Is Our DAM SAFE??? What Happened After a BIG RAIN 🌧!!!

[@DaDoc1961]

Establish the area to the left of the dam as an emergency spillway. It should be surfaced to avoid erosion and built so it is just below the height of the dam wall. It would take the pressure off the top of the dam when the water flow is too fast.

[@markhorstmeier8734]

At 4' you are going to have about 1.72 psi. Call it 2 psi at the deepest point. Concrete compressive strength is 28 -55 MPa so the concrete has plenty of strength (10' walls should have 12" minimum thickness (ACI 350R)), you just need to have placed enough rebar and or expansion joints to combat the normal expansion. Welded wire is standard, but if the rebar is spaced less than 12" apart I think you meet those recommendations (Not sure if under 10' requires both faces to be reinforced. For aesthetic reasons, you could buttress the weir with an earthen berm and that would also increase lateral strength to an extent. I think that you should consider building up a berm around the sides of your pond (with the suggested spillway). Depending on the clay content, you probably don't want to saturate your top soil at the edges of the concrete and a berm in conjunction with the spillway would keep the water from pooling

[@Gartendalf]

This! Do it! We have it on our Lakes dam which is 69 meters high.

[@ItsMeGiga]

Basically like what Oroville dam has. It worked flawlessly when the dam was about to overflow

[@dieter2889]

@@ItsMeGiga Oroville dam's emergency spill way came very close to failing and collapsing, over 200,000 people were evacuated because of the high risk.

[@horscategorie]

This isn't a bad idea either. As crazy as it sounds, perhaps consult an engineer? KZbin viewers are all experts ;) but I think I would think about getting an engineer to offer suggestions...

[@steventomes2258]

Okay I know I'm late to this party, however, my suggestion would be to look into a Vortex turbine for power generation. Of course, you'd need to install a grate or fine mesh to stop any potential debris from jamming the turbine. But it should generate a good amount of power for you. As for the muddy water problem look at how the life straw filtration system works, if you can replicate that I do believe you and your family should be golden. Oh yes, I almost forgot, floating valves. put one of those into your overflow so when the water gets too high in your dam your emergency overflow will open and you should not have any overflow problems.

[@erickhagenkotter8302]

You r really smart

[@vsvnrg3263]

when pelton wheels were invented, it revolutionised the way water was utilised in the uk. the waterwheel you have is clever and attractive but has been relatively impractical for a century.

[@royreynolds108]

@@vsvnrg3263 I disagree that an overshot wheel is impractical for over a century. There still are a number of saw mills and grist mills that are powered with overshot wheels. What I think you mean is that they are rather impractical for power generation as most overshot wheels use the weight of water falling and carrying the wheel buckets down by gravity until the water spills from the buckets. This arrangement is usually much slower RPM on the wheel but has a lot of torque. Power generation needs speed and pressure which suggests a Pelton wheel impulse turbine of the water against the buckets. Each type of water wheel has its advantages and disadvantages for a particular use and location. The way to double or triple the power out of that wheel would be to widen the wheel by double or triple its width now.

[@vsvnrg3263]

@@royreynolds108 , spot on. no disagreement from me.

[@Septicemic-Fugue]

Maybe a gear ratio like a small to large wheel would help increase rpm with hi torque?

[@backtothepast1850]

I wish you the best. You're learning how labor intensive this work can be. I've done dam repairs for over 20 years. By biggest concern would be with washing out below your footings. A couple of years ago, I helped repair a concrete dam that washed out below it's footings in a flood, and those footings were 6 feet below the stream bottom. Any time you divert water, you create turbulence. Often that creates failure rather rapidly, sometimes it takes time. A flood event can hasten that. An emergency spillway much larger than you might imagine, will help, and needs to be well lined. Lining can be concrete, stone or even well rooted vegetation. Your spring is truly an amazing blessing!

[@gayyvin]

it hurts so much to see people living out your dream

[@MrMustangMan]

there are haters in every category........

[@believeroftheword4627]

Pain can be excellent motivation. Don't stop chasing the dream.

[@sharonolsen6579]

that's one way to look at it.. OR in my case .. I am very happy for the successes that others experience..

[@superspooky4580]

the dream to own 40 acers of land with a creek. unfortantly Mr.gates is buying up all the farm land and ranch land so this dream is becoming harder and MUCH more expensive to realize. fk the giga corps.

[@jamiehoward3151]

I like the 1 strike rule for hateful comments. People nowadays can be absolutely terrible. I know of one youtuber who not long ago killed herself because of all of the hatefullness in her comments. So, please ignore all trolls and continue with the good vibes. You and your family are awesome. Thank you for sharing your life with us! GOD bless you 🙏

[@LoftisPartyofSix]

Thank you 😊

[@jamiehoward3151]

@@LoftisPartyofSix you are very welcome 😊

[@easytarget1152]

For the dam, add another emergency runoff because of how much water was pouring out earlier in the video. As that water flows more over that area, the more it's gonna erode.

[@A.Martin]

probably just make the spillway slightly wider.

[@Askial_Osial]

@@A.Martin and deeper

[@krystalgardner1109]

I wouldn't want to build/buy another house. I would expand that one if I could and stay there. It's so pretty.

[@jenkins2162]

I cannot believe that people are concerned that people down stream would be greatly affected. The pond on a good day looks to be the size of three swimming pools. The creek might rise 6 inches for a couple hundred yards due to a blowout.

[@wranglerdave6452]

Not enough water to cause a issue that stream looks like it could handel if it breaches.. But from the construction ive seen i doubt the dam would breach. How ever side cutting is a possibility. Where the water came around the side causing bank erosion. I recommend he armor that area with cement or concrete. Down to the channel. He can use rip rap (broken stone) i would 100% recommend this if he chooses to raise the dam over topping the dam is not Ideal. It will not harm it Persia..

[@DroningaboutNW]

It would rise more than 6 inches but unless someone had their house built right on the creek it wont be more than a few feet. Perhaps a lawn chair or two would disappear and that is IF people lived downstream lol

[@wranglerdave6452]

@@DroningaboutNW doubt it . its not holding back enough water to make much difference after about roughly a mile it wouldn't do anything. Just locally it would probably raise the creek level

[@cbriangilbert1978]

LMAO...all I can say about that

[@topjob1000]

Some people are stupid.

[@mattvollmar7713]

I think Jerry and you did a"Dam" good job!

[@LoftisPartyofSix]

😉

[@doncinton9790]

I think there is other way , put tubin in the river and lover river woter the same way

[@davidcarver5201]

I agree great dam job…

[@ryanh4882]

You should build a picnic area in between those creeks! Seems like just enough space to sit and enjoy a nice summer day!!

[@nohelp8534]

Was also thinking a bridge on each side. Love it.

[@ItsMeGiga]

Maybe a pergola and a charcoal fire pit to cook up some burgers, an awesome little picnic spot!

[@Plectocomia]

The dam is fine, it held the heaviest flow to date. I would look at putting rubble in the area at 9:57 to ensure that washout doesn't undermine the dam. I would also add an auxiliary spillway on the side at 2:13. The dam is well constructed, and should give you many years of service.

[@MaN-pw1bn]

I don't know why folks would make hateful comments, it's your dream, you have a lot of courage to wear your hard work & concerns on your sleeve for all of us to see. So many things people are trying to do out of self-sufficiency, many are forging new paths for each of us to consider. If you don't like what he's doing make your own dream. Good on you Loftis family!

[@officialjonas9163]

You should definitely build a emergency spill way that you can open if the water gets too high. It should be maybe around 5 inches below the dam (you can decide what’s best) and it should have a piece of wood that you can lift to open it. Just discovered this channel and it’s cool!

[@vantelontheroad1750]

The pond and the waterfall are beautiful. It was still worth the effort you put into it. It will be nice to see what you come up with.

[@rickershomesteadahobbyfarm3291]

I’m not going to lie. I’ve been interested in the long term stability of this dam. I have been watching for a while now and this fascinates me. I wish that I lived somewhere that had streams so that I could construct something like this. It’s awesome. I look forward to more videos about this dam.

[@JoeMalovich]

As for a "valve" on the 6" pipe, for my dam I just used a piece of 1" thick xps pushed against the end of the pipe. Water pressure held it in place and it didn't leak. I don't know exactly how your pipe is situated but if it can be made horizontal then the xps cap is really easy to knock off. Another option is to setup the 6" pipe in a siphon orientation with an upside down U at the inlet so it will drain normally but if the flow increases to much it will start a siphon which will draw much more water that if it were a simple overflow. The downstream end of the pipe might need to be elbowed down so the siphon doesn't break in the long horizontal stretch of the pipe.

[@LoftisPartyofSix]

Thank you 😊

[@davidmann3365]

I wouldn't worry about the dam breaking. The pond is a lot smaller than most beaver ponds with busted dams. Otherwise just get the trees pulled. The best time might be high summer, grounds dry to get tractors and cables on the trees to pull over as they are cut. I really like the setup you have.

[@gregallen3980]

I have never understood people that continually criticize. I have thoroughly enjoyed the build videos. Y’all did good. Hold your head high! Good job! You can be proud.

[@evan46220]

Another KZbinr to may want to get ahold of is Engineer775 aka Scott Hunt .Does slot of hydro power and Solar .besides well pumps .

[@YaruSasaki]

Thanks for the video and all clarifications. I’m one of those, that watched the build timelapse without context. With the images shown there the dam seemed way too thin and I don’t recall seeing a lot of rebar, but oh well. The dam is standing, I was somewhat wrong, great to hear everything is fine!

[@stevenrobertson9583]

Look into installing a turbine generator like you see in the big dams that produce electricity. Basically it is a water wheel turned horizontally but with the right set up will produce more electricity than you will need. So you can have a solar set up and you would never worry about keeping the batteries charged

[@BenNstyle]

The little spot where the two creek merge would make the perfect "Lovers Peak" "Lovers Point" or "Lovers Triangle" for romantic rendezvous since it's secluded, maybe add in a "Hearts Bridge" to cross over the creek and the point would make a perfect place for a gazebo.

[@LoftisPartyofSix]

Cool idea! Thanks

[@timwarriner842]

Hatchet throwing lane maybe? That’s really fun...

[@Pyrotec_nick]

Such a cool project! Would love to do something like that one day! On your 6" pipe, you could do some sort of siphon valve, so when the water goes over a certain level (top of the dam) it automatically starts to flow out the 6" pipe until it's below a set point. Be a good safety back up

[@DiaryofaFamily]

that might produce the 1.21gigawatts needed for time travel.

[@LoftisPartyofSix]

😆

[@maximiliankylen]

I love that you used a water wheel, might not be the most efficient but sure the nicest, would be interesting to see how it holds out and what maintenance needs to be done.

[@waylonhartwell]

You could install a 3-inch emergency siphon through those top blocks so if the water were to rise up high enough it would fill the pipe and automatically start a siphon and start saving down the pond if no one was around to clear the debris some simple PVC and a pipe running down the back side of the dam with a few elbows and a few inches of pipe going into the water so when the water rises it creates a full pipe of water and automatically starts your siphon to help keep up with the flow. You could also go to the pipe you have installed towards the dry Creek and have it come up to match the level of where you want your damn to be at and have it cut off at that level so if it rises up past that it will automatically erupt out of there giving the water another path instead of around the dam potentially washing it out

[@deestanley9836]

I’m not a builder but I remember the piece of property when you started and I watched faithfully every post and progress you made! I loved all off your posts! I wish there were more Jerry’s in the world! He was awesome!

[@LoftisPartyofSix]

Thanks 😊

[@mustafathechosenone]

Ignore negative comments, it's all a learning curve and you can always update and make improvements.

