a 6 Ft Ceiling. That would make installing a hand pump in there an extra problem. 

You can read more about Wells, Hand Pumps, etc at the Water & Storage forum on this site.

Bill


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## JustCliff (May 21, 2011)

Bill
I tried to get that pump apart for some pics of it but it wasn't happening without my vice mounted. I think I may call the company that made it and ask for their guidence on disassembly, something I should have done when I realized it was it was not that easy. I think if I had the right set up it wouldn't be hard. It's just long and kind of awkward just using two pipe wrenches.


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## survivalist72 (Jan 4, 2012)

we have a hand pump make sure you get extra leathers. Leathers are the thing that make the pump work to keep it primed. Extra parts are a must. Lehmans is where my hand pump came from states it can pump down to 300 feet but our well is at 80 and it works with no problem. Its easy enough my aging mother can pump it.


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## elder (Oct 25, 2008)

I think Scott in the video posted above is using engineer775's version of the hydromissions pump. Engineer775's video is here:


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