# Pumping water from NOT so nearby creek



## C_Heath (Jun 16, 2021)

Been thinking of this for a while. I've got a good sized creek that has some areas that are 3 feet deep. Only problem may be is that its about 150 yards away and slightly down hill but not very much at all. The pump will have to pump up hill through a pretty long hose. My pump will be a 5 HP Honda that will pump 100 GPM. hose will be 2 inch.

Will this even be close to working? I live in a small farm town in NC and we can pump from creeks and ponds here if needed. All farmers do. Some Ive seen even use Fire Hydrants but I dont want to go that route as Im not sure if that would be too legal lol.


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## C_Heath (Jun 16, 2021)

I take it there is not much happening on this forum lol.


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## bernstem (Jan 16, 2018)

Probably not so much that nothing is happening as pumping from an open body of water for irrigation is relatively uncommon so not a lot of people with experience. I have no experience so can only direct you to the online encyclopedia of everything irrigation: https://www.irrigationtutorials.com/gpm-psi-pumps-and-or-wells/ The site is excellent, but easily findable with google, so my contribution here is not really very much.


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## dj80d (Nov 15, 2020)

C_Heath said:


> Been thinking of this for a while. I've got a good sized creek that has some areas that are 3 feet deep. Only problem may be is that its about 150 yards away and slightly down hill but not very much at all. The pump will have to pump up hill through a pretty long hose. My pump will be a 5 HP Honda that will pump 100 GPM. hose will be 2 inch.
> 
> Will this even be close to working? I live in a small farm town in NC and we can pump from creeks and ponds here if needed. All farmers do. Some Ive seen even use Fire Hydrants but I dont want to go that route as Im not sure if that would be too legal lol.


what is the height from suction to discharge? i will get you a answer from a family pump guy. i know there is a limit to how much of a foot change any pump can do.

this may also help. ya just need to know math and some stuff they say in here

https://www.pumpfundamentals.com/what%20is%20head.htm


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## Overtaxed (May 9, 2021)

How much lift are you talking about? As long as you have the pump by the creek, you can lift water as high as you want, you just need the right pump to do it. You can't pull it uphill very far, but you can push it without limit.

Short version, sure, as long as you have a pump rated for the lift you need, should work great!

As an example, this one can lift ~100 feet:

https://www.waterpumpsdirect.com/Honda-WB20-Water-Pump/p6302.html


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## MasterMech (Sep 24, 2017)

Without knowing the specific pump involved and seeing the pump curve, it's hard to say.

I used to run a golf course system that pulled from a creek with a floating pickup. You need a foot valve on the pickup too or else priming it could be more fun than you bargained for. If your running typical yard sprinklers, you'll also want to minimize the amount of debris the system can suck in.


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