Tutorials/Infinite water source

An infinite water source is an endless supply of water that is either created naturally or by the player. Whenever you use a bucket to scoop water out of this source, it will just fill right back up again and again, thus meaning it is an infinite water source. These are not difficult to make, but in certain spawning biomes (where the player spawns when opening a new world) it is more difficult to obtain. The infinite water source is most difficult to make in tundra and taiga biomes, since it turns into ice.

Infinite Water Source Creation

 * A simple tutorial on infinite water sources can be found here. Generally, an infinite water source is always one block deep, and have at least three connected water source blocks (NPC Villages have wells, but they get drained with use before version 1.5, being several blocks deep).

Different Types Of Infinite Water Sources

 * Creating one in a warmer biome is simple. Take two buckets of water, then dig a 2x2 hole that is one block deep. Next put the first water in any corner. Put the second bucket in the opposite corner.


 * Another option is to dig a channel one block deep, one block wide, three blocks long, and place water in the two end spaces (of the three). The middle water space can now be removed infinitely. This helps when filling in large areas with water; the player can make this infinite source nearby and keep pulling from the middle space.


 * A third option includes making a 3x3 square that is one block deep, filling in three of the corners and you have a larger infinite water source.


 * A 4th option is to dig a '+' shape and place 4 water blocks in the 4 'arms'. The middle then becomes an infinite water source, but this is not recommended as the second method above yields the same result but uses half of the water blocks, but it can be argued that this method can be used to replicate Desert Wells.


 * In the recent snapshots infinite water source blocks can form on top of a water source block, and a layer of blocks below it is no longer needed. This makes the creation of man made lakes easier.

Issues In Tundra and Taiga Biomes

 * In an icy biome, a standard infinite water source could turn into ice. Adding a few torches, glowstones or redstone lanterns nearby will stop this from occuring and melt the ice and snow before it freezes the water.


 * Freezing can also be prevented by building a roof above the water. It can be made of any solid material (even transparent blocks like glass, fences or even ice), and it can be confidently placed blocks above the water so as not to interfere with player interaction.

Filling In A Large Area



 * Instead of manually adding 2x2 water sources, you can easily fill a large even area by placing water in a fashion like in this diagram: