Ok guys.... this is the way my mind works,.,,,
While i was floating around in circles on flooded mine..... I thought................
How many thousands of gallons a day does this park pump????? Lost river??american plunge? Flooded mine, creeks?water wheels?? How many,,,,,
At the end of the day...where is the water "stored"....does it run back into lake silver? ( I dont think so. the lake is so dirty))..Where does it go??
anyway????????
Junior??? Rube?? Pintrader?? anybody???
LOL!!!! ::) ::) ::) ::) ::) ::)
Far as I know, they just drain channels at the end of the year. At the beginning of the year, they fill them up. They add water as needed. At the old float trip, we added a color dye to the water from time to time to give it a better look. I know they still do that with other water attractions today. The water comes from their water lines, whoever they have been hooked into for years. I imagine the water bill each month is something none of us would like to think about! How many gallons...no idea! I do know that at the diving bell we had stock tanks under the capsules that were changed out every few weeks as water got yucky. I cannot tell you how many times kids leaving the capsules at the end of the ride would DRINK from the leak coming out of the roof of the capsule! Thank God no one got sick. That same water coming from the leak hole is the same water that previously came out of the geysers, fell to the wood and metal mesh floor, then drained back into the tank ten times a day! :D
Forget the water bill, imagine the electricity bill during Christmas! :o
You're right though, Silver Dollar City uses water in so many different places. Just on the top of my head you have Geyser Gulch, Flooded Mine, Lost River, River Blast, Fire in the Hole, American Plunge, and of course the water fall. Plus, as already mentioned, the water for the many water wheels, streams, and that pipe spewing water near Mary's Springhouse. Don't forget the water used to support that big spinning ball near the entrance to The Grand Exposition. What about the drinking fountains, and restrooms, and kitchens too? Wow, Silver Dollar City should have its own Water Department! ;D
Quote from: Ozark BBQ on September 27, 2012, 09:42:54 AM
Forget the water bill, imagine the electricity bill during Christmas! :o
I was at my grandma's yesterday and I kept saying I can't wait for Christmas, or atleast November. Then my grandma said, "Why November?" and I said, "Christmas in Branson!" then SDC got brought up and the millions of lights and Grandma said, "I would hate to pay their electric bill..."
(in response to a now-deleted post)
^I can't tell how tongue in cheek you were trying to be there, but be advised that ragging on people like that in a random post will make you come off as an asshole and you'll loose your welcome real quick.
To my knowledge, SDC is hooked up to a semi-rural public water system that is probably based off of Table Rock Lake. Like others have said, the water rides are not filled everyday, but rather operated with more or less the same water that is filtered to some degree and replenished over the year. I wouldn't be surprised if they have a number of on-site grey water storage tanks/systems for things like the water wheels and such.
Quote from: If You Only Knew on September 27, 2012, 03:09:21 PM
OK "fans" I have been reading your posts for YEARS now ~ I look forward to becoming known in your little community... If You Only Knew!
...and, maybe not so much!
^I realized that you were probably being friendly and sarcastic, but it's really hard to see those inflections in text sometimes, especially when we do occasionally deal with people who come on just to stir up trouble. Coming on strong isn't always a good idea, nor is treading on old heated topics in irrelevant discussions. Sometimes an emoticon or two will help keep the tone of one's post in check. ;)
Anyhoo, back to the subject at hand. I should note that I am a civil eng. undergrad and this is actually something I think about all the time whenever I visit a major establishment. I've only just started taking water resource classes, so maybe I'll have more to tell you soon.
If You Only Knew: Well, bud, I don't know where to start with you. Float trip had pumps and filters, I assume plunge does too. Same for Flooded Mine. Don't know about the newer rides. I assume they all work in basicly the same way. SDC gets its water from whatever company or utility that supplies water to everyone else. As far as your alledging that the Lake Silver level drops two or three feet each time the pumps are on...don't know where you got that from. I know in the winter they lower the lake level. I assume for maintanance issues. When I worked there, the lake level was at the same level day in and out during the operating season. I am not aware that the man made stream running through the Riverfront was some kind of drainage from attractions located at higher elevations on park. That idea sounds a bit nutty to me. When that stream was put in, guests would take off socks and shoes and dip their feet in the water on hot days, and kids would play in it. Not the kind of thing SDC people would allow if it was run off water. So, in short, it sounds to me like you are someone who for some reason is disgruntled. I don't know why. Former or current disatisfied customer or employee, maybe? I don't know. Anyway, maybe you have some things right, but I think you do have some things wrong. Don't mind folks who have opinions different from mine, but you came off in the above post in a negative way. We can differ on opnions here, it's not a problem, but no reason to be unpleasant. I do post things here based primarily on my memory of experiences while working on the park. If I don't know about something, it's because I was contented at the time to have fun in my work back then, and I admit, as a kid in my late teens and early 20s, I didn't ask alot of questions about some stuff.
