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[AncientEnemy]

now that i've gotten alot of my game issues out of the way and gone through about 20 forts (and filled them with magma, i love the 'kill everyone' lever), i'm trying to build a fort without any 'exploits'. basically im trying to stick to things that should work instead of just what works easily but doesn't make sense. no more building a shaft over my refuse pile so it's "outdoors" permanently and then reflooring, gotta use grates instead. etc.

so i'm redesigning my auto-refilling well with a series of floodgate-locks instead of one instant-close door, and this time my fort is many Z levels below ground so the pressure's gonna be quite high.

but before i sink alot of time into it i just want to be clear on the way pressure-plate interacts with the delay on a floodgate.

my design (not to scale, and with bars/stairs ommitted for clarity):

Code: [Select]

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
X1G~~~2G~~~3G~~
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
G= floodgate
1= pressure plate set to close it's adjacent gate when the water is 3 or above
2= plate set to 5+
3= plate set to 7

basically the water comes tearing in, gate 3 shuts almost immediately, then reopens as the water starts to spread further along, then reshuts, etc etc. basically the idea is to just mitigate the pressure so the well (over plate 1) doesn't flood for a few seconds every time the gate opens. I'm pretty sure it'll work (and it'll be fun to try) but it brings me to my main question (wow this is alot of (probably unnecessary) setup)

Will the switches always stay 'synced' up to their respective gate? i.e, if 0-6 = gate open to begin with, will it stay that way, even if it gets flicked on and off alot while the gate is going through it's delay? or is it possible for the gate to get 'flipped' in regards to it's trigger (0-6 now becomes closed and 7 = open), and get stuck open

the water is going to be sloshing around in there so each switch is likely to flicker on and off many times during the delay while it's gate is opening or closing. i'm not clear on how the switches work with regards to what they're hooked up to.

basically there are two ways the switch 'could' work:

a lightswitch hooked to a florescent lightbulb: no matter how fast you click the switch on and off, leaving it at off will always leave the bulb off

an on/off button on a tv remote: if you click it really fast, you might end up with the tv on, even if the last press would have been an 'Off'

++Bonus Question
What happens to the water on a floodgate/door tile when the gate closes on it? is it 'shoved' to either side, does it just vanish, does it remain on the tile but 'seep' out?

[Shakma]

Plates like this are unreliable because they flicker on and off like you said.  They won't reverse but if they flicker on and off fast enough you can end up with a floodgate stuck open or closed and not being tripped because there is too much/little water.

Bonus:  Floodgates destroy the water in the square they are in.

Best bet would be to channel at plate 1, and put the plate down in the channel.  Set it to close a farther back FG at level 5 or so.  Then it will not flicker because it's only one square and will always be full as the rest of the water will drain to it down one level and will open when needed.  Still best to have an extra lever to the FG for manual fixing if it sticks.

Edit:  I forgot about the pressure issue, which that doesn't address.  Best to have a reservoir that de-pressures the water if you can.  Use overflows or pumps.

[Aldaris]

Why not use a Dwarven Pressure Nullifyer^tm Screw Pump? Totally reliable unless you mess up the acces tunnels and power tranfers.

[AncientEnemy]

hmm, i hadnt thought of screw pumps, would this work:

Code: (Z0) [Select]

....X
XXX,X
<~PpX
XXXXX


Code: (Z-1) [Select]

XXXXX
XXXXX
XX~XX
XX~XX

X= Wall
~= Water
<= to well
P= Front pump tile over channel
p= Rear pump tile
.= access corridor (so a dorf can operate it)
,= corridor + gear assembly (designated to build the 'hanging' pump then removed after)

the 'front' of the pump blocks water flow and the rear can still get at the water even if it's under the front right

[Shakma]

You can also slow water by making it flow through a diagonal.  And you can take advantage of wells being well above the water and have an overflow or pressure plate/hatch as a backup to stop the pressure if things don't go right.