Re: Selkirk pump house

Posted by snapped_bolt on
URL: http://c-sng-discussion-forum.254.s1.nabble.com/Selkirk-pump-house-tp11876p11907.html



   Interesting.

   A built-up pond defies good sense, especially on a hillside. It would keep the fill around the trestle saturated year-round. Always direct water off the property as soon as possible! Any water on the uphill side will ALWAYS saturate the grade on the downhill side. The only reason I can see for a pond there is for settling out aggregates before they enter the culvert. They probably had something like old screen from a spark arrestor could be placed at the culvert inlet to limit aggregates from filling the cistern every spring. I imagine there just weren't any other options for the settling pond further upstream. Or at least no cheap way to do it!

   A track gang could have cleared out a rudimentary cistern for the pick-up pipe. A culvert would direct a semi-regulated flow to the  cistern.  I have no idea of what they would have used for a pump. But who started/stopped a pump way up here? MOW? How could a tank here be kept full enough at this location  to use before gasoline or Diesel engines were available?

    Thoughts?

       Stan