Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[ArneHD]

Does water disappear over the edge of the map? I've found an underground river and want to divert water to other areas of the fort, but I wasn't sure if I could dispose of it properly.

[Shrike]

Dwarf Science has found that if you carve fortifications into the edge of the map, you can effectively get rid of it.

But, really, there's always a way to move water from a river for use, then return it to the river safely. Think in three dimensions, use a cave in to drop solid, natural rock or dirt into the flow to stop it up, or pump it out and build a wall tile by tile (floor over the downstream, so that the water can't easily flow back into the pumped-out space).

Or channel some bypasses and use it to power waterwheels and provide a fishing area.

Or create a fishing pond and use fortifications to prevent the bad things lurking in the water from getting into your fort.

The bottom Z level is the limit!

[ArneHD]

Dwarf Science has found that if you carve fortifications into the edge of the map, you can effectively get rid of it.

But, really, there's always a way to move water from a river for use, then return it to the river safely. Think in three dimensions, use a cave in to drop solid, natural rock or dirt into the flow to stop it up, or pump it out and build a wall tile by tile (floor over the downstream, so that the water can't easily flow back into the pumped-out space).

Or channel some bypasses and use it to power waterwheels and provide a fishing area.

Or create a fishing pond and use fortifications to prevent the bad things lurking in the water from getting into your fort.

The bottom Z level is the limit!

The problem is that the river itself is several z-levels (4 or 5 I think) above my main fortress area and I really don't want to overflow my fortress just yet. Erring on the side of caution, may not be particularly dwarfy, but I like this fort and want to keep it. So If I want a fishing pond lower down, should I use a pressure plate or airlock system to keep my fort dry, or should I pump it back up?

Edit: I just remembered, water pressure isn't transmitted diagonally, right? In this case I could simply bring the water down (through some fortifications) and let it flow in without having to worry about it overflowing my fortress.

[Shrike]

My solution would utilize a pressure plate at the bottom of the pond and a floodgate or door up near the water source. When the water gets below a certain level, the gate opens and lets water in, then shuts.

But you can simply dig to the edge of the map, smooth the wall, and carve a fortification in it, which will allow the water to drain. I'd dig out the area under the drain first, so you don't need to deal with 'damp stone' warnings if you choose to develop the area later.

So, you could also have the drain hooked up to a floodgate or door (latter is faster to operate) to quickly drain any excess rather than allowing it to overflow.

You should still use walls.

Additionally, floor hatches do not allow water to pass, but can be fished through and used as a water source.

Unless you're hell bent on a well, all you need to do is put a floor down, and a hatch, then let the water in, and you're done. No flooding.

[HammerHand]

Another option is this:  Put a screw pump on the level you want your water.  Screw pumps reset water pressure to their own level, so if the screw pump pulls water from below it (which it does) and pumps it out directly into your cistern, then your cistern will have no issues of water pressure.  This may take some work - the first time I used a screw pump I left its "out" end too open and magma spewed out of it.  Pump Operators would use it for a split second before canceling the job due to dangerous terrain.

Also, it should be noted that you'd want to install the screw pump over whatever channel it would be pumping from, THEN fill that channel with water.  Naturally.