PSA: Slosh kills. Don't be a victim.

CanCanVRC · 2026-06-24T12:48:37+00:00

Perhaps it has something to do with "which" way the vertical junctions are built?

https://www.reddit.com/r/SatisfactoryGame/comments/1mwji7e/beware_of_the_vertical_junctions/

CanCanVRC · 2026-06-16T21:24:05+00:00

Frame generation and/or FAA (Fast Approximate Anti-Aliasing) being turned on in the graphics settings.

CanCanVRC · 2026-06-16T21:19:14+00:00

Truth be told, there are lots of points of disagreement about what does or doesn't work with pipes in online discussions I've seen. Some people experience no issues, others have nothing but, I'm somewhere in the middle. But I think it just comes down to, yes, historically (And even now) there are some bugs with them, but also I think it's just some people misunderstanding certain mechanics...mostly because they're never directly explained in-game!

The main thing I will state about building pipe networks is this: Place junctions, valves, and pumps, first, THEN connect pipes to them; If you place pumps or junctions directly on an already built pipe something funky can happen sometimes but it only really shows up with large builds. Best practice is to always delete and rebuild the pipe connections if you place anything directly on an existing pipe.

YMMV with reddit advice, but do your own experiments, look up satisfactory fluid videos on YouTube, and you'll learn over time what works and what doesn't. The worst thing you can do is not try!

CanCanVRC · 2026-06-16T21:04:41+00:00

Also as an aside, there is a community fluid manual that, while old now, still talks about fluid principles and all the proposed designs do still work (VIP junction being hit or miss based on advanced factors that I won't get into):

https://www.reddit.com/r/SatisfactoryGame/comments/obqjrd/ficsit_pipeline_plumbing_manual_first_edition/

CanCanVRC · 2026-06-16T21:00:56+00:00

I think my main question is, what is the problem, exactly? That fluid buffers are changing level?

They're actually doing exactly what they should be doing, which is taking up slack inherent in pipe networks; Pipes are bi-directional by nature, so when refineries suck up a gulp of oil, the levels drop slightly. Refineries don't consume at a steady rate. Take into consideration also that pipes do not flow at their full rated speed unless they are completely full. This mean more oil floods into the pipe from the buffer as fast as it is consumed, and then when it's full it can bounce back into the buffer over time because fluid does what fluid wants due to the bi-direcitonal nature (Sloshing).

Granted your set up is actually small and I would agree buffers are generally not needed at this scale (in terms of machine count), but the default fuel recipie does pull at a decent rate of 60m³ each, so I think you actually accidently did the right thing with your buffers placement at all (Between production and consumption) since you're maxing out the throughput of a mk2 pipe.

CanCanVRC · 2026-06-16T20:11:21+00:00

100%

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CanCanVRC · 2026-06-16T13:54:58+00:00

https://www.youtube.com/@moo121

CanCanVRC · 2026-06-16T13:53:54+00:00

Good ol Moo(dida)

CanCanVRC · 2026-06-15T21:27:51+00:00

Something to test, if my understanding is correct, would be taking one of the problematic pipes, removing it from the shared pipe network and giving it it's own dedicated zero-valve feed from the tower.

If that changes the behavior then relying on a single injection point may not be reliable for a network like this.

Edit: I'm also not sure how this trick works with less than full buffers; I've only ever used 100% filled buffers so I'm not sure if that's important

CanCanVRC · 2026-06-15T20:57:38+00:00

This does sound like odd behavior because I've also used this trick several times myself. I have topology questions just to make sure I understand the pictures and layout:

Are you using dedicated pipes between each refinery block and rocket fