Re-working my pump house after the hurricane

[RWS]

I have a 2 acre lot next to my house.  It used to have a double wide on it, so now it has a septic tank I use for a dump station for my camper.  The well started pumping trash a few years ago and needs some work.  The pump house roof lost some shingles in the hurricane that came right overhead.

I have a grand plan!  Maybe too grand but I figure I can chip away at it for a while anyway.

Step one.  Remove the 4ea 110 watt solar panels and repurpose them into 12 volt battery chargers.

Step two.  Strip off the shingles and re-roof with  brown metal.  When stripping with 2x4s be mindful of spacing to accomodate 2 rows of 3ea solar panels.
Things are going slow as I fell off the 6ft step ladder and landing flat on my back.  I lost 3 days getting over that.  I had to break out the painters scaffold.  Murphy is really working this one.  My brakes on the truck tried to lock up on the pickup truck whick delayed me another 2 days.  The weather has not cooperated either.  Rain rain.
The siding is Hardy board, so it is a little bit fire resistant.  The metal roof will help also.

[John Galt 1]

Now that's a serious pump house.

Where I'm at it's a little colder so we want smaller pump houses to help keep the heat in.

You said your pump is throwing a lot of trash, tell me more,      My pump pulls a bit of rock sand but the filters easily handle it.

[Lilburner]

My pump house is scrap roofing screwed to a cube of scrap lumber. There's not even a latch or hinge. You have to unscrew roofing panels to access it. I'm hoping there's enough T1-11 siding left from the barn to redo it. Even paint it to match.

Pretty low bar compared to that pump palace LOL.

[RWS]

Now that's a serious pump house.

Where I'm at it's a little colder so we want smaller pump houses to help keep the heat in.

You said your pump is throwing a lot of trash, tell me more,      My pump pulls a bit of rock sand but the filters easily handle it.

The pump is pumping white flakey stuff.  I guess it is lime since I am sitting on lime stone.  It plugs up the faucet strainers.  I was using soaker hoses to water my garden.  Stopped them all up.  Had to throw them away. 
The concrete floor is raised and insulated from the earth below.  Electric heat strips are in the concrete.  I was measuring battery voltage and turning on the heat strips when the battery was full.  This added a load and the warm concrete prevents any freezing.  Water lines enter and leave thru the concrete from below so they do not freeze.  This pumphouse should survive a nuclear winter.  In the Summer I was turning on a fan blowing out high up on the North side.  Window in the picture is the South side.

[John Galt 1]

You've probably already got water filters at the pump but in case you don't I first have something like this sediment filter. https://www.amazon.com/Rusco-Vu-Flow-Sediment-Filter-System/dp/B018HFRYXA?ref_=fsclp_pl_dp_10
It pulls the larger pieces out without actually using a filter.

Next I have a similar looking filter but it uses a replaceable string filter which I change out every 2-3 months.

But with limestone you may need one of those water softeners that use salt.

[nj_m715]

I have those sediment traps on my rain tank
they work well

[RWS]

Yesterday I drove to Macon and picked up the metal.  They did not have foam closures and neither did HomelessDepot or Lowes.  I called around this morning and located some just North of Montezuma.  This afternoon I got the first two 3ft pieces installed.  The next piece has to have a hole cut out for the 1-1/4" mast.  I had reinstalled the weather head to keep my safety rope from coming off.  Probably would.'t have, but after the experience the other day I decided to play safe.  I have never done this before and it sure is hard to do by yourself.  I was willing to try but when the wife came to check on me she said "Can I help".  So she helped me get them on the roof.  I don't think I could have done it otherwise.  Now I am tired.  I believe I will sleep tonight. 
There is no electricity on site but I used an electric drill to drill pilot holes for my screws.  I used a portable solar panel, 12 marine battery and a square wave inverter.  So now I can go anywhere and run power tools in the woods.  All I need is sunshine.

