Gauging Water Supply to Water Wheels

It is a fact well known to manufacturers, and users of water from hydraulics, canals or races, where several parties are drawing water from the same source of supply, that if this supply is not constantly greater than the full demand of all the water-wheels in use on the power, more or less contention will result among the users of the water.

In such cases, A will declare that B's wheels are using as much water as his own, while they are only entitled to half as much. It is doubtful if there is a water power in the coun- try, where no gauge is employed, which does not afford instances of some user of the water putting in wheels much larger than he had really the right of water to drive ; and in such cases, if the gauge system were introduced, limiting each party to the precise amount of water he is entitled to, it would compel the withdrawal of wheels which operate wastefully in this respect, and the substitution of those of improved and modern construction. A device by which this accurate gauging of the water is accomplished has been submitted by Mr. Jonathan Mills, and from the drawings furnished by him the engraving has been executed which we present herewith. It shows only a front elevation of the plan, but will doubtless be readily understood by those interested in its object.

The method of the author of this device, as stated by him, would be to ascertain as follows, with a gauge of this description, what number of square inches of opening in the gauge it would require to furnish one hundred square inches of water, by measurement on a weir fixed in a tailrace, after leaving some well-known water wheel. For this purpose, he would first construct a gauge on the plan represented in our engraving, as near the required size as could be ascertained by calculation. The cut shows six gauges raised : let each gauge be supposed to represent an opening large enough to supply 100 inches of water, as measured in cubic feet on the weir after passing and doing its work on the water-wheel.

The gauges are placed in the head race or flume above the wheel, a sufficient distance to allow a good body of water in the penstock. A float or buoy is then fixed in the water on the down-stream side of the gauge, with an arm extending up above the top of the flume. A pointer is fixed to the top end of the float-stem, resting against a board laid off in inches, from 1 to 10 inches inclusive the board being stationary at the top of the flume. The water being on a level on both sides of the gauge, the pointer is set at ; the wheel is then started, and the water measured as it passes the weir.

Or the weir might previously have a gauge-mark set to a proper height to allow just the required number of cubic feet to pass it when the limit of 600 square inches was used. The six gauges are then steadily closed, all being moved together until the float draws the pointer down to 10 inches. The gates are then opened on the water- wheel until the required height on the weir in the tail-race is reached, the six gauges being at the same time raised just so as to keep the water at such a height that the pointer shall not draw below 10 inches.

As soon as the supply or gauge openings required to maintain the proper hight on the weir are determined, the next step is to shut down and get the exact opening of the six gauges. By this is established the size and form of each gauge on the power for each hundred square inches ; and by this is determined the size of gauges to be used on the power, and at the same time the limit of draw that each
user of water should be entitled to.

Number of Gauges

The question may be asked why 14 gauges are shown, when the limit in this case is made at only six. One object is to provide an arrangement by which A may rent of B, C, or D as many shares as the latter is not using. He may rent these shares for one day or night, or for any length of time that may be agreed on. If the water is owned by a company, they should employ a person to go constantly from one flume to another and see that no pointer is drawn down below the limit agreed on by a majority of the users ; and where a wheel is found drawing a pointer below the limit, he should have power to close the gates of the wheel until the pointer rises up to the limit, even if the works run by it are thereby stopped. His duty is to shut down the gauges of any party renting to another, and raise them for the party to whom the share is rented.

Another object in allowing them to rise to any hight required is to permit all parties to use just what water they please when there is
an abundance running to waste, which is frequently the case on all water-powers. The limit of draw should be established, by a majority vote of the users, on the first wheel, highest up on the race. They must also establish the amount of draw or fall that is caused in the main race, this depending altogether on the length and width of the race, and the quantity of water drawn out by different users
along its course. The person employed to attend to the gauges should make his round each Sunday afternoon and set his gauge or draw-board up or down so that the pointer is at on every draw-board on the race, and lock them fast. The reason for setting them on Sunday is that all the wheels are supposed to be shut down on Saturday night, and there is no other time when the head has attained its level from one end of the race to the other. By this means, the limit of draw is established every seven days ; and it is far better to do one just thing on Sunday than to have every user of water doing injustice the remainder of the week.

If the draw in the race is established, between the first wheel on ithe race and the last one, to be three, six or nine inches, the last wheel will have a limit of draw three, six or nine inches more than the first. If the first one has a limit of 10 inches, and the draw of the race is established to be three inches, the last wheel has the limit of 13 inches to draw on ; and so on in proportion all along the race.

All these things must be controlled by a majority vote of the parties using the water. Once the gauges are established, and the users organized into a protection company, with their proper officers to keep the records of the power, it is but little trouble to meet once every week, or at the call of the superintendent, and establish the limit of draw, to be observed until it is necessary to fix another limit; the scarcity of water determining how often the limit will require to be established. In a time of very scanty supply of water it might be necessary to establish the draw at the very least limit, which limit might be abandoned within twenty-four hours, in case of a sudden freshet, and the gauges thrown wide open for all parties to use all they could.

Construction of Gauge

In reference to the engraving, it is proper to observe that there are several ways in which the apparatus might be constructed and reach the same results. The gauges are here represented as made of cast-iron, of a uniform width and length, with long arms extending up the proper distance, provided with cogs in which the pinion teeth and the ratchets or pawls A engage, to hold them to their places wherever raised. The letters A in the cut are just below the pawls, on the stationary guides between which the gauges slide up and down.

These guides are bolted to a square frame of iron or wood, made of just the proper size to slip down between the sides of the flume or forebay. The guides are set the exact width apart to allow the gauges to slide between them. The gauges are raised and lowered by a shaft running in front of them, having pinions bored to fit loosely on a spline running the whole length of the shaft except at the bearings. One bearing is shown at the middle of the shaft. A flat cast-iron concentric piece might be made to extend clear across the gauges, on a level with the center of the pawls, locking all the pawls down at one operation, so that no one could disengage them to raise or lower the gauges except the superintendent in charge of the keys.

The shaft is shown with a hub, with holes for the hand-lever, fitted to one end, the superintendent thus requiring to have but one lever, which will fit all the hubs on the power. If they are properly fitted up, it need be but very little trouble for him to unlock any gauge, slip in or out the pinion or pawl of the gauge and raise or lower it, lock it, and go on his rounds with the assurance that no one could change the gauges in his absence. Of course the pointer-boards should also be so fixed that they can all be locked and remain in plain view of any one passing by, without the necessity of entering any building to see them.

Every user of the water can thus see that his neighbor does not draw below his limit. The cost to each individual of putting in such a gauge would not be heavy, while it would insure to each his rights. Any arrangement that would be of utility would probably cost fully as much as this. Certainly, no effectual apparatus can be put in without cost ; but there are many powers on which, if a fair and equitable gauge system were adopted, nearly every user of the water would be greatly benefited, and would be sincerely thankful for deliverance from the old freedom of using and destroying what he could not use with profit only to wish it back when it was too late.

With this system of gauges established, it would make no difference to any user of the water what kind of wheel his neighbor was running, as the whole loss for want of power would fall on the party using an inferior wheel.

Mention should be made of one point omitted in the foregoing remarks, viz. : that the bottom of the gauges must all be set the same distance under the head-water not taking the Sunday level for it, but making allowance for the draw in the race, and setting from that standard, which is fixed by a majority vote of the users on the power. When once the draw is established, it must be permanently marked and kept on record, never to be changed except by a two-thirds or three -fourths vote of the users.