Human and animal powered water lifting devices
Practical Action
Types of Human- and Animal-Powered Water Lifters
Human and Animal Powered Water Lifters can be split into two categories: those designed to
lift surface water and those designed to raise groundwater.
Surface Water is present in depressions, lakes, rivers, reservoirs, and oceans.
Groundwater flows or seeps downward through the earth filling up the spaces
between soil, sand and rock to form a saturated zone. The upper surface of this
saturated zone is called the “water table.” The “water table” may be just below the
surface like a spring or oasis or it may be over 100 metres down. The only way to get
access to this water is by digging and/or drilling.
Surface Water Lifters
Surface water lifters are generally the simplest form of human and animal water lifters
because the water is readily accessible and does not need to be raised more than a few
metres.
Swing basket
The swing basket is made from
cheap materials like woven
bamboo strips, leather, or iron
sheet to which four ropes are
attached. Two people hold the
basket facing each other, they dip
the basket into the surface water
and the basket is lifted by
swinging it and emptied into an
irrigation channel from which
point the water flows to the
fields. This lifter can be used at
depths of up to 1.2 m. Typical flow
rates of 60 to 80 l/min are
obtained at depths of 0.75 m.
Figure 2: Swing Basket Irrigation
Source: Water Pumping Devices
Advantages
Disadvantages
Simple, inexpensive technology which can
be locally made and maintained.
Easy to operate by both adults and
children
Limited to lifts of less than 1.2 m
Limited water yield 60-80 l/min suitable for small fields
Low efficiency (10-15%) big human effort with significant
water spillage
Shadouf (Picottah)
The basic shadouf consists of a rope,
pole, bucket and counterweight and is
capable of lifting water up to 4 metres.
The counterweight can be just a heavy
rock, but in the more advanced picottah
design, one person guides the bucket
while the other acts as a moving
counterweight (Figure 3). It is generally
used for lifting water from unlined wells,
streams or ponds for irrigating small
fields. Approximately 60 litres/ min can
be lifted from a depth of 2 to 3 metres.
Figure 3: Shadouf (Picottah)
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