Great video. So many people do not know simple preparedness skills. We have only been on our homestead 3 years. We are in South Carolina. We put a hand pump on our well. I wish I had of thought to wire a light like you have. I just run drop cord with heat lamp. So rare we have to use it. On another note....love your rabbit videos. We will get our rabbits started soon.
Thanks for another great video. We have a similar setup with our cistern and “pump house”. Instead of a heat lamp, we have a small ceramic heater on a thermal switch that comes on at 34° and off at 40°. Haven’t had a frozen pump in 2 years with this setup. I like your optional external power for your well, I’m going to have to set mine up similar. Thanks again, and God bless!!!
Glad to hear your setup is working well! Luckily I haven't needed the external power yet but I am sure I will at some point. I have tested it to make sure it works though. God Bless!
Kevin, yesterday 11 Jan 18 in Wisconsin we were 40 degrees, and we dropped down to 4 with a -4 It sure is crazy. wow that is good information with the Ducks! We just love what y'all keeping us informed and what we need to do. Were hoping someday to be on a home stead. Thank you for all the wonderful information and just love watching y'all.
Thanks so much Wendy K! It's amazing what animals can alert us to if we just pay attention. We were in a similar situation yesterday with the temp. High was 55 at 1pm and by 5pm it was in the teens. Just crazy! Thank God for wood stoves. - Kevin
Hello from central mo, another simple and cheap for a peace of mind, can use a dryer vent tube n a small fan like a computer fan to pull heat off the wood to direct into the basement also can help keep the basement and when you know its going to get super cold you can turn on a switch and the fan pull the hot air off the stove.
Another good video. We are on a pump system in Texas and have been looking at a generator or solar battery backup. Recently I put a frame around the pressure tank and pipes to run a heat lamp off of a temperature controlled outlet. I ordered the temperature outlet before the deep freeze hit us in Texas so manual process is still the name of the game.
@@Ap32023 yikes. We have an apartment in our garage and there was 2” of standing water in the vehicle space and the living area. What a mess!! I wish I had a generator to keep heat and electricity going when we most need it. Tonight was first evening the power stayed on. We shut off water to the apartment and will fix the leak later in warmer weather. Hope your pump is not too hard to fix.
u can also wire a seperate breaker into your generator line,the when elect goes off you shut off main breakers and flip on well house breaker,and reverse the process when elect comes back on ..or you could have some solar panels installed to provide elect to well house
We have a similar set up for our pump and pressure tank. I have been using a standard light bulb to generate heat but I think I will upgrade to ceramic fixture and heat lamp. Thanks Kevin!
One suggestion would be to install an outdoor outlet at the panel box on the same circuit as the pump. When the power goes out, you just turn off the breaker to the pumphouse and plug in the cord to the outlet. You also gain a remote outlet when the power is on.
We dug a pit (about 6' by 6' by 6') for the pump and pressure tank and put the wellhouse over it. No chance of freezing. Outside temperature was regularly in the teens or single digits.
Thank you for the great tips, Kevin. Your channel never fail to give practical information that can be used now and in the future. I appreciate you and Sarah. Will you do some dog training segments with Rosie? Blessings.
I hadn't really thought about dog training videos. To be honest, I'm not that great at it....but you never know. So far all we have done is house trained her. At least that part went smoothly! Thanks for the kind words! God Bless. Kevin
Thank you for the information. Just curious, would it be better to leave the hot water tap running opposed to the cold water tap? Just thinking that the warm water would keep the pipes warmer, and then keep the cold water pipes that are next to them warmer as well. Just wondering.
A fairly expensive solution to connecting a generator exists. You could install a Generlink switch. It sits between the meter base and the meter, has a connector for a generator, and has approval from most power companies. I have had one for the house for over 10 years. I had to contact the power company (AEP), sign an agreement, and they sent one of their linemen to install the unit (which takes about 15 minutes). I have used the thing many times since installation. I assume Generlink still exists. They made two versions: a 30 amp version and a 50 amp version. You pick the version based on your generator. As I remember, the 30 amp version cost around $500. AEP charged $125 for the installation. If you had a regular panel, you could install a mechanical interlock (less than $100), and a special outlet that lets you safely connect a generator (no suicide cable involved). Costs for all materials would come to maybe $200.
So the electricity has been out for almost 21 hours now from the heavy ice deposit on the lines and trees here. So I left the cabinets open in my all electric home and cuddled with my two cats for warmth on the couch all night worried sick about my upstairs bathroom plumbing for when the power comes back on or when the temps come above freezing in another day or two since the well is only allowing the one of two downstairs bathrooms and not the kitchen faucet to drip I guess from leftover pressure though how long that will last I don’t know. I don’t know either what this is going to do to my well or pump and no idea when they are going to get my power back on. This little old lady doesn’t know what to do next.
