November was beautiful with temperatures well above average: good weather to spend in the pit of my pump house. During my stay I concentrated on building the shelter for my water pump, running electrical cable and plumbing. Building the shelter was easy. It's basically a shed built over top of the pit I had dug and sleeved on my previous visit that connects to the house. It took me a couple of days to construct.
When that was done, I connected the water line that enters at the bottom of the pit from the well to the jet pump. As for the water line running into the house I needed a system that would prevent freezing of the pipes and the pump on the coldest of Maine winter nights. To accomplish this I employed three measures. First is depth and insulation. Freezing below ground level can only occur to a point. In Maine the frost line is about four feet. My pump's incoming pipe is only about one foot below ground level at the point that it enters the top of the pump. To help protect it I built a box around it and insulated the shed. But that's not enough to be safe. My second remedy was to wire in a light fixture near the pump that remains powered when the pump is powered. That way a 100watt bulb can help heat the area in the vicinity of the pump. Third, to ensure that the pipe running into the house does not freeze I sleeved the 3/4 " CPVC in 3" schedule 40 vent pipe. As the pipe leaves the pump it immediately enters the 3" sleeve and travels through an opening into the house. Here it exits the sleeve via a capped T. The remainder of the vent pipe extends to the ceiling where it is connected to a small exhaust fan. That will of course propel warm air from the house into the pump house and warm the incoming pipe along the way.
After my adventures in the pit, one last day remained for this November trip. I spent the time working in the sun, adding trim to the outside of the kitchen and closing up some of the remaining openings in the foundation. This last part includes an access door to the underside of the kitchen and an exterior storage compartment.So that wraps up my week long trip to Monroe in November. I plan to return in mid- December when I may add some insulation to the underside of the house and work on a stone backing for the wood stove that will include a deep mantel piece.
