"Lee Nowell" wrote in message
...
On 10 Aug, 17:11, Jules Richardson
wrote:
On Tue, 10 Aug 2010 15:53:08 +0100, Phil L wrote:
Why not just do it like I've drawn in this diagram:
http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=25ja9gn&s=4

Each butt fills to the top, then overflows into the next, simples.

That means you need a tap on each butt, and you need to keep drawing
water from each butt in turn to avoid water sitting around too long in
any given one, surely? Having them connected at the base would avoid both
those issues (but the OP just needs to have all three butts on the same
level)

cheers

Jules

Thanks all for your suggestions... As many have said, I guess the
best option is to join them all at the bottom. I was trying to get out
of the scenario of having to have all 3 go to the minimum level for
the submersible pump before being able to use it. I guess there isn't
an easy answer...... Thinking about it further, I think I will fit
valves on the connections so at least I can restrict to 1 or 2 butts
in dry weather...

In my collection I have two very tall 1500l butts joined together at the
bottom, with the pump in one of them, they then overflow to two 1000l IBC
tanks, all on the same level, but the IBC's are about 1/2 the height. The
IBC's overflow into the drain.

I have joined the IBC's to the btootm of the tall ones, but put a one way
swinging check valve so water can only flow out of them, back into the tall
ones, so the tall ones will always fill first, then overflow into the
shorter ones.
Once the water level is down to the height of the water in the IBC's the
water will flow back from them and will be pumped out.

You could always arrange the pump so it trickles some water over the top of
the pump when it is running too - I was going to try and fit some kind of
bucket over the pump, full of water, so it always remains full of water, but
I haven' got a round tuit yet.

I expect if I have a bucket up-side-down, with a small pipe connected to the
bottom, with a one way valve on it so any air in the bucket will exit this
valve, but won't then get drawn back in when the water level rises, will
work...
The rim of the bucket would need to be high enough to allow the cable and
output pipe to exit, so about 30mm off the bottom of the tank would probably
be enough, then have a float switch that shuts the pump off at 35mm depth
should keep it all submersed.

Or just get an external pump!

Toby...