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[Warlord255]

So I embarked at a seaside glacier, which thus far has been nothing short of fantastic for my excavation problems (self-destroying stone! GLEE!), but less so for my water problems.

Having learned on the Wiki that wells apparently have a built-in filtration device, I installed one near the seaside as a temporary measure while I constructed my more appropriately dwarfy cistern. However, after constructing the cistern (with no natural tiles), it seems that the wells don't work... my dwarves have been known to crowd around them to the point of starvation and dehydration!

I think the problem might be that the well level is technically in a "freezing" zone, since there are ice walls, while the outdoor one was immune to freezing due to the ocean biome. However, this doesn't hold up since my wounded speardwarf was able to be given water with a bucket carried through a freezing zone.

Do my dwarves just suck at drinking speed/prioritizing, or is there something wrong with my well?

[Syff]

All water on seaside forts is salt water, and undrinkable.  From what I've heard, pumps can desalinate them, but I've never tested this personally, and I'm not really sure how that works.

[Rakonas]

What I recommend is to dig into the aquifer and place a well over it, I'm pretty sure that will work. I think that having access to the well at all angles might help if the problem is your dwarves..

[Warlord255]

All water on seaside forts is salt water, and undrinkable.  From what I've heard, pumps can desalinate them, but I've never tested this personally, and I'm not really sure how that works.

I did desalinate the cistern - the entire interior and walls are constructed blocks, and I used pumps to fill it.

I don't have an aquifer, as far as I know.

[Randomonioum]

All water on seaside forts is salt water, and undrinkable.  From what I've heard, pumps can desalinate them, but I've never tested this personally, and I'm not really sure how that works.

I did desalinate the cistern - the entire interior and walls are constructed blocks, and I used pumps to fill it.

I don't have an aquifer, as far as I know.

As far as I know, most ocean biomes have them.

[Albedo]

All water on seaside forts is salt water, and undrinkable.

Okay, first, this is not technically true.  All water in salt water biomes is undrinkable.  It is possible to have a map with both a fresh water biome and the seaside.  Rare, but possible. (Easier with larger map dimensions.)

I did desalinate the cistern - the entire interior and walls are constructed blocks, and I used pumps to fill it.

That may not be enough - there are some quirks that are only now being unraveled.  The way to confirm is to designate a water zone around it - then use < i > again and see how many water tiles it thinks you have.  If it's drinkable the number will be > 0.

I don't have an aquifer, as far as I know.

Have you dug any exploratory shafts? If not, time to do so - single shaft of up/down stairs, down to the bottom-most level (which can only be an up-stair).  If/when you hit water, there's your aquifer.  If not - consider yourself lucky  Again, not all seasides have them, and not in all area blocks in a seaside map, but by far most do.

[Reese]

What elevation are you?

I have a fort in a salt water biome where I set up a cistern and desalination pump at z-99(one level above my aquifer which was at z-98), and the water would not be desalinated.  When I made a new cistern that pumped up two z levels to z-100, the water was drinkable. 

I did that because I originally forgot to make constructed walls and floors for the cistern and thought the site had somehow become permanently contaminated, and I wanted to raise the floor of the cistern on top of constructed wall to completely isolate it from natural rock in case that was the problem, but later found mention elsewhere on the forum that the z level makes a difference because ocean/sea level starts at z-100 and mountains at z-400 something

[Jim Groovester]

Are the wells listed as active when you 'q' over them?

I'd try rebuilding them if they don't work for some reason, and see if that solves your problem.

[orbcontrolled]

The way to confirm is to designate a water zone around it - then use < i > again and see how many water tiles it thinks you have.  If it's drinkable the number will be > 0.

Take note: Even with fresh drinkable water, the number will only be greater than 0 if your zone includes (not just borders) at least one tile of floor adjacent to the water, that dwarves could stand on and drink from. If you just make a test zone in the middle of an expanse of water, it will always come up 0.