The purpose of this blog is to document my experiences in building a low cost solar powered water pump to supply a reliable water supply for the livestock on our small lifestyle property.
Hopefully by sharing these experiences others can learn and adapt the best parts for their property.
We have 11.5 hectares of hill country where we farm a flock of Coopworth Ewes and buy in steers for grass fattening. The Coopworth ewes a great producers, this year we lambed 165% but have lambed high as 180%. We purchase steers for fattening - arrival weight is normally over 420 kg liveweight and these are taken through to 600 kg + for sale for slaughter for the Supermarket trade. A top water supply is necessary to ensure good animal health and growth rates.

A load of lambs of to sale. Most likely purchased for slaughter.

Steers, about 500K kg live weight being fattened.

Our existing water supply is a Honda engine driving a centrifugal pump, that pumps from a stream through a 32mm pipeline and pumps to a height of 34 metres and 400 metre distance, where we have a 15000 litre tank. Stock water troughs are gravity fed from the tank.
This project is to replace the Honda driven pump with a Solar power water pump to do the same job.