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[MoridinUK]

Just a quick question,

Does the level of exp in Pump Operating do anything?  Do more experienced operators move more water or do they tire less quickly or both?  I have an embark site with an aquifer and I'm trying to decide whether to invest in pump operator skills...

[Fluoman]

They tire less quickly.

[kingubu]

I've cracked aquifers many times without ever putting points in pump op.

[MoridinUK]

Oh cool! Any advice this is my first time and I need to go fast... I'm in an evil biome... and the aquifer is in sand, so I can't smooth walls I have to wall it!

[vanatteveldt]

I've never seen an aquifer in the first layer of soil, so you can just dig in, make quarters in the available soil layer(s) (e.g. storeroom, farm, still, beds, dining hall), and then take your time to breach the aquifer.

Don't forget to take some stone. I like taking bituminous coal, it's only 3 points like other stone, and you can make blocks->walls from that just fine [don't forget to unforbid it in the z -> stone menu], and if you don't need it all it produces a nice fuel supply to kick start the metal industry.

Also make sure to get at least 2 wood down before you lock the door, as you need to construct a pipe section and corkscrew. You might want to bring some extra wood to make some beds and tables+chairs to avoid too many unhappy thoughts while you are breaching the aquifer.

Make sure you have an experienced mason, and learn to love unsuspending suspended construction jobs...

[kingubu]

I just use the two slit method from the wiki.
http://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/DF2012:Double-slit_method

Took me a few tries and some drowned/trapped dwarfs to get the hang of it.

Recently I changed to only use ramps in my forts and I'm trying to figure out how to pierce the aquifer with ramps.  I'm starting to think it may not be possible.

[vanatteveldt]

After you breach the aquifier with the double slit method you have a 4x2 walled off hole which you can change to ramps, no?

Also, I guess that the double slit method works just as well with 3-wide slits, giving you a 4x3 area which is enough to create a wagon-sized ramp going down 4 levels of aquifer..

[MoridinUK]

I don't think you can use the double slit in non stone layers?  I can't smooth sand! hmm...

[Xinael]

Read the linked wiki page - that has a walk-through example of double slit using constructed walls.

[Triaxx2]

Yeah, it's trickier than smoothing, but you can do it. I ended up using two double slits and more than just one pump, but it can be done.

[slothen]

pump operator is for attribute training and for when you want to do a lot of pumping, indefinitely.  The tasks for which pump operator is useful, players will tend to elect to just use powered mechanisms instead.  Discreet things like filling a small cistern or putting a smallish hole in an aquifer don't need pump operator so much.