Why does THIS coal generator in between not get enough water?

[GarlicIsLife]

Related footage

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98pRzjyzthQ

What is happening here? I would understand it if it was the last generator in the serial water pipe, but why does the forelast get so little? I tried using pumps and those just make everything worse. I don't know in what way "worse", just that when I install a few pumps a few minutes later my power shuts down, implying that now many coal generators don't get water.

Please help, kind community.

Edit. Sorry for video quality, Youtube ist still processing.

[Aven]

Mk. 1 pipes?

[GarlicIsLife]

Yes, I am pretty much at the beginning. Still my issue is: why doesn't the last one get less water then the one before it? Only this would make sense to me.

[sansee]

1. Always double check your math.
2. Always distribute water evenly.

In most cases, peoples coal generator design(s) fail because of one and/or two.
https://satisfactory.wiki.gg/wiki/Coal_Generator#/media/File:Coal_generator_pipe_analysis.png

Of course, you can dismantle and rebuild the affected pipe to see if there was a bug somewhere, however, Mark 1 pipes can NOT transfer more than 300m^3.

And no, pumps have no effect horizontally, they only provide vertical head-lift.

https://satisfactory.wiki.gg/wiki/Pipelines
https://satisfactory.wiki.gg/wiki/Water_Extractor
https://satisfactory.wiki.gg/wiki/Coal_Generator

[Vectorspace]

Coal generators need 45 water each. You have 7 generators. 7x45 is 315 water total
But the mk1 pipe can only carry 300, so you don't have enough water. I'm sure why this would maminfest as the last-but-one generator being without water.
To test that, try shutting off one of the working generators, and see if this problem generator then starts getting water.

[kLuns]

either a numbers mismatch or a bugged pipe

[xxCOOPSxx]

You are not providing enough water for the number of generators you have and the MK1 pipe cannot carry enough water for 7 generators if all the water is being fed via one end of the pipe system. As the demand is high than then the pipe can carry. This could be solved by feeding the water in via both ends of the systems. By splitting water extractors over the pipe work and connecting at different points you can spread out the supply and deal with the pipe transfer limit. For example if using 3 water extractors, feed 2 at one end of the pipe system and connect the last one to the end of the pipe system so water is being fed in via both ends.

[Jack-o-Lantern]

provide more water inserting new pipes from pump that get in the middle of the line of power plants.... so that as water is consumed from first plants, new pipe arrive to give more water to the one down the road

[Virtual Ocean Horizon]

Basically fluids are weird and a lot more complicated than the game lets on. Read this to troubleshoot:

https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/satisfactory_gamepedia_en/images/3/39/Pipeline_Manual.pdf

[Rage]

Basically i run one water pump every 2 generators now. until you get the mk2 pipes. Anything more and you'll be having those issues.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3016705701
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3016705665

[Die Hand Gottes]

Too many power plants in one pipe system with MK1 pipes
also with MK2 pipes it is limited you can not use more water than the pipes can deliver and you have to deliver more water than needed the pipe system is a little bit susceptible with error tolerances.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2931502714

[GarlicIsLife]

Thank you everyone! The part about to little water getting through mk1 pipes for my setup is clear now. Still it's a mystery as to why it is NOT the last coal generator the stays thirsty. I will rewire everything later and worst case buld another pipeline.

[Vectorspace]

Originally posted by GarlicIsLife:

Thank you everyone! The part about to little water getting through mk1 pipes for my setup is clear now. Still it's a mystery as to why it is NOT the last coal generator the stays thirsty. I will rewire everything later and worst case buld another pipeline.

The individual pipe to each gen is "humped" - it goes up a bit from the main pipe, and then down to the gen. Because the gen pipes leave the main pipe at an upwards angle.
Maybe the hump for that gen just happens to be slightly higher than the rest..? Fluids fill lower pipes before higher ones, so that might explain it.

The most common recommended setup for coal gens is 3 water extractors for a block of 8 gens, with one wather extractor feeding from each end, and one feeding from the middle.

My personal preference is 1 extractor underclocked to 76% for a block of 2 gens (so 4 extractors for 8 gens) the extra 1% ensuring there is always a water surplus. And because of the overclocking exponent 4 extractors @76% uses less power than 3 @100%, though with the downside of higher initial build cost. And I don't know if it's still less power after the overclocking exponent changes a couple of updates ago

[Teemo]

I like lazy/simple approaches. So when I start out, I just always build 1 extractor feeding 2 coal plants and I never run into stupid fluid issues that way. I don't connect them to other loops, or make a whole chain of plants with multiple extractors. Just 1 extractor, 2 plants, always works. Lazy and Simple.

[kLuns]

Originally posted by Teemo:

I like lazy/simple approaches. So when I start out, I just always build 1 extractor feeding 2 coal plants and I never run into stupid fluid issues that way. I don't connect them to other loops, or make a whole chain of plants with multiple extractors. Just 1 extractor, 2 plants, always works. Lazy and Simple.

Rinse and repeat. This is the perfect method which never causes problems.

In case you build your coal generators further away from water 3 extractor underclocked to 75% get 6 plants running with one pipe.
Fill everything up before connecting the power line and never look back again.