How do I balance a simple three pipe set up?

[GAMING_Alligator]

Could someone help me understand how I use pumps and valves to simply balance three pipes coming from an oil extractor into three refineries?

I feel like I'm missing something fundamental here, but no matter what I try, it's like the game just does not want to let me have an equal amount flowing three ways and one of the three refineries is always starved of resources.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3335391454

[Morsk]

You don't have to balance in this game. Just fill everything, and underclock consumers so added together they never try to use more than 100% of it. Or overclock the Oil Extractor so it makes enough for all 3. Oil nodes are rare so they usually get overclocked up to 300 or 600 to fill the pipes.

edit: This was not supposed to be controversial. It is the "manifolds vs. balancers" playstyle, applied to pipes. Other games are copying Factorio's "polite" machines that only fill with enough material for 3 crafts. Satisfactory machines fill all the way and are terrible at sharing, but with infinite nodes, you can fill everything, and then it works as long as you make sure they stay full.

[Jarlim]

The screenshot makes it look like itll work perfectly after some time running. Things to consider: how much oil is each refinery taking vs what the extractor produces. Mk 1 pipes which ure using allow a maximum flow of 300/min but also consider pipes hold fluid too.
Pumps just add headlift which allows fluids to flow upwards, and valves just restrict flow going along a certain pipe

[Fenix]

As long as the refineries aren't using more oil than the extractor is providing, you shouldn't need valves, and if the headlift is ok, you won't need a pump.
Basically you shouldn't need to do anything.... but putting valves on the 3 pipes going into the refineries wouldn't hurt.

[Famine]

4 pipe junctions. one in front of each machine, and link them in a line. another set out a little bit, and connect to the other 3 junctions.

for longer pipes with many junctions, the solution i have found is to run a second pipe in parallel and connect it to each end and the middle. this makes sure the last generators on a line also get enough fuel to run without interruption. just have a few off for a bit so the pipes can fill up first.

[Athor]

Maybe try a reservoir?

[Lord Rak]

Originally posted by GAMING_Alligator:

Could someone help me understand how I use pumps and valves to simply balance three pipes coming from an oil extractor into three refineries?

I feel like I'm missing something fundamental here, but no matter what I try, it's like the game just does not want to let me have an equal amount flowing three ways and one of the three refineries is always starved of resources.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3335391454

make sure you have enough Oil to supply all 3 refineries. Also, if supply like is running uphill at some point you may not be receiving the entire amount, you will need to apply a fluid pump on the bottom of the uphill.

[Omega420]

Like this:

And the same for the outputs...

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3234846100

[Acecool]

The problem with overclocking the extractor is if it produces too much it will stop working for longer than it takes to drain and you'll run into issues.

Balance the load.
Extractor, over 2x4m walls in vertical mode, into buffer / valve, then a straight line to the last refinery. Then add the + junctions and connect the last ones: https://steamcommunity.com/id/Acecool/screenshot/2479883856039447769/

From there, up and over the walls, into a straight pipe from the last one into the valve / buffer, then into the next location
https://steamcommunity.com/id/Acecool/screenshot/2479883856039439328/

600m^3 oil into 4 refiners producing 100 fuel each powering 8 fully overclocked fuel generators with 0 downtime using this method. The byproduct goes into smart splitter with overflow going to be sunk, then into an industrial chest, then to be used for fabric which has the same splitter, chest, setup.

[King6Joker7]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3U8t8J4fAXE&pp=ygUbc2F0aXNmYWN0b3J5IEZsdWlkIGR5bmFtaWNz

[black]

Originally posted by Morsk:

You don't have to balance in this game. Just fill everything, and underclock consumers so added together they never try to use more than 100% of it. Or overclock the Oil Extractor so it makes enough for all 3. Oil nodes are rare so they usually get overclocked up to 300 or 600 to fill the pipes.

ficsit would fire you :D
usually you can place storage containers in between, excess will stay there. you can also use slower belts with matching speed to route the excess somewhere else before or from the container.

consider using the different belt / pipe speeds to your advantage, very usefull in combo with splitters/mergers.

[Lord Rak]

excess is good and if it stops production in some cases, use smart splitter to sink it for coupons, soon enough you will need that excess for some thing and eventually it will turn up you dont have enough of it anyways. if you will start playing by accounting every single unit, endgame will be very very difficult for you.

[Morsk]

Originally posted by black:

ficsit would fire you :D
usually you can place storage containers in between, excess will stay there. you can also use slower belts with matching speed to route the excess somewhere else before or from the container.

consider using the different belt / pipe speeds to your advantage, very usefull in combo with splitters/mergers.

That is a lot of work and is just not needed if you keep everything full. For pipes, you would have to put valves everywhere. For belts you are only approximating by trying to match belt speeds to machines. Unless you clock every machine to match its input belt.

I feel if Satisfactory wanted me to do that, it would make it easier. But instead it gives us infinite nodes and makes it easy to fill everything and keep it full.

[shoopy]

Instead of thinking of flow rate, I think of pipe capacity. When you look at a pipe you can see how much fluid that pipe is actually holding, and you want this to be stable.

You can have a flow rate of X per minute but it doesn't matter if pipe sections are empty because of fluid sloshing and the fluid isn't there when the machine actually wants it, so I make sure there is enough fluid actually in the pipes so that no amount of sloshing will fully empty a pipe, and as long as the input and output to the system are equalized the amount in the entire system will stay about the same. It can still slosh around inside the system but you don't get air gaps in your pipes because the ripples never empty any particular section.

[mr_pan7s]

Originally posted by Morsk:

Originally posted by black:

ficsit would fire you :D
usually you can place storage containers in between, excess will stay there. you can also use slower belts with matching speed to route the excess somewhere else before or from the container.

consider using the different belt / pipe speeds to your advantage, very usefull in combo with splitters/mergers.

That is a lot of work and is just not needed if you keep everything full. For pipes, you would have to put valves everywhere. For belts you are only approximating by trying to match belt speeds to machines. Unless you clock every machine to match its input belt.

I feel if Satisfactory wanted me to do that, it would make it easier. But instead it gives us infinite nodes and makes it easy to fill everything and keep it full.

but there isn't infinite nodes unless you mean the node never runs out but why would you want to include more nodes because you didn't balance properly? manifold is alright in some situations but if you are producing in your factory the exact number of computers you need to deliver to 3 different machines then a manifold is far inferior to a balanced belt load as the first machine in the manifold will fill up far faster which isn't a huge deal if you fill all your belts prior to turning the machines on but otherwise balanced belts all the way. i never manifold except instances like the poly that comes out of the refinery because i am just sinking it but if i was using it somewhere i would balance it in so the the first refinery in the manifold doesn't dump all it's poly while the rest wait for the priority set by the manifold

[Quantum Operator]

I run a main line across the factory, and then have multiple feeds into it from different water water extractors, ensuring even and constant pressure throughout the entire network at all times.