[RWS]

Today I finished getting the top metal on.  Now to do the trim pieces.  This is my first metal roof and my last.  This old man has worked too hard.  It looked easy when the young guys did it on YouTube. 
Why am I putting on a metal roof when I had left over shingles from when it was built.  There were not that many shingles missing.  Well,  this pump house will provide water for a prepper compound.  While the compound is being constructed, this pump house will also provide electricity needed for construction.  There are three things needed on a construction site, water to clean up with especially concrete.  The second is electricity to run power tools.  The third is a bathroom.  There is an operational septic tank on the lot.  I piped it to use as a dump station for my camper.  I think a bathroom with flush toilet and sink should be next.  That way I will not be required to provide a porta potty.

[Searchboss]

Although I know it was a lot of work, the building and roof looks good. I'm sure that it will last for years with minimum maintenance.

I like your idea of preparing a "prepper compound". One thing I would suggest that you add to your bathroom idea is a single stall shower, even if it is only cold water. I say that because it is important for hygiene purposes over the long term. I know that is one thing often mentioned by people deployed in the field. The ability to get clean is a great morale booster.

[RWS]

Well I did not mention it, but there will be 3 doors.  The door on the right will be the commode & sink.  The door in the middle is the DHW (Domestic Hot Water) solar tank.  The roof will be slanted the same as the pump house and 64sq. ft. flat plate heat exchanger will be on the roof.  The floor will be raised and insulated from Earth.  Pex tubing w/hot water will heat the floor. (pipes won't freeze) The door on the left will be the shower with any hot water left over, which there will be on sunny days for sure.  There will be a 10ga. 240ac service from the pump house.  The electric heating element in the tank will be down sized to 2500 Watt.
Once I get that far, I will essentially have a functional camp ground.

[RWS]

I finished painting the pump house.  I have not yet cleaned up the surrounding area and am starting the next phase which is to install 6ea 285 Watt solar panels.  I finished washing solar panels at the house, so I had to drag the scaffold back out to the pump house.  I actually cranked the lawn mower and hooked up a strap and pulled it over to the pump house.

I am using 4" standoffs to mount the rail on to.  I use spray water sealer from the paint department of Homeless Depot.  I cut out the base from a scrap of cardboard so when I spray it there is no overspray.  The standoff are two piece.  Mount the base and screw on the standoff.

Then up on the roof I drill a 1/8" pilot hole for each lag bolt.  Then I drill a 1/4" hole just thru the metal.  Then I spray the roof thru the cardboard and the bottom of the base.  No hurry as a few seconds drying won't hurt before lag-bolting to the roof.

This is what it looks like without an "L-foot" bracket mounted on top.

[RWS]

Stepping back a little bit for a better look.  You can see the "L-Feet" mounted on top of the standoff.  The rail that mounts up is attached from it's side so the L-foot" makes that transition.  Now to find a 2 x 4 and throw it across the line of standoffs so I can mount the next row.

[RWS]

One more day and I am making progress.  No hurry though as the rails will not be here until next week.  The hook up wire just came so I guess tomorrow I can run in down thru the weather head to the combiner box.

[RWS]

My rails came in so I installed 3 of them.  I am missing L-feet to install the last rail.  I checked my order and they are on backorder.  I can now run the wire from the combiner box to the rails in preparation of installing the solar panels.  So I have 2 strings of 3 solar panels.  I will need a + and - for each string of 3.  Then I need a ground wire from the rails of each string to the combiner box.  The wires will go down thru the weatherhead which is low enough for the panel to go over the top.  That means it has to be pre-wired and the panels will be plugged in as they are mounted.  In this picture it is hard to see the weatherhead middle top.  It is easier to see in earlier pictures.

[John Galt 1]

Impressive work RWS but I'd be a tiny bit concerned with the way the standoff base attaches to the metal roof bending the metal roof.   

Instead of going with a spray on seal I went with a product called Lexel.     I sealant I've been using for 15 years at work and never had a leak.