Print

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

[Narrrz]

as part of my fortress design i made a pressure filled, combined cistern/well system to supply water to my fortress and obsidian farm. It worked brilliantly... initially. However, once it had completely filled (to the height limit of the pressure), it seems as though the pressure has switched off.

I'm currently looking to wash my lower levels/upper cavern layer and this water system would be the easiest way to do that... if i could get it to start up again. I have jumpstarted it at one point, basically by sending a 'bubble' up the pipe, but i presently can't access the pipe to cause a manual pressure drop that way (the way i designed the cistern allows water to flow into all channels, but will leave the well system full even if i drain into my obsidian farm)

short of digging a new accessway into the system, is there any trick i could employ to try to jump start pressure?

[Sizik]

Could you draw a diagram or something?

[Narrrz]

I'll do my best.

╔═══╗███████████████╔═══╗
║▓▓▓╚╗╔═══════════╗╔╝▓▓▓║ V = downward ramp
║▓▓▓▒╚╣▒▒▒▒VVV▒▒▒▒╠╝▒▓▓▓║ X = Floodgate
║▓▓▓▒▒╚╗▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒╔╝▒▒▓▓▓║ ▒▓ = Water
╚╗▒▒▒▒▒╚╗▒▒▒▒▒▒▒╔╝▒▒▒▒▒╔╝
█╚╗▒▒▒▒▒╚╗▒▒▒▒▒╔╝▒▒▒▒▒╔╝   Basically, this is the lower level of the two level system. The entire system is pressurized to
█╔╩╗▒▒▒▒▒╚╗XXX╔╝▒▒▒▒▒╔╩╗   one level above, with the water going through a diagonal gate two levels above to re-pressurize
█║▒╚╗▒▒▒▒▒║VVV║▒▒▒▒▒╔╝▒║   it at a level that won't flood my fort.
█║▒▒╚╗▒▒▒▒╚═══╝▒▒▒▒╔╝▒▒║   The top ramps lead down into the water supply channel, and when pressure is being calculated
█║▒▒▒╚╗▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒╔╝▒▒▒║   water flows out of it as fast as the spring tiles above can supply it.
█║▒▒▒▒╚═╗▒▒▒▒▒▒▒╔═╝▒▒▒▒║   The central ramps/floodgates have a floor on the tile directly above and drain into my magma
█║▒▒▒▒XV║▒▒▓▓▓▒▒║VX▒▒▒▒║   farm below.
█║▒▒▒▒XV║▒▒▓▓▓▒▒║VX▒▒▒▒║   The idea of the system is that draining the cistern will leave all water in the X-shaped well
█║▒▒▒▒XV║▒▒▓▓▓▒▒║VX▒▒▒▒║   channel, but the cistern itself can fill up the full z level above. I suppose i could have left the
█║▒▒▒▒╔═╝▒▒▒▒▒▒▒╚═╗▒▒▒▒║   well areas separate, but could potentially have allowed my dwarves to dry out their preferred
█║▒▒▒╔╝▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒╚╗▒▒▒║   well while the others were barely untouched. As it stands, they each have an isolated upper
█║▒▒╔╝▒▒▒▒╔═══╗▒▒▒▒╚╗▒▒║   level but a linked lower channel, so they can only dry a well out halfway before the others start
█║▒╔╝▒▒▒▒▒║VVV║▒▒▒▒▒╚╗▒║   feeding into it.
█╚╦╝▒▒▒▒▒╔╝XXX╚╗▒▒▒▒▒╚╦╝   The system filled up fine when i first dug it, as expected, but each time it fills up all the way,
█╔╝▒▒▒▒▒╔╝▒▒▒▒▒╚╗▒▒▒▒▒╚╗   subsequent draining won't refill - i have to jump-start the process by sending an air bubble
╔╝▒▒▒▒▒╔╝▒▒▒▒▒▒▒╚╗▒▒▒▒▒╚╗ back up the feeder pipe to drop water level at the diagnonal depressurizer - at which point new
║▓▓▓▒▒╔╝▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒╚╗▒▒▓▓▓║ water flowing through will pressurize back into the cistern.
║▓▓▓▒╔╣▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒╠╗▒▓▓▓║ The light water is where the wells dip into the channel.
║▓▓▓╔╝╚═══════════╝╚╗▓▓▓║
╚═══╝███████████████╚═══╝

[miauw62]

That's a very impressive diagram.

[Sizik]

How is your pressure diagonal set up?

[Narrrz]

██V
▒▒█V
▒▒▒█
▒▒█V
██V

Something like that.
Ideally i guess i'd need to build in some kind of overflow so that once the whole cistern is full, there's still somewhere for the water to go, instead of filling up on both sides of the diagonal and then never detecting a pressure change elsewhere in the system.

That's a very impressive diagram.

Thanks!

[Bearskie]

That's a very impressive diagram.

Teach me your diagrammatic skills, O' wise one.