[@lloyd.griffiths]

This is an awesome dam! I have experience building hydroelectric dams in the U.K. and something I could recommend is a relatively large culvert seated at the base of the dam with a gate valve attached. This would allow you to drain the water back quickly and could be done from on top of the dam itself.

[@jeffreyplum5259]

Your flume needs emergency side gates. You also do not have enough spillway or diversion.I would guess you need four or five times your flume cross section in controlled passages. You also need a very low level clean out through the dam. Even big dams have had to have holes drilled in them to remove silt. Your inpoundment does not have enough safe non-eroding exits. As for the muddy spring, you may need a drilled well, sealed away from surface water. Otherwise you will need a serious filter system. One alternative is some serious Rainwater collection. If you get the rain before it hits the soil, your filtering and settling problems are much reduced. Good luck and God Bless you.

[@navigatorofnone]

May i suggest for your water intake issue, that you use first rock filters then sand filters to at least remove major sediments before the water enters the house.

[@MrSki-tyvm]

Here might be a great idea, have you thought about a wood burner you could build a small building/shed and run pipe from that shed. One for heat and hot water, to heat water just wrap a coil around stove burner pipe. The heat is simple but needs more explanation. I have seen a couple methods but the safest is make a metal box about 5 to 10 feet long insulated out side then cut a hole for the stove pipe to run through it. You can just add ducts to where ever you want and control the heat inside with closable vents. I have even seen people use a vent to mount a small fan for fresh air. I see you have lots of fallen trees and branches everywhere so you would not even have to cut any trees down and your property will be maintained at the same time. This was something my uncle taught me when he built off grid, the only difference is he had a well put in about 200 feet deep. Hope this idea helps you and your family, let it be a backup for your primary systems during harsh times.

[@leemajors2479]

Looks like mother nature just proved it is pretty good. But only time will tell.

[@Allenkcn]

Respect for a man that protects his family. Bad days for the men that talk about the respected man's family. 🙏🙏

[@TheVintageBumbleBee]

Man...thats a perfect white noise! I would have grabbed a book, a blanket and pitched my hammock!!!

[@petermortensen4565]

Appreciate the video! I have been paying on a 22.5 acre property for the last 10 years, started when I was 23 years old. Finally I’m in a situation to break off two 5 acre lots(with a hell of a lot of work and investment with the county to jump through hoops) to have 12.5 acres paid off. I have a seasonal creek that I can dam off into a pond about the size of yours or a little big. Huge inspiration for me seeing your dam. I have been looking into dam building for almost 20 years, and this is the first time a concrete dam of this size has come into my view. Awesome stuff, awesome potential! So grateful to see yours weathering the “oh shit” scenario with the heavy rain. Can’t wait to check out your other videos. We’re in the Pacific Northwest, near the Columbia gorge, in Washington state. Thanks again!

[@scpatl4now]

I have what I think might be a constructive suggestion. As you are facing the dam from downstream, all the way on the left it might be a good idea to create an "emergency spillway". It would be a place for the water to go just before it would over top your dam. That way the excess could go somewhere and you could avoid any erosion. The worst thing that can happen with a dam is for it to be overtopped or the water goes around the side because that erodes your foundation, and you'd be amazed how quickly that can happen in an overtopping situation. An emergency spillway wouldn't be too much work but would give some piece of mind...like they say...it might never get used but if you need it once it will be worth it. BTW...this is the first video I have watched from your channel...the KZbin algorithm is smiling upon you today.

[@Veritas-invenitur]

You are reading my mind

[@royreynolds108]

The worst-case scenario would be for the ground on the ends of the dam to become saturated and have water start flowing through the ground eroding and washing it away. Moving water through the foundation is the bane of dams.

