Building Canal Tip

[NewMasterChoco]

I would like to build a river for my city. The last time I tried this, I caused the water pollution to increase to 1%, leading to health problem for my city. I am working on my latest new city. I used deep wide canal, the one with the most deepest, but I couldn't get enough water to come through the canal naturally (only just at the tip, where the water comes into the canal). Is there a way to fill the water from the beginning to the end properly? If it works, I would like to make my little harbor for small ferries and maybe I add prop, or marina.

[grapplehoeker]

If you share your save, we can see more clearly what it is you're working with and what it is you're trying to achieve.

[NewMasterChoco]

Originally posted by grapplehoeker:

If you share your save, we can see more clearly what it is you're working with and what it is you're trying to achieve.

Oh, well I was just asking a question, but that would be nice if you can take a look. I will share my saves when I get back home. I haven't built any canal yet, but I would say this much:

In my latest save, the following is the list of mod (that I can remember) I use:

1. IPT2
2. TM:PE
3. 25 tile
4. First Person View (Updated)
5. AVO
6. ETST
7. Loading Screen Mod

There are more, but this is what I can remember from the top of my head, plus 68 assets. Also, I have all the DLC (except for the extra pack, but one, which is the High Tech Building).

[NewMasterChoco]

Originally posted by grapplehoeker:

If you share your save, we can see more clearly what it is you're working with and what it is you're trying to achieve.

Here it is. I want to make a canal somewhere either at my downtown area (which is in the north away from the international train line) and connect to the far ocean or on the patch of land just across the river where my amusement park and zoo are located.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410286703

[ProLeetNoob]

download the landscaping mod that allows water placement.

[mbutton15]

I couldn't load the savegame as I don't own a lot of the DLC.
However, I'll suggest something obvious which is the water won't flow into the canal because the canal bottom does not remain below water level !!

[grapplehoeker]

I wasn't sure exactly where you wanted this to work, so I chose this district to demonstrate.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410702939
As you have already discovered you cannot use the sea as your water source, because as mbutton15 pointed out above, the difference in terrain and the sea level is too great.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410703669
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410704226
This 64m difference is far too much and results in what you described... a partially filled canal and at the far end it will be empty. This is the case, whether you carve out a deep enough trough or use the pre-built canal assets. As you can see the prebuilt canal is empty and the trough I dug is only partially filled because that is the level of the sea in relation to the terrain at that point.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410704992
Water cannot travel uphill.
A canal has to be flat!
So, here's an alternative that works, a closed canal system ;)
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410705460
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410705740
First you have to level the terrain where you'll place the canal so that it is absolutely flat and the same level!
Then place the canal and put a 0.01 water spawner into it using the ELT mod. Only a capacity of 0.01 will do as anything more will be too large and cause flooding. You also have to reduce the spawner to the lowest level since it doesn't actually go 'into' the canal asset, but rather sits on top of it.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410706302
It will take many months for the spawner to fill completely and you can use that time to neatly align the quaywall all around it.
You can place a ferry service on the quaywall and ferries will work inside the canal.
I hope that helps ;)

[NewMasterChoco]

Originally posted by grapplehoeker:

I wasn't sure exactly where you wanted this to work, so I chose this district to demonstrate.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410702939
As you have already discovered you cannot use the sea as your water source, because as mbutton15 pointed out above, the difference in terrain and the sea level is too great.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410703669
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410704226
This 64m difference is far too much and results in what you described... a partially filled canal and at the far end it will be empty. This is the case, whether you carve out a deep enough trough or use the pre-built canal assets. As you can see the prebuilt canal is empty and the trough I dug is only partially filled because that is the level of the sea in relation to the terrain at that point.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410704992
Water cannot travel uphill.
A canal has to be flat!
So, here's an alternative that works, a closed canal system ;)
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410705460
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410705740
First you have to level the terrain where you'll place the canal so that it is absolutely flat and the same level!
Then place the canal and put a 0.01 water spawner into it using the ELT mod. Only a capacity of 0.01 will do as anything more will be too large and cause flooding. You also have to reduce the spawner to the lowest level since it doesn't actually go 'into' the canal asset, but rather sits on top of it.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1410706302
It will take many months for the spawner to fill completely and you can use that time to neatly align the quaywall all around it.
You can place a ferry service on the quaywall and ferries will work inside the canal.
I hope that helps ;)

I see. I heard of ELT mod, but I am scared to sub it if it breaks my game. However, since you have it, maybe it won't break my save file....

Though, this would change my thought about making a ferry line. I still want to connect to the river if possible. Then, maybe I got to use the 81 tile instead.

[grapplehoeker]

Originally posted by NewMasterChoco:

I see. I heard of ELT mod, but I am scared to sub it if it breaks my game. However, since you have it, maybe it won't break my save file....

Though, this would change my thought about making a ferry line. I still want to connect to the river if possible. Then, maybe I got to use the 81 tile instead.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=502750307
This is without doubt one of the most useful mods out there and rarely is it ever a problem after an update. It will not break a save. This is because the changes it makes to a map are permanent and there is no dependency on the mod being present. For example, If you dug out a lake with it, filled it with water by plopping a water spawner into it and then disabled the mod, the lake would remain whether the mod was active or not and so the save could be loaded again at any time and wouldn't need the mod to be present.
Effectively it replaces the terraform tool that CO implemented and performs just like the Map Editor, but in game. It is also the only way you can plop a water source in game and for that reason alone it makes this mod indispensible ;)

If you want to link up a canal to the river and use the river as the water source that keeps the canal filled, then you'll have to find the point on the river, where the water surface level is almost as high as the terrain level of the canal... remember the canal must be flat.
So, use the ELT mod's level tool to take measurements of the terrain along the riverbank and compare that with the level of terrain for the site of the canal.

[NewMasterChoco]

Originally posted by grapplehoeker:

Originally posted by NewMasterChoco:

I see. I heard of ELT mod, but I am scared to sub it if it breaks my game. However, since you have it, maybe it won't break my save file....

Though, this would change my thought about making a ferry line. I still want to connect to the river if possible. Then, maybe I got to use the 81 tile instead.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=502750307
This is without doubt one of the most useful mods out there and rarely is it ever a problem after an update. It will not break a save. This is because the changes it makes to a map are permanent and there is no dependency on the mod being present. For example, If you dug out a lake with it, filled it with water by plopping a water spawner into it and then disabled the mod, the lake would remain whether the mod was active or not and so the save could be loaded again at any time and wouldn't need the mod to be present.
Effectively it replaces the terraform tool that CO implemented and performs just like the Map Editor, but in game. It is also the only way you can plop a water source in game and for that reason alone it makes this mod indispensible ;)

If you want to link up a canal to the river and use the river as the water source that keeps the canal filled, then you'll have to find the point on the river, where the water surface level is almost as high as the terrain level of the canal... remember the canal must be flat.
So, use the ELT mod's level tool to take measurements of the terrain along the riverbank and compare that with the level of terrain for the site of the canal.

I see. Could you show me an example of it, so I can understand? I know I am asking the answer when I said test it out myself, but I am more of visual learner, so I learn by looking pictures better.