THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



73 



wore fastened upon the pipe with bolts to support the 

 .sacks of sand or other weights. (Sec Figs. 6 and 

 /si/. \ 



From ten to sixteen sacks were filled with sand and 

 used as weights for assisting in settling the pipe, and 

 to insure that it keep pace with the sand-bucket during 

 the sinking of the well. In the regular busi- 

 ness of sinking wells of this character, heavy 

 iron weights with rings attached would doubt- 

 less be preferable to sacks of sand, but for 

 those contemplating the sinking of their own 

 wells, the latter will prove entirely satisfactory. 



Two heavy chain-pipe wrenches were used 

 for connecting and disconnecting pipes, and for 

 turning the well pipe while sinking. 



Hammers, small wrenches, nails, rope, 

 plank for platform, timbers for holding pipe 

 perpendicular in starting, etc., completed the 

 equipment. 



Below is given a list of the materials used : 



Lumber for the curb; one length 21% 

 feet, standard black pipe six inches in diam- 

 eter; one No. 16 gauge galvanized iron strainer, 

 14 feet long, perforation extending for 12 feet. 



The curb was made 8 feet wide and 9 feet 

 long from two-inch Texas pine. This size was 

 necessary in order to facilitate the exchanging 

 of pumps tested. In a private plant, however, 

 the curb should be of a size to suit the pump to 

 be installed. At the top of the curb a heavy 

 timber, six by eight inches, extending 3 to 4 

 feet beyond each end of the curb, was securely 

 bolted to each side in order to prevent the curb 

 from settling. (Fig. 11 illustrates a good type 

 of curbing.) 



SINKING THE WELL. 



With the station well, the open portion 

 was dug, the pipe sunk, and the strainer placed, 

 before the curb was put in place. This was 

 found to be a mistake by reason of the fact 

 that, owing to the splashing of water, etc., the 

 soil caved in and much difficulty was encoun- 

 tered in placing the curb, necessitating an 

 amount of extra digging before it could be sat- 

 Fig. 5. Drill used isfactorily accomplished. 

 in sinking the After the open portion of the well 



btation well, -i ,-, i .1 T 



was dug, the location of the pipe was de- 

 tided upon, and the derrick was then raised and placed 

 in a slanting position in such a manner that the rope 

 swung entirely clear, and fell upon the point selected 

 for the pipe. The guy ropes were fastened to "dead 

 men," consisting of eight-inch logs, laid about three 

 feet in the ground, and the derrick securely anchored 

 at its base to two posts set deep in the soil. A hole was 

 dug as deep as possible where the pipe was to enter, and 

 the latter was then put in position. -Before placing 

 the pipe, however, slanting 

 teeth about an inch deep 

 were cut in its lower end for 

 the purpose of assisting in 

 moving aside any gravel 

 that might impede the prog- 

 ress of the pipe, or in order . 



FIR. fi. Clamps used on well pipe 

 TO Cllt through any hard- during sinking to support weights; 



pan that might be encoun- 

 tered. (See Fig. 7.) Care was taken to have the pipe 

 perpendicular at the start, and timbers were placed on 

 all four sides both at the top and bottom of the open 



T I 



portion of the well so as to keep it perfectly plumb until 

 it had penetrated the earth to a distance of several feet. 

 This is an important feature in well construction of 

 this kind. Great care should be taken to keep the pipe 

 perpendicular at all stages of the sinking of the well, 

 as otherwise it may be out of plumb when the well is 

 completed, causing consequent difficulty in properly 

 connecting the pump. 



Weights were placed and the sand-bucket was then 

 brought into requisition. The pipe settled about 4 feet 

 in five minutes. More weights were added as needed, 



and the pipe turned 

 frequently with the 

 large pipe wrench- 

 es. Frequent turn- 

 ing of the pipe was 

 found to expedite 

 its sinking. The 

 pipe would often 



Fig. 6%. Side view of clamps shown in Seem to be stuck, 



but upon giving it 



a few turns it would settle down several inches, and 

 occasionally drop almost a foot at a time. It is prob- 

 able that more weights and more frequent turning would 

 have made the pipe precede the sand-bucket all the 

 time. This would have been an advantage, inasmuch 

 as during the sinking of the pipe the sand-bucket two 

 or three times preceded it, so that the flange around the 

 outside at its lower end became fastened under the end 

 of the pipe, necessitating jacking up the latter before it 

 could be extricated. With a common sand-bucket this 

 difficulty would not have been encountered. 



It requires three strong men to draw a well-filled 

 sand-bucket out of the well, continuing the work from 

 day to day. The work, however, may be done by a 

 horse during the entire operation. In sinking the 

 station well, a horse was used part of the time and was 

 found entirely satisfactory. In order to fill the sand- 

 bucket by horse power, the rope instead of being tied 

 to the single-tree was merely run through the ring of 

 the single-tree, while a man grasped the double rope 

 a few feet from the horse as illustrated in Fig. 8. After 

 the sand-bucket was raised a sufficient distance, the man 

 let go of the rope, thus allowing it to run back with the 

 weight of the falling sand-bucket. As soon as the 

 bucket struck the bottom of the well, the rope was again 

 grasped quickly as before, the operation being thus re- 

 peated again and again until the sand-bucket was filled, 

 the horse moving forward all the time. The horse was 

 then brought back to the well and the sand-bucket drawn 

 out and emptied. By using a horse, one man and the 

 superintendent who may empty the sand-bucket, can 

 sink a well, if strict economy is required, but it usually 

 saves time to provide two men in order to handle the 

 weights and turn the pipe with ease. Without a horse 

 there should be three good men in addition 

 to the superintendent. 



Gravel was struck at a depth of thirty- 

 two feet, and the teeth in the bottom of the 

 pipe were found to be of great assistance in 

 pushing aside the gravel during the turn- p . g7 Showingthe 

 ing of the pipe. The drill was used oc- teeth cut in lower 

 casionally in order to- loosen the bed of taSSJlt?* 1 

 gravel, and to break any stones that were 

 too large to enter the sand-bucket. The pipe was sunk 

 a few feet below the gravel, so that the strainer could 

 be located at the proper place without interference from 

 the sand rising through the bottom of the pipe. The 