[@oBseSsIoNPC]

That really isn't a big dam, the beavers in our city, where I go Kayaking, built a much bigger dam. Mud, twigs and trees do a fine job, so that concrete appears sufficient enough. As for the waterwheel, I can't tell how it's made, but I know cupped throughs are more efficient for high torque, but less speed. The best and modern option is what the big boys use: Pelton wheels. Their efficiency is massive and the lower the pressure, the longer they last. Big dams run at over 90% efficiency! Overall this looks like a dream build to me, I wish I had this setup! Gonna check out the build-video.

[@Jasonoid]

This is just the coolest project ever, thanks for sharing your dam and how successful it has been!

[@markerbull]

Hindsight is always crystal clear so no judgement. The waterwheel (since you really like those) just needs to be 4 times bigger in width. The amount of water you have is way higher than the current wheel can handle. The solution can be, take out one of the concrete supports, expand it over to accommodate a wheel assembly 4x wider and adjust the water inlet to the wheel. Those guys did a great job on that wheel so see if they can use the existing wheel as the center and expand it on both sides. The added volume will mean more torque and you wont have to scrap that bigger generator you already bought. I wonder if you could hook up more than one generator to the drive system after achieving more torque. I think 2 smaller ones is cheaper and adjustable to the rising and lowering flows. Chain or belt is up to you but I would see about creating an inexpensive splash guard to keep those items dry yet easy to access. I hope this helps.

[@rickcoona]

Great video! You may want to consider a vertical drop micro hydroelectric system. Much fewer moving parts and the blade shaft directly turns the generator that sits above the turbines.

[@pauldudley8837]

I'm a city boy and I really appreciate watching ingenuity like this. Thank you.

[@hamigaming4148]

A possible spill way may need to be included with your dam. Great construction. And it's very well built. First time seeing your vids . Real great stuff . 👏 .

[@taeymansom]

May I suggest possibly having a spill way/overflow where that water was flowing near the generator wheel, also on the "flow bridge" to the wheel have a slide gate and a funnel to send the water back into the general flow when your not needi g to generate power or when the flow is too aggressive. As for the little island, I think a nice little pergola or open sided hut with a fire pit and log benches would be a perfect fit for the scene and blend in quite well, I have a few drawings I'd love to share with you of both projects if you'd like them

[@dndaughtery]

Well on the bright side.....you were generating a lot of electricity! 😊

[@user-tb2jy9lu3d]

I think I would cut that opening in the dam down about another 6 inches to allow for extra overflow rain for the rainy season. Of course, you'd have to lower the wheel down 6 inches and make another cut for it, too. But there wouldn't be as much worry of flooding.

[@googleuser4722]

I started off watching a Nascar race and end up here somehow. I love watching videos like this

[@grammyg8x]

What a beautiful place and love all the water. So peaceful! You and uncle Jerry did a wonderful job and don't listen to criticism, only sage advice. Idea for peninsula: A reflection bench made out of a tree from the area where guests can sit and unwind. Perhaps a whittling tool so they can carve their initials into the wood and it would end up being a beautiful piece of art.

[@outdoorslifesurvivecraft5078]

This is the first of your videos I've seen and I thought is was a good video that answered a lot of peoples questions. As for your dam goes, the only thing I think "I would do" is make the spillway a little deeper and use some maybe 2x10s for flood gates. If it gets to be to much, you could just lift out what was needed to lower the water level. A 10" deep notch, 2' wide would probably be enough. Other than that, it looks great to me. Now I'll go check out some more of your stuff. Thumbs Up!!

[@LoftisPartyofSix]

Thanks 😊

[@jamesmoore768]

The man that helped You Jerry is a genuine Pro I can’t believe the nerve of some people And how they run their mouth to meddle in other folks business! Your place is beautiful I really love the cabin love it great job to all involved! God Bless You all!❤️🙏😊🇺🇸

[@bigdanc.8429]

Put a little gazebo there for your sitting spot.

[@jerrygania4458]

I was going to say the same thing. Screen it in also.

[@peterkilvert2712]

Lovely to hear from you. I hope the water in the dam lasts you through summer. Best Wishes Pete (Manchester UK).

