Project design > Pumping systems > Pumping system procedure

As the solar yield is of course not constant, all pumping systems include a storage tank for receiving the pumped water when available, and distributing it to the final users. The storage tank bottom should usually be above the ground (or user's) level, in such a way that the static pressure is sufficient for distributing the water by gravity (water tower principle).

With the Pressurized systems this requirement is of course not useful.

The tank characteristics are requested from the user in the "Hydraulic Circuit Definition" dialog. The user should define:

-	The tank storage volume,

-	The tank diameter (if rectangular, an equivalent diameter for the same area, i.e:

Diam = SQRT (Length * Width * 4 / Pi)

-	The water height in the tank, when full (related to Vol and Diam),

-	The alimentation mode, which may be:

-	Free output feeding by the top (usual situation). In this case you should define the feeding altitude (with respect to the ground). The outlet of the pipe is supposed without any other head loss.

Bottom alimentation: the pumping pipe output is at the bottom of the tank, requiring a non-return valve. This operation mode avoids the level drop between top and tank level, and may slightly improves the system efficiency, as the actual level for the head calculation is the tank level at each time. The required parameter is the bottom altitude.

The tank volume should be sized according to the daily user's needs, and the required autonomy.

Pumping: Storage Tank

Pumping: Storage Tank