I have worked in water treatment for years and cannot believe that the health department let alone the lawyers would allow water from lake silver to be pumped directly into any attraction. There is obviously a advanced filtration and purification system in place for lost river,AP , river blast and any water attraction that someone could get water in their mouth or eyes.
The lost river has anyways perplexed me with the geyser and waterfall at he mouth overflowing into the lake. I would assume they filter this before pumping it back into the channel. I have also heard that river blast fills the boats with potable water to be shot out of the guns. Not sure if that is true. As for the fake streams , they are probably just recirculated by pumping the water uphill.
Bottom line is anything that you could touch or swallow would need to be treated somehow.
Someone mentioned the giant granite ball (formerly from Celebration City) at the GE entrance. The water for that is heavily chlorinated (smells like bleach/pool water), I'm guessing because so many grimy kids have their hands in it, and I am sure drink it. *blech*
"If," a response?
I believe I read on SDC website about the potable water on RB. It fills from the top of the mast at the loading station. It does not come from the channel itself.
Quote from: MissinTheGreenTrams on September 28, 2012, 10:00:02 AM
I believe I read on SDC website about the potable water on RB. It fills from the top of the mast at the loading station. It does not come from the channel itself.
It sure does, you have to watch carefully for it, but I have seen it fill from the top.
Quote from: DollarCityBoy on September 28, 2012, 12:04:15 PM
Quote from: MissinTheGreenTrams on September 28, 2012, 10:00:02 AM
I believe I read on SDC website about the potable water on RB. It fills from the top of the mast at the loading station. It does not come from the channel itself.
It sure does, you have to watch carefully for it, but I have seen it fill from the top.
That's cool! I'll watch for it next time I'm there.
I believe Thunder Canyon at Cedar Point uses water from Lake Erie that is pumped in daily and drained every night.
During the diving bell years, there was a smaller "waterfall" probably 20 to 30 feet from the present one, that appeared as if it drained the water from the stream running through the Riverfront area. Funny thing is, the "waterfall" was there in 1977, and they did not debut the stream through the area until about 81! You may be able to see in old, '77 publicity photos the old, smaller, waterfall adjacent to the diving bell area. If you go all the way back to the oldest page on my Flickr account and take a look at the illustration in the 1977 park brochure, you will see a stream runs through the original Deepwoods area. My guess is the stream was on the "to do" list from day one, but maybe the budget got tight so the stream was not put into place until 81. The original Deepwoods area had a sawdust path that was great...until rainy days! Then things got real messy down there. They finally began paving about 81 or 82 in limited areas, then by the mid 80s the entire area was paved. Tom Sawyers Landing still had sawdust down in some areas though, as did areas of the Lost River waiting line.
The ride system that River Blast is based on does use new water in the ballast tanks on each ride.
Quote from: shavethewhales on September 27, 2012, 04:04:35 PM
^I can't tell how tongue in cheek you were trying to be there, but be advised that ragging on people like that in a random post will make you come off as an asshole and you'll loose your welcome real quick.
I'm guessing (hoping) someone deleted what you are responding too? Because it doesn't really make sense...
Quote from: tiffanylynnt on September 28, 2012, 09:56:43 PM
Quote from: shavethewhales on September 27, 2012, 04:04:35 PM
^I can't tell how tongue in cheek you were trying to be there, but be advised that ragging on people like that in a random post will make you come off as an asshole and you'll loose your welcome real quick.
I'm guessing (hoping) someone deleted what you are responding too? Because it doesn't really make sense...
Yup, there are a few deleted posts there.
Good call, Shave.
Oh I didn't delete anything, a new member just worded some posts poorly and must have been surprised at the reaction. People have to remember that written words don't come off the same way as when you are speaking.
Whatever though, back to the topic at hand...
I think some people might be surprised at how low the standards are for water used on some of the water rides. Not that any of is unsafe, but it's not like it's drinking water quality. For recreational usage on a raft ride it's not like the water has to be all that much higher grade than regular old river water. They may just cycle it through a basic sand filter or something to keep it from being too yucky. I'm sure there are more technical legal issues when it's sprayed out of a cannon.