How to get answers to some 'dam hard' questions

There are now a range of online tools available to assist farmers in assessing the volume of water in their dams and how long that water may last.

Agriculture Victoria Land Management Extension Officer Clem Sturmfels said assessing how much water there is in a dam could be difficult due to a dam’s odd shape and formulas used to measure their volume.

"Farm dams generally hold less water than expected and in a dry year, it’s important farmers have a good understanding of how much water is left in their dams and plan accordingly," Mr Sturmfels said.

"The volume of a dam is closely related to its length and width. A stable, well-built dam has gently sloping sides which nearly meet in the middle of the dam’s base.

"For example, a rectangular dam measuring 33m by 22m has a depth of approximately 3m and volume of approximately 1 million litres or 1 megalitre. A triangular shaped dam with similar measurements has a volume of approximately half this amount."

He said evaporation caused a loss of about 60% of this volume leaving the dam with enough water to carry about 200 sheep or 20 cattle for one year.

"Many dams rely on a regular top-up of water during autumn or spring, however this year has seen dry seasonal conditions, making the chance of a top up less likely due to depleted soil moisture and less runoff," Mr Sturmfels said.

Agriculture Victoria has several tools to help farmers calculate dam volumes based on shape, length, width and depth, including the Farm Water Calculator and the Summer Water Calculator.

The Summer Water Calculator also helps to calculate how long the remaining water may last.

The depth of a dam can be measured using a depth sounder or fishing line measuring device.

A how to video for making and using the fishing line measuring device can be accessed on the Agriculture Victoria website: Measuring the depth of your dam.