[@chewiepac5932]

Love your channel btw, I would also lay up two more courses to the top, and build some angled supports for the face of the dam near your spill ways which are gonna be your weak spot, for long term sustainability, I hope that this reaches you and your family best wishes and salutations, great job bud

[@Ham68229]

You should be running a filtration unit for your water. I watched the videos when you made this dam, honestly, your dam is just fine. Some people especially those that believe they know you've done this wrong... aren't dam builders nor are they structural engineers. Now, the good thing about this, now you know which trees really need to come down. You're right about that pipe, it would've helped drain the water down but, as you said, it's a future thing and not really a big deal. The other good thing about this is, now you also get to see where exactly you're going to have issues later on "when" you get more heavy rains. Great video, cheers :)

[@Verdant02]

Great dam setup!

[@kanesmith9325]

Master tradesman here, Well done mate, It's now proven as failsafe, Fantastic work and I learned heaps as well. Cheers

[@KevinTheDogGuy]

Amazing work. The dam is holding fine. The wheel is spinning nice and stable. Good engineering 👍

[@magnelisgarrrett1961]

We waiting for you come back, with the great spirit, adventures and great family time you guys shared.

[@robertmccall8666]

Wow with that much power from the waterfall you could generate power for a few houses lol..... be nice to having a fishing hole at the bottom of the property.

[@Alexander-sp6xd]

Please do you have a video showing how you constructed this?

[@proudchristian77]

No Matter how smart we are, how strong we are, we can be out done , by water, fire , earth quakes , mudslides , floods , to name a few , none of us can out do Almighty Gods nature, he the boss ! All the best wishes on your dam, hope it holds up & no one gets hurt from it .💖👍🏼👍🏼😊☕

[@The.Pickle]

What a lovely property. That looks like one happy pup playing in the water and mud.

[@ljellison1950]

Enjoyed this video. And glad you have done the one strike rule. People can be so rude and disgusting. God Bless.

[@theyetirulrs]

Some benches, bird feeders, and a herb garden would be perfect for that location. Benches to relax on plus the aromas from the herbs just creates a very relaxing space.

[@barrylow2972]

My suggestions, same comment about protecting your spring drinking water. Build a sluiceway around each side of the spring to prevent water runoff spilling into your spring and contaminating it. Sluiceways should be both large enough to handle major flooding like you showed. Sluiceways can be as simpke as 50 gal metal drums with tops and bottoms cut off and welded together to form large pipes around your spring. Need to plan ahead for worst conditions of rain and manage water. Or water will manage you. During big floods, open the 6 inch pipe you installed to lower pond level. In fact, install more 6 inch pipes to do the same to form pressure relief to your dam.

[@normwhiff]

When I was ten by buddies and eye built a dam across the creek behind our house... Then one really rainy night it poured down. The next day we went to check our pond...it looked like a tsunamis went down the creek...we never tried that again.

[@genesisviper1159]

There are some primative videos where they make a water filter systems you could look at those and inpliment something similar into your cabin for issues like this with the brown merky spring and fair play to your rule about your channel respect my dude, no time for disrespectful people, what you guys have done is amazing

[@LoftisPartyofSix]

Thanks 😊

[@miyaantoez919]

I think y'all did amazing job. I've been trying to figure out our cabin and you nailed it thank you

[@olivermiles5283]

Your dam is awesome. Love the pond nature is making your pond look beautiful and don't have any disrespect for your work. It's cool that you have a waterfall you can overlook. I had a runoff creek and it was worst because it overfill the areas around creating the ground softer.

