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[Deadrefridgerator]

So, I'm a new player, attempting to build my first well.  Everything is in place except for the rather significant element of actual water to make the well useful.  I have a river to get a constant source of water from, and a long channel dug from there to an open space under my well.  The problem, I think, is that the channel is too long, because water from the river won't flow all the way over to my well. 

It's level with the bottom of the river, and I've been thinking I might make it one z-level deeper halfway through, at a point the water can make it to, if the slope would make it flow further.

The river is off in the corner of my embark, so the water has to go about 150-200 spaces away.  The channel is one space wide.  The water flowed very slowly to the point it is now, but I think it's completely stopped at this point, at about halfway to the well.

I'd appreciate if anyone who knows water physics could help me out on this, or at least tell why it isn't working.

[blue sam3]

A picture would be useful to see what's going on.

[doublestrafe]

I'd appreciate if anyone who knows water physics could help me out on this, or at least tell why it isn't working.

Water oozes rather than flows, and by the time it gets as far as you describe it's evaporating as fast as it's flowing. I recommend you abandon the open channel and dig a closed pipe that you can pump water into with a screw pump. Be sure to include a pressure regulator at the bottom level, or you'll discover why water is so much !!fun!!

[Deadrefridgerator]

I recommend you abandon the open channel and dig a closed pipe that you can pump water into with a screw pump. Be sure to include a pressure regulator at the bottom level, or you'll discover why water is so much !!fun!!

The water is at a level where it can't overflow into my fortress, so it seems like it would be simpler just to dig a tunnel straight from the river to the pool under the well, and let pressure fill it in, if I want to do it quick and dirty.  Am I missing something?

[doublestrafe]

I recommend you abandon the open channel and dig a closed pipe that you can pump water into with a screw pump. Be sure to include a pressure regulator at the bottom level, or you'll discover why water is so much !!fun!!

The water is at a level where it can't overflow into my fortress, so it seems like it would be simpler just to dig a tunnel straight from the river to the pool under the well, and let pressure fill it in, if I want to do it quick and dirty.  Am I missing something?

Water in a river isn't pressurized (which is why it isn't reaching your fortress). Digging a hole for it to flow into won't pressurize it. You'll need to use a pump. Keep in mind that the water coming out of the pump is pressurized, and is one level up from where the water source is, so you need to account for that. If your fortress is at least two levels up from the river, then go for it. Of course, if you regulate the pressure with a little diagonal flow just before your reservoir, you can pump pressurized water down as low as you want.

If you power the pump with a water wheel, don't forget to link a lever to a gear between them. Nothing like a faucet you can't turn off.

[callisto8413]

I had trouble with this also.  My first tries killed many Dwarfs, flooded many levels, and brought DOOM to the planet!  Well, maybe not that last part.

But I finally got it right without killing anybody.  True, it is about as simple as you can get...sorry about the huge images.
Ground Level:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

One Level Down:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Level with the Well:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

The Water Tank:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

It is simple, no very pretty, but it delivers fresh water to the level with my primary hospital which cuts down the walk to get fresh water.
I could have used fortifications in the tunnels, to allow water in and keep out water creatures, but I kind of forgot about that.
It was VERY slow to fill but also now never runs out of water, even when the rivers freeze. 

[doublestrafe]

Here's the setup in my current fort, Bodicetongues, but instead of water from a river, it's magma from a volcano. The principles are all the same, though.

Here's the pump house, the farthest building to the left, with walls to guide the magma. As you can see, I'm pumping it down a staircase, which makes building the thing a lot easier.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

On top of the pump house is a windmill to power the pump. Because I'm cocky, I didn't bother putting in any stop mechanism; I just had them design the screw pump, then suspended the build job until I was ready to pump. I do not really recommend this unless you enjoy fun.

Yes, my depot is outside. I like it when they get ambushed.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Much farther down (and a little jog to the south, bypassing a tunnel I already dug): on the left is the magma coming down the staircase.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

On the right is another pump, which was used to fill the big chamber to the right, which is right underneath my forges. It took the magma from one level down, which is...

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

...the reservoir. Of note are the four columns surrounding the up stair, which provide the diagonal flow that prevents the reservoir from overflowing. Should I have a need, I can tap into the reservoir from the level above at any point and it won't overflow. I'll probably never need to do that, but I like being prepared for possibilities.

