It would be really cool if we could have plumbing too, so we can link together pipe sections and make great big pipes.
Seconded.
I mentioned it in another thread (not in suggestions forum), You could build pipes and plumbing valves exactly the same as axels and gear assemblies; just using pipe sections instead of logs/mechanisms; functionally, they would just provide a path for pressurized water to flow through (since pressurized water already 'teleports' to open spaces); but a valve built at the output to a pump would accept all the flow from it. Linking a valve to a lever/pressure plate etc with a pair of mechanisims would allow it to be opened or closed; and maybe you could build a 'well' with a mechanism/bucket for dwarves to drink/wash from at an endpoint;
For a super-ideal model, pipes could leak (dropping 1/7 water at a time) if the pressure is more than the material can handle, with a wooden(if they exist?) pipe leaking at even 1 z pressure, strong metals taking 10-15 z's, and
spoiler pipes able to take 20 z's worth of load before leaking.
Advantage being not needing to dedicate 3 tile widths to moving water around, and dwarves being able to duck under/climb over the pipes like they do axels. Double points for building seperate clear/grey water systems.
Does water carry temperature or just take on the temperature of it's tile? for example, if you heat water near magma, and dump it on ice, will the ice melt faster, or the water take longer to freeze?