I have worked with the ram pump for some time now and I have to say that it is simply amazing. But it does not work in all situations. If you want to pump water from a river or creek that is mostly flat water you wont be able to use the ram pump. So what are your options? Well I found out about the River Pump also known as the Rife River Pump. This ingenious pump works by spinning a tube into the water and gulping water and air consecutively.  These pumps have been around for a long while and they work very well.  You can buy a professional model online for a few hundred dollars but I thought that I would give my best attempt at making one that was under $100. I hope that you enjoy the video series on the diy river pump.

Part 1:

This first video shows the construction of the river pump. This is my first test build of this pump and I have to say that it was close to $100. In the next build that I make I am going to use drainage grade PVC and that will cut the cost by quite a lot.

Part 2

This next section of the river pump build is the first test at the river. I take the pump out and place it in the water. The test is a better success than I thought it would be. The pump starts to rotate and water is being passed in the tube.

Part 3

Now that the pump has been tested and we know that it works its time to make a couple adjustments to get the pump to float better. In this part I add some bottles in the pump and get it to float a lot better in the water.

Part 4

In part four I install a new swivel that I found on Amazon from a company called “SuperKlean.” I think this product is for a power washer or some sort of water hose application. There are two swivels in this little unit and that is what allows the pump to swivel while the hose stays put. Now that we hae solved the issue with the swivel the pump is turning much better than ever. Will this fix the pump? Watch this video and find out.

Part 5