Case Studies

Bore Construction and Storage Dam at Myalup, WA

Peter Ivankovich has been farming in the Myalup region for nearly 20 years. Currently one of his main crops is onions which as all Aussies know, is a key ingredient in a dish we stole from the Italians i.e. spaghetti bolognese. To keep his crops watered, Peter enlisted Think Water Bunbury to design and install an efficient irrigation system.

Project Details:

Approx 20km north of Bunbury WA, Peter's farm is located in a unique strip of land, 2km wide and 30km long, running from Myalup to Binningup. The geological structure of this area requires an unusual bore construction method, where the limestone cap is drilled through and the underlying loose sand and crumbling limestone are then air-blown out of the hole to form a large cavity underground.

In Peter's case water is pumped out of three of these "bores" into a storage dam which also self feeds from this shallow aquifer. The water is then pumped into the irrigation network.

Over several years of poor rainfall, the levels have dropped to a point where the existing single stage end suction pumps were unable to lift the water.

Steve Rodgers and Think Water Bunbury have been looking after Peter's water supply and irrigation needs for some years and when confronted with this challenge  needed a pump to be exceptionally robust, able to operate efficiently at low heads and also to be available ...pretty much straight away.

For a duty of 23l/s @ 20m  a Caprari E8S55U/2C + MAC610 was selected for the initial conversion. This pump is an 8” nominal diameter 2 stage borehole unit in cast iron and bronze construction with a 7.5kW 6” motor attached. It proved so successful that more pumps of the same model have been installed with the final pump awaiting commissioning at the time of writing.

As a preferred supplier to the Think Water group, Caprari is pleased to be able to offer the kind of products and service that makes these jobs possible.

Think Water Bunbury is happy because their customer is happy. The onion supply continues and one of Australia’s favourite dishes remains on the menu.