Automatic Pumping System (Ram Pump) Using Natural Stream Flow for Domestic and Agricultural Purposes
Type: Technologies
Creation: 2017-05-02 04:02 Updated: 2019-03-04 14:13
Compilers: Be Gechkim
Reviewers: Nimul CHUN, Ursula Gaemperli, Alexandra Gavilano
Country/ region/ locations where the Technology has been applied and which are covered by this assessment
- Country: Cambodia
- Region/ State/ Province: Saob Krom Village, Saob commune, Preaek Prasab district, Kratie province
- Map: View Map
Description of the SLM Technology
Short description of the Technology
This equipment is able to automatically pump water without the use of fuel, requires little maintenance and can transfer water for domestic and agricultural uses including livestock raising and the cultivation of crops.
Detailed description of the Technology
A ram pump which uses a natural stream flow is an equipment that pumps water, which is used for long time ago in Europe and some parts of Asia. However, it has been lost, but then because of the requirement, which its processing depends only on water flow and it will work as long as the water flow is available and no need much care that cause this technology is reintroduced (ACF, 2009). As such, this pumping equipment does not need a machine or fossil fuel and requires less labor. According to the above advantages, Mr. Hour Pros, a farmer in Saob Krom village, Saob commune, Preaek Prasab district, Kratie province, is the first person who did the installation. Even though, the cost of installation is relatively high at USD 1,500 depending on the types of materials from which it is manufactured (he selected the high quality of the iron pipe connections), this pumping equipment is quite durable and can be used for up to 20-30 years, he said. Furthermore, it has no adverse impacts on the environment since there are no greenhouse gas emissions.
This ram pump was installed at Sre Ngeat dam, where there is a natural stream flowing throughout the whole year. As a part of the installation of the ram pump the farmer constructed a concrete dam across the stream with a water gate that can be opened. Additionally, a concrete base had to be built 1.5 meters lower than the water level in the dam in order to house the ram pump equipment. A 12-meter steel pipe which is 144 mm in diameter runs straight from the dam’s water gate directly to the pumping equipment. From the pumping equipment, there is a 30 mm hose (the size of this outlet must be smaller than that of the inlet) that transfers the pumped water to the location where it is needed. This pump is operated by the air pressure that is created by the water flowing from the dam to the pipe of pump and uses the air pressure to pushes water through the small pipe to bring water to the place where it is utilized, which is around 600 meters away at an elevation of around 8 meters compared to the pumping equipment. This ram pump has a pumping capacity of around 1.5 cubic meters per hour and can operate for 24-hours a day, with the ability to pump up to a height of 20 meters.
The water that is supplied by the ram pump is stored in two big water tanks (each one with a capacity of 4.7 m3), which can then be used for household consumption, the raising of about 100 chickens, and for the open valve irrigation of 5 ha of agricultural land. Another advantage of this pump system is that it does not affect the water quantity or pollute the downstream flow due to the fact that this system only took about 20-30 % of the water from the dam; 70-80% of the water was able to flow downstream, and so this allocation of the water supply did not cause any dispute between upstream and downstream users.
Photos of the Technology
- 📍 Saob Krom Village, Saob commune, Preaek Prasab district, Kratie province
- 🗓 2017-12-04
- 📷 Tim Sophea
- 📍 Saob Krom Village, Saob commune, Preaek Prasab district, Kratie province
- 🗓 2017-12-04
- 📷 Tim Sophea