Hi,
I have a 550 gallon tank sitting on top of a small hill. I plan on using this tank's contents to supply a tank/pump combo I bought from Harbor Freight Tools which has a pressure regulator on it. I have a pressure regulator and made a manifold with 3 zones for irrigation of fruit trees and bushes.

The issue is that I need to find a way to ensure that the tank doesn't run dry. The tank is supplied with water from an irrigation pond via 1" piping and a 2hp motor. The motor runs hot and the amps require heavy duty 110 power lines. The tank sits about 30' above the pond and the pump is powerful enough to fill the tank when no restrictions are placed on the line. The pump at the pond doesn't have any pressure mechanism on it.

The water source is below the field by 10-20 feet depending on the location. As a result, pumping the water straight to the manifold wasn't giving me sufficient pressure. However, the tank with the gravity and the pump provide sufficient pressure to the top of the field.

How can I control the flow of water (the pump at the pond), so the tank (above) always has water? I am not around to check the level frequently, so it needs to be pretty automated. Right now, the pump is powered by a heavy duty mechanical pump switch with a timing mechanism.

I have researched and seen septic pump float switches etc... but how would that work with a heavy duty pump? I haven't seen any switches which will hold the power.

I don't like the idea of controlling the pond pump with a pressure regulator in-line paired with a foat valve on the tank because of a risk of the hose bursting. If this happened, the pump would run continuously.

Any ideas? Monitoring the water usage on the tank after a regular irrigation cycle is somewhat accurate, but when you add in variables of a rain sensor shutting down a cycle etc... it isn't possible.

Any ideas? Thanks for your contributions. I would be happy to answer any questions.