I have a light bulb hooked to a timer. Cycles on & off every few hours. Also use an indoor outdoor thermometer in there so I know the temperature in well house at all times. If the temperature in well house drops I know the light bulb has blown.
Get a temp controlled switch for the light bulb and place it near the ground, not close to the bulb. Consider using a string of old style Christmas (C-7 or C-9) bulbs rather than depend upon a single bulb (that might burn out during the cold cold night and leave your well vulnerable. And INSULATE your well house or whatever the well head is enclosed in. Air tight is even better.
I know what the problem is! They're junk! So many money scams out there, & this is one of them! Oh boy howdy do I hate junk! We don't have a wood stove just total electric, with usually very high energy costs in the winter, & we still aren't warm enough😏 so this year, something that is working for us so far, is we got rid of those pneumonia hole vents, & plastic lined the crawlspaces, & foam sprayed in the boxes around the tops, it's November & I've yet to run the furnace, we have a pretty big 2 story older home/basement, I have 4 of those 1500 watt NTec heaters from menards, & we've even had to lower the Temps to 66 or 68 or shut them off because we get too warm, this is amazing for us, because otherwise our furnace would've been running since Oct :)
This video was valuable thank you for this my beautiful brother
Straight and to the point, great video. Thanks.
Great video. So many people do not know simple preparedness skills. We have only been on our homestead 3 years. We are in South Carolina. We put a hand pump on our well. I wish I had of thought to wire a light like you have. I just run drop cord with heat lamp. So rare we have to use it. On another note....love your rabbit videos. We will get our rabbits started soon.
Awesome! So glad to hear you will be starting rabbits!
Thanks for another great video. We have a similar setup with our cistern and “pump house”. Instead of a heat lamp, we have a small ceramic heater on a thermal switch that comes on at 34° and off at 40°. Haven’t had a frozen pump in 2 years with this setup. I like your optional external power for your well, I’m going to have to set mine up similar. Thanks again, and God bless!!!
Glad to hear your setup is working well! Luckily I haven't needed the external power yet but I am sure I will at some point. I have tested it to make sure it works though. God Bless!
What frozen degrees do you face in your area?
Kevin,
yesterday 11 Jan 18 in Wisconsin we were 40 degrees, and we dropped down to 4 with a -4 It sure is crazy.
wow that is good information with the Ducks! We just love what y'all keeping us informed and what we need to do.
Were hoping someday to be on a home stead. Thank you for all the wonderful information and just love watching y'all.
Thanks so much Wendy K! It's amazing what animals can alert us to if we just pay attention. We were in a similar situation yesterday with the temp. High was 55 at 1pm and by 5pm it was in the teens. Just crazy! Thank God for wood stoves. - Kevin
I remember those cold days and nights in WI and worrying about the pipes. Very professional video. Always learn things from watching you.
Hello from central mo, another simple and cheap for a peace of mind, can use a dryer vent tube n a small fan like a computer fan to pull heat off the wood to direct into the basement also can help keep the basement and when you know its going to get super cold you can turn on a switch and the fan pull the hot air off the stove.
Another good video. We are on a pump system in Texas and have been looking at a generator or solar battery backup. Recently I put a frame around the pressure tank and pipes to run a heat lamp off of a temperature controlled outlet. I ordered the temperature outlet before the deep freeze hit us in Texas so manual process is still the name of the game.
Im in texas also, this freeze hit us hard. My well froze up
@@Ap32023 yikes. We have an apartment in our garage and there was 2” of standing water in the vehicle space and the living area. What a mess!! I wish I had a generator to keep heat and electricity going when we most need it. Tonight was first evening the power stayed on. We shut off water to the apartment and will fix the leak later in warmer weather. Hope your pump is not too hard to fix.
Hello from Dublin Ireland thank you
u can also wire a seperate breaker into your generator line,the when elect goes off you shut off main breakers and flip on well house breaker,and reverse the process when elect comes back on ..or you could have some solar panels installed to provide elect to well house
We have a similar set up for our pump and pressure tank. I have been using a standard light bulb to generate heat but I think I will upgrade to ceramic fixture and heat lamp. Thanks Kevin!
Good day to you Kevin !! Thanks for sharing this information and advice on how you keep your pipes from freezing and to keep your well house heated !!