[@99-white-balloons]

You could also put an extention on that 6 inch pipe with a Y drop one down to 3 inch an use like a 2-3kw micro low head axial turbine, use the other as your 6inch emergency spillway, this may run the pond dry so you may only be able to run it a few hours aday but thats plenty to recharge batterys You spillway intake would need to be lower, a valve would need to be put into the 3 inch system(youcan add a drain tee somwhere their, you could keep the water wheel to belt run a water pump, or somthing, using that trof as an emergency spillway

[@tomnaro]

Your dam is fine. I had a dam on my property that is an earthen damn. Since removed. We had a 200 year flood situation that overflowed the dam and it held., the only real worry would be a huge influx of water eroding around the ends on either side. You could build 4 or 5 removable siphons out of 5 inch pipe that would simply sit over the wall. The longer you make them they will actually pull water. Also add some larger rip rap around your water chute that way you don't erode the footing. Awesome videos. Love the content😀

[@jeffreywienhoff6412]

I love the Ozarks I'm born in St.Louis and have family in SE Missouri. I used to visit Lake of the Ozarks every year. It's some of the prettiest land in America. I hate that people are so jealous to be overly critical of your efforts. Has the pond drawn any fish/wildlife? Water holes are important to native species. I think you've done a great job your place is beautiful.

[@whatreally3109]

Your dam is fine. I used a pvc pipe set up for drainage on mine. Water level goes up the pressure starts pushing water through the pipe and it drains until the water level is lowered back to normal

[@snugglesjuggler]

No worries dude, it will hold for sure as long as your base wont move. I have a 10 feet deep and 100 feet long dam wall made of 100 year old "rotten" cement and rocks. That wall is just one feet thick at some places (no not at the base) and it still holds. It's for sure not a flood that scares me. It's the push from the ice sheet against the dam wall during the winter that scares me. As soon as you get cracks in the wall the frost will speed up the break down of the wall. Before anyone sends me hate comments: Yes, I'm about to do a major repair the whole dam wall soon.

[@danburch9989]

I would like to add that there's a lock & dam across the Mississippi R at Keokuk, IA. The dam is about 25' high and 4,000 ft long - straight as an arrow. Not all dams need to be arched, low head dams don't necessarily need it.

[@fredamiller3482]

Thumbs up on the one strike rule! Get rid of the trolls & the people who aren't there to support you. You guys are doing a wonderful job raising your kids!

[@LoftisPartyofSix]

Thanks 😊

[@Scots_Diesel]

Natural filtration system/ settlement tanks would help with the household water - basically a large covered pond that feeds the household tank.

[@horscategorie]

Your dam looks fine structure wise; A suggestion to prevent undermining now that you know it can rise high enough to go around the sides would be to add another set of blocks on the top outer third on each side, and extend the dam footers laterally to match; Perhaps adjust your spillway and weir (All you need to do is add some small concrete boxes to the front of the dam with a V cut to guide water - It helps break up the flow and spread the energy. A weir after that point at the base of the dam to further disperse the energy will help. One way could be to make a slope of gravel, top with larger stones, then rocks, chunks of concrete, etc - again with the goal of re-directing water flow and reducing energy. The whole goal is to keep water center channel, away from the base of the dam, definitely away from the ends of the dam, and make sure the center channel has enough mass to handle the energy of the water flow without moving. All of this while making the water change direction, create turbulence, all resulting in slowing the flow to reduce erosion, especially anywhere near the dam. Equally important is to have enough matter in front of the dam sloping down from the dam upstream. Here is a great resource. theconstructor.org/water-resources/what-is-weir-types-flow-over-weirs/11873/

[@toolguy8819]

Nice set up, can see a lot of work went into it, on your trees close to the dam or around each side . In my experience and that is dams on farms and earth dams too. Trees falling isn't your biggest problem a dry dead tree probably won't break your dam it will break and you'll have floating fire wood, it's the roots, if the dead tree root are under the dam or the side they let water out under the dam or around the sides . As the water move in an uncontrolled way, you could loss the ground under the dam. Trees on the dry side will send roots to the water in dry summer's with same result. Cut trees now before they send roots towards the water. Have seen the results of trees around dams and total failure. Would not like to see a video in a year or 2 of you learning that the hard way 😉. Best Conner's

[@danielmaloney1708]

Great comments about trolls out there bro. Perfect way to handle the losers and haters who know everything! Good work.

