Our drinking water comes from a well that is approx 350' deep. If we have an interruption in power obviously the well pump is dead. Does anyone know of a hand operated pump that will lift the water 350'? I checked with Harbor Freight and they list a max lift of 15'. The only pumps I have found that will lift that distance are electric. If it's possible I'd like to avoid having to haul water from 1 of the 2 creeks that are about 400' on either side of my house. And BTW, I have found them for $700+ which is WAY out of the budget.

Check out MWI - Moving Water Industries in Deerfield Beach Florida, they make a pedal/solar water pump.

We went with a back up gen set, w/220 for pump as well as enough power for fridge and a few lights.

Lehamns Hardware has deep well hand pumps, but good stuff not cheap.

http://www.lehmans.com/store/Water___Wa ... =&sort_by=

You might check out getting a holding tank, for storage at ground level, and a hand pump. At least you'd have something to sustain you until the power comes back - or you find an alternative power source.

http://www.watertanks.com/
1,100 Gallon Fresh Water Poly Tank $407.29
http://www.simplepump.com/hand_pumps.html

If you can elevate the tank, you will have pressure, too.

My above ground swimming pool is set up on a hill.The bottom of the pool is level with the roof eve of the house.When our power goes out.I shut off the valve at the well,then take the garden hose and stick it in the pool and thread it through the ladder rungs to hold it in place about a foot off the bottom of the pool.I start a siphon going,and then connect the other end of the hose to one of the outside faucets.This set up gives us as good of pressure as a lot of houses hooked to city water.For filtration it's not needed except for one mounted at the kitchen faucet. When the power comes back on I'll pour a 2gal jug of pool chlorine into the well head.Then with the well back on and the valve open,I'll turn on each faucet one at a time until I smell chlorine and then turn it off.Once I'm confident there is chlorine through the whole system,I let it sit for a few hours,or overnight if I can.I'll then flush out the chlorine.Matt

It was mentioned earlier...they're not cheap.

http://www.bisonpumps.com/

If you do have a slope frrom the creeks, may a ram pump would
work.
They are pretty easy to build, do not require any power, and can be built for about a $100 bucks.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Hydraulic_Ram_Pump/

GET OFF GRID..

We highly recommend this hand water pump for either an emergency water pump for your existing well or as a remote site water pump for wells with common 2" through 8" casings. Fresh water can be easily pumped from as deep as 350' by hand

http://www.solar4power.com/solar-power-water-pump.html

Get your self an old fashion windmill that has a pump on it. That is how it was done in the old days. Also, an old neighbor of mine went off grid a few years back and he had a deep well dug and is using a windmill to pump the water up.

I have a rather high water table and, as such, my basement requires two sump pits and pumps. This water is pretty much naturally filtered through sand and stone already, but I have a microbial backpacking filter (Katadyn), purification tablets, and chlorine so drinking water is in steady supply. There is more than enough to fill buckets with to refill the toilet reservoir or to boil for bathing and general washing.