[[Image:bucket pump icon.png|right|100px80px|]][[Image:BucketPump.jpg|thumb|right|240px200px|Bucket Pump. Photo: WHO.]]
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The bucket pump is mainly used in drilled wells. It consists of a windlass over a 125 mm PVC tube, down which a narrow bucket with a valve in the base is lowered into the water on a chain. When the bucket hits the water, the valve opens and the water flows in. When the bucket is raised, the valve closes and the water is retained in the bucket. To release the water, the pump operator rests the bucket on a water discharger, which opens the valve in the base. The windlass bearings are made of wood.
==Construction, operations and maintenance==
[[Image:bucket pump2.jpg|thumb|right|240px200px|A modified bucket pump with windlass. Photo: [http://www.wellwaterboy.com/ Well Water Boy]]]
To operate a bucket pump, rotate the handle of the windlass and let the bucket passthrough the steel head. Both adults and children can operate the pump. Preventive maintenance consists of lubricating the wooden bearings of the windlass, checking the nuts and bolts, and checking that the valve is functioning. The pump and its environment should be kept clean, and the well should be disinfected regularly. Minor repairs consist of replacing the valve washers and repairing links in the chain.
[[Image:bucket pump OM.jpg|thumb|none|500px|Operation and maintenance recommendations. Chart: [http://http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CC0QFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.who.int%2Fwater_sanitation_health%2Fhygiene%2Fom%2Flinkingintro/water_sanitation_health/hygiene/om/linkingintro.pdf&ei=cwJpT-zaO-OiiQKCst2rBw&usg=AFQjCNEWOQhTgF3a7lzhuw5OA2KmbVGxcA&sig2=Rt2EURUyGVqDcwFg6p0xAw WHO.]]]
==Manuals, videos, and links==
* Dr. Costantino Faillace. [http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=14&ved=0CDYQFjADOAo&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.igcp-grownet.org/presentations/bucket%2Fpresentations%2Fbucket%2520pump20pump.pdf&ei=9918UMzOF5Tc8ASoioGADw&usg=AFQjCNH9SnoadhtTMSLnKmkhH-xEotRUHQ&sig2=CfijtVvcrfFGdkPfQrgBGA&cad=rjt RE-ASSESSMENT IN THE SUMMER OF 1997 REGARDING THE PERFORMANCE OF A BUCKET PUMP - A SIMPLE WATER LIFTING DEVICE SUITABLE FOR SMALL RURAL VILLAGES.] Ciampino (Rome) – Italy.
==Acknowledgements==
* Brikke, François, and Bredero, Maarten. [http://www.washdoc.info/docsearch/title/117705 Linking technology choice with operation and maintenance in the context of community water supply and sanitation: A reference document for planners and project staff] or ([http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/hygiene/om/wsh9241562153/en/ alternative link]). World Health Organization and IRC Water and Sanitation Centre. Geneva, Switzerland 2003.