[@mobilewon]

Everyone has an opinion...I would trust the man who built your dam. I know nothing about dam building but it looks solid to me. Enjoy your videos. Keep them coming.

[@lynchy751]

why would anyone even say you hadnt done that dame right ..looks amazing and to take all that water without it colapsing is a job well done

[@ozarkdaredevils]

Do what you do and enjoy it . I love your videos , who cares what others think ..... 99 percent of the worlds people are dreamers , your a doer !

[@justindamirgian5977]

You can change the top of the 6 in pipe. Have a different pieces you put in to change the height but always have the top off so it can help drain when the water gets to high

[@reaver6070]

You need an overflow spill way. Something so that as the water gets up to a certain height it can flow down the spill way without washing out the dirt around your dam.

[@davidramsayiv]

A little bit is coming around. I just really hope the DM extends all the way into that mound. As water flowing over and around can be indicative of what the water is doing under the ground.

[@eamonnmckeown6770]

I remember a small solid concrete and rock pier adjacent to my parents property in Ireland that was taken out by a falling tree.

[@ArticWolf24]

Awesome job! Keep up the great work. Can't wait for the updates.

[@53jeepjeff]

Don’t pay attention to the haters of the world. I’m always amazed how some people love to post negative things. Your house and dam are awesome. All that and free electric on top of it. Keep up the good work!

[@squirrely1926]

This is such a beautiful upbringing for your kids congratulations that’s great

[@pacodelapena]

It looks great, wish I had one. We have not had any rain in the last 8 months. So please enjoy, and forget what people say. You know what you did, and that was on very good test of your great dam.

[@JeffTyndall]

Hardwood bearings, the wheel turns to slow for ball bearings, the grease doesn't heat up and get plowed outta the way and they'll wear out. You're great! Doin things most only dream of

[@After_Tech_Industries]

Going off of that 6" pipe you were talking about: i would have a board on a hinge so you could tug on a rope and open it. But i have no clue about how sideways that could end up being so yeah But you are living the dream

[@ianmkgaming4522]

i can agree they are living the dream

[@truckerk]

Maybe a gazebo, and a fire place for cooking for the peninsula. Seems like it could be a nice place to entertain company. Very interesting property.

[@scottstewart3884]

Make a rustic old fire place out of river rocks ... Sorry, Creek rocks, >grin

[@evanthelegend7610]

I myself would add a concrete wall around where the water was getting around, and add 2 small concrete beams against the main wall to accommodate for the extra water an also just to be safe. Really cool so far, can’t wait to see what is going to be like in a few years. Besides those 2 little things, it looks like it will hold for a very long time.

[@geraldcapon392]

Looks like you did a pretty good job sir. I know mixed concrete from a truck is unbelievably strong, there are massive railway viaducts in concrete in Scotland built without reebar and they've been there for 120 years and are still used today. Looks fun and you have a wonderful family.

[@everettplummer9725]

Lubrication is the greatest portion of the maintenance.

[@vytisagafonovas3887]

i saw on other channel that you can use hard wood blocks for your wheel instead of ball bearings, easier maintenance

[@ItsMeGiga]

Have you considered a vortex turbine? The seem like they'd be very reliable and from the mechanical side very simple as they're a direct drive. For pumping water when it's murky, maybe a 2 stage tank system where the first the sediment can settle and you can pump the cleaner water from the top. That'll give you a buffer and a way to get cleaner water into your primary tank though more maintenance in the long run. I'm no engineer on either so maybe something to research?

[@codyjones8041]

There's a cool homeowner hydro electic damn with a small turbine system may work for you!

[@michaelloughlin1114]

This is one of the best videos,I have seen. Lots of straight talking. Shoots straight from the hip, as regards insults and stupid comments, designed to insult. No drama. No hissy fits. Missouri country. Brings to mind Josey Wales, didn't suffer fool's gladly.lol.😆

[@LoftisPartyofSix]

Love it!! Thank you