40d:Screw pump

Screw pump

b-M-s
÷ ÷ X X
Job Requirement
Pump operator
Construction
Materials	Jobs
Enormous corkscrew Pipe Block	Architecture 1 of Carpentry Masonry
Power
Needs 10 power.

A screw pump can lift liquids (water or magma) from below onto the same Z-level as the pump. It is two tiles by one tile in size, and it can be either manually operated by a dwarf with the pump operator job or by using gear assemblies connected to water wheels and/or windmills. The direction you want the water to travel must be chosen at the time of construction.

Construction

Building a screw pump requires an enormous corkscrew, a block, and a pipe section. The light green X must be next to the liquid source and the dark green X is where the liquid exits the pump. Having specified the direction of travel, you must ensure that the source side of the pump is placed adjacent to and above (in the z-axis) a liquid. The screw pump will draw the liquid up from below, and distribute it out of the other side of the pump. Screw pumps are buildings that can be removed to recover the materials.

Notes

• The source of the pump must be directionally adjacent to "Open Space" that is directly above a filled pool of liquid. The adjacent space cannot be a floor, stairway or wall suspended over water. Screw pumps can pump water through a grate or floor bars.
• In order to build pumps in a "hanging" state, as in the stacked screw pump example, one of its tiles must be able to connect to a nearby machine; either already existing or designated to be built.
• A hatch on the input tile makes a useful on/off switch.
• The front pump tile is on the output side.
• The rear pump tile does not block creature movement. The front of the pump does block creature movement.
• The front pump tile blocks liquids flow. The rear of the pump does not block flow.
• Dwarves must be able to access and stand on the rear tile of the pump in order to be able to operate the pump manually and even to build it.
• Active mechanisms connected to the pump will automatically start the pump; to prevent this either restrict liquid flow using floodgates, or put in a gear assembly linked to a lever to disconnect motion.
• Pumps can also be used in conjunction with a water wheel or a windmill to become self-powered.
• Pumps cannot push liquids up additional Z-levels. That is, if you direct the output of a screw pump into a 1-square space surrounded by walls, the water will not "overflow" the walls.
• Consequently, a pump will refuse to move liquid if the level it is pumping to is completely filled.
• In order to safely pump magma, you do not need to build a pump out of magma-safe materials, unless the open tile is going to be submerged in magma.
  • Exception: Wooden parts wear out fairly quickly when used to pump magma, eventually causing the pump to break down into the non-wooden parts. This is due to the magma heating the adjacent tiles to a temperature at which wood takes heat damage.^[Verify]

Example layouts

Single Pump

A screw pump delivers from the level below to the tile in front.

Pumping up multiple levels

Diagram 2. Another example of a pump

The easiest way to do this is to stack the pumps directly on top of each other in alternating directions. I.e. the first one pumps North to South, the one directly above it pumps South to North, the next one above that pumps North to South, ad finitum. Even without walls surrounding the pumps, water still gets up with only minor leakage.

You can transmit power to each pump by simply channeling out the floor at the front (aka output side).

See Diagram 2. This example is from a Bay12 forum thread.

1. Side view of the basic pump unit. Water is moved from the lower floor to the upper; notice how the front of the pump does not need a floor.
2. Side view of stacked screw pumps. Power is transmitted vertically through the missing floor tiles under the fronts of the pumps - no need for gearboxes in this design. The screw pump front prevents the water from flowing diagonally downwards.
3. Top view of the basic pump unit.
4. Top view with walls in place to prevent the receiving area from spilling out. If this is all it needed, these units could be stacked on top of each other, but it's missing one thing - dwarf access. There's no stairs/ramps, and no good place to put them either that wouldn't interfere with the adjacent levels' water containment.
5. Solution for a freestanding tower - fire escape! Sure, you could consolidate the up and downstairs into a single up/down stair tile, but I like the zigzag and symmetrical arrangement this one presents. Just build these on top of each other, flipping horizontally each time, and bam. Minimal yet aesthetic multi-level water pumping.

Running a pump with a windmill

First, build a windmill anywhere aboveground (note that it won't do anything yet).

Then, build the pump. The end you selected to 'pump from' will suck water up from the level below, then pump it out of the other end. Build with this in mind. If you want to pump from a river, the 'pump from' end should be on the river.

Both the pipe and corkscrew can be built by a carpenter, (the corkscrew is listed as something like 'enormous wooden cor' if you are using the single-width screen, but hitting Tab to expand the screen should reveal the full text).

Connecting windmills to pumps:

Note that it's much easier if the centre of the windmill lines up with the pump.

1. Dig one level below the windmill and put a gear assembly directly beneath the axle (at centre of windmill). The windmill will start turning.
2. You're probably going to want to bring your power up to the surface. To do this, dig away from the first gear until the surface is clear above. Place another gear here.
3. Connect the gears together using a horizontal axle.
4. Get a miner to channel on top of the second gear.
5. Build a third gear in this channel. You should now have a turning gear on the surface.
6. If you thought ahead, you should only need one axle to connect the surface gear to the pump. A pump can be powered from any side.

I recommend that you connect a lever to one of your gears beforehand. The pump will start pumping as soon as it has power.

You can change stuff around as the situation dictates, but that should get you started.

above

below

The pictures aren't lined up - the far right gear in the second picture is the one below the surface gear.

Alternative uses

Pumps can also be built with no actual pumping in mind but as dwarven exercise machines. This is an excellent method to train haulers for better strength and agility or for future soldiers.

An example of how to desalinate water. Single-tilde water is salty, double-tilde water is pure.

Screw pumps also act to desalinate any water which is pumped through them. This is very useful for providing a source of potable water in otherwise entirely salt-water regions. However, if desalinated water comes into contact with saltwater, or passes through a saltwater aquifier level (even if it has been walled off), the water will be resalinated.

Screw pumps can be used to "reset" water pressure, preventing a surface water source from flooding a fortress through a well or fishing hole.

External links

• DFMA Ingame Videos featuring screw pumps: (Movies with Pump in the title)

Water FAQ
How do I move water up levels?
How do I stop water moving up levels?
Can dwarves swim to the surface for air?
How long does it take for a dwarf/goblin/creature to drown?
How deep is the water?
Is it possible to melt ice?
How do I build a well?
How do I channel a path for water?
Will water push items around?
Can I build a dam to stop the water?
Digging designation canceled: Damp stone located
What is the best way to proceed on a map with no rivers? Will my dwarves die of thirst?
How can I divert a river to allow safe(ish) indoor fishing?
How can I dig through an aquifer?
How do I purify my water?
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