The real point of this exercise is to show that the pump in the third picture is pushing the magma through the channel, rather than waiting for it to get there by itself. Much, much faster.

I should probably point this out: the tunnel to the lower pump (walled off in case of building destroyers) leads to the back of the pump, NOT THE FRONT. To pump, the dwarf stands on the back of the pump. Since there's no magma on her level on the left side, she doesn't get burned. If the impassible front of the pump isn't tightly sealed, liquid is gonna go everywhere...and you know what that means.

[Larix]

I recommend you abandon the open channel and dig a closed pipe that you can pump water into with a screw pump. Be sure to include a pressure regulator at the bottom level, or you'll discover why water is so much !!fun!!

The water is at a level where it can't overflow into my fortress, so it seems like it would be simpler just to dig a tunnel straight from the river to the pool under the well, and let pressure fill it in, if I want to do it quick and dirty.  Am I missing something?

Water in a river isn't pressurized (which is why it isn't reaching your fortress).

It is. The water source tiles of a river at the map edge teleport water (what is commonly dubbed "pressure") just like a pump. If a one-wide channel can't get water from the river to the fort, this might be due to accidental de-pressurising somewhere in the channel, a tree that has grown in it or high ambient temperature, which can evaporate water that's higher than 1/7. Or the river might be broken and fails to properly produce water.

In any case, a pump should make no difference when dealing with a river.

[Loci]

The problem, I think, is that the channel is too long, because water from the river won't flow all the way over to my well. 

One simple way to solve this problem is to break the long channel into several shorter segments with doors or floodgates. If the water reaches a depth of 2/7 it will stop evaporating (assuming your climate isn't overly hot). That will allow you to fill up a segment of the channel, then throw the switch (or just deconstruct the door) to allow it to expand into the next segment. (In a scorching climate, you could do the same thing, just in a tunnel underground instead of an open trench.)

The water is at a level where it can't overflow into my fortress, so it seems like it would be simpler just to dig a tunnel straight from the river to the pool under the well, and let pressure fill it in, if I want to do it quick and dirty.  Am I missing something?

Well, for optimum water quality the water needs to be at least 2 z-levels deep under the well. Also, the only way to keep out all hostile creatures is to add a floor grate that the water flows up through.

This safe well layout on the wiki is what I would recommend.

Water in a river isn't pressurized (which is why it isn't reaching your fortress). Digging a hole for it to flow into won't pressurize it.

Nope. Unlike magma, water is *always* pressurized. You can reduce the pressure so it won't overflow, but if you dig a hole for it to flow into you'll find that the pressure starts to build right back up.

I could have used fortifications in the tunnels, to allow water in and keep out water creatures, but I kind of forgot about that.

Nope. Fortifications with 7/7 water do *not* block swimming creatures. Also, creatures can be "swept through" fortifications by flow at any depth above 1/7.   

[callisto8413]

I could have used fortifications in the tunnels, to allow water in and keep out water creatures, but I kind of forgot about that.

Nope. Fortifications with 7/7 water do *not* block swimming creatures. Also, creatures can be "swept through" fortifications by flow at any depth above 1/7.   
[/quote]

Wait, maybe I am thinking magma.  ^_^

[fortydayweekend]

The water is at a level where it can't overflow into my fortress, so it seems like it would be simpler just to dig a tunnel straight from the river to the pool under the well, and let pressure fill it in, if I want to do it quick and dirty.  Am I missing something?

Quickest/dirtiest way would be to dig a sloping/downstairs path near the river end for the water to flow, so that it's flowing downhill as well as just straight across. You might have to make the cistern deeper. A couple of z levels should do.

[Frostea]

My personal solution is fairly simple and you'd never need to refill the cistern for many decades.

1) Find a good location for the well. For me, this means right beside the hospital.
2) Dig a cistern spanning 2 z-levels. Ensure you channel right down from your well so the well can reach both z-levels. the size of the cistern can vary, I use something between 10x10 to 15x15.
3) dig up/down stairs directly from the cistern to the river level and dig it such that it is only one tile away from the river.
4) Build a draw bridge right next to the river and link it to a lever.
5) Evacuate everything and everyone from the cistern.  Then have a miner channel down from the river top to release the flood.

This method, while dangerous for the potential of flooding your fort through the well, fills up the cistern quickly and no complicated zigzag walls need to be dug. Just make sure you raise the draw bridge when it is full.