In Florida we have a well house also
If you have 2 bathrooms w sinks ,kitchen sink etc do you let all sinks trickle ? Or just pick 1 sink
THANKS FOR SHARING YOUR GREAT INFO AND TIPS ON YOUR POWER AND WATER SYSTEM'S 👍THANKS AND 😎 HAVE A GREAT AND BLESSED DAY
One suggestion would be to install an outdoor outlet at the panel box on the same circuit as the pump. When the power goes out, you just turn off the breaker to the pumphouse and plug in the cord to the outlet. You also gain a remote outlet when the power is on.
+RockTech Great idea! If I ever redo it I may go that route.
We dug a pit (about 6' by 6' by 6') for the pump and pressure tank and put the wellhouse over it. No chance of freezing. Outside temperature was regularly in the teens or single digits.
Awesome video with tons of great tips! Thank you!
Thanks guys! Hope you're staying warm!
Hi thanks for tips ..just wondering if power goes out while your sleeping and you don't realize that it's gone out has that ever happened?
I live up in Canada, and last week was
Down in -40f / -40c what would be best way to keep a well running up here?
Same for me !! Any tips ***
At what temperature does he turn the light on, in the pump house?
How do you guys deal with the ticks?
Thank you for the great tips, Kevin. Your channel never fail to give practical information that can be used now and in the future. I appreciate you and Sarah. Will you do some dog training segments with Rosie? Blessings.
I hadn't really thought about dog training videos. To be honest, I'm not that great at it....but you never know. So far all we have done is house trained her. At least that part went smoothly! Thanks for the kind words! God Bless. Kevin
Living Traditions Homestead Beagles are a good overall breed. I miss my Daisie Mae. Blessings.
Awesome ideas! Thanks!
Moving near Poplar Bluff, MO - Hoping to not have to do too much to keep it from freezing down there.
Thank you for the information. Just curious, would it be better to leave the hot water tap running opposed to the cold water tap? Just thinking that the warm water would keep the pipes warmer, and then keep the cold water pipes that are next to them warmer as well. Just wondering.
Thank you
A fairly expensive solution to connecting a generator exists. You could install a Generlink switch. It sits between the meter base and the meter, has a connector for a generator, and has approval from most power companies. I have had one for the house for over 10 years. I had to contact the power company (AEP), sign an agreement, and they sent one of their linemen to install the unit (which takes about 15 minutes). I have used the thing many times since installation. I assume Generlink still exists. They made two versions: a 30 amp version and a 50 amp version. You pick the version based on your generator. As I remember, the 30 amp version cost around $500. AEP charged $125 for the installation.
If you had a regular panel, you could install a mechanical interlock (less than $100), and a special outlet that lets you safely connect a generator (no suicide cable involved). Costs for all materials would come to maybe $200.
So the electricity has been out for almost 21 hours now from the heavy ice deposit on the lines and trees here. So I left the cabinets open in my all electric home and cuddled with my two cats for warmth on the couch all night worried sick about my upstairs bathroom plumbing for when the power comes back on or when the temps come above freezing in another day or two since the well is only allowing the one of two downstairs bathrooms and not the kitchen faucet to drip I guess from leftover pressure though how long that will last I don’t know. I don’t know either what this is going to do to my well or pump and no idea when they are going to get my power back on. This little old lady doesn’t know what to do next.
Thank you so much!!
This is great! Thank you!
What's the longest y'alls power stayed out??
Will running your water all night burn your pump out?
If the pump house loses power from the geny you can use a candle to keep it warm.
great info Kevin.
Thank You Kevin good tips.
I have a light bulb hooked to a timer. Cycles on & off every few hours. Also use an indoor outdoor thermometer in there so I know the temperature in well house at all times. If the temperature in well house drops I know the light bulb has blown.
Why not having the well inside the house in the basement?
That’s just not how it’s done here. Very few basements.
Get a temp controlled switch for the light bulb and place it near the ground, not close to the bulb. Consider using a string of old style Christmas (C-7 or C-9) bulbs rather than depend upon a single bulb (that might burn out during the cold cold night and leave your well vulnerable. And INSULATE your well house or whatever the well head is enclosed in. Air tight is even better.
first lesson.... time to get ducks!
I know what the problem is! They're junk!
So many money scams out there, & this is one of them! Oh boy howdy do I hate junk! We don't have a wood stove just total electric, with usually very high energy costs in the winter, & we still aren't warm enough😏 so this year, something that is working for us so far, is we got rid of those pneumonia hole vents, & plastic lined the crawlspaces, & foam sprayed in the boxes around the tops, it's November & I've yet to run the furnace, we have a pretty big 2 story older home/basement, I have 4 of those 1500 watt NTec heaters from menards, & we've even had to lower the Temps to 66 or 68 or shut them off because we get too warm, this is amazing for us, because otherwise our furnace would've been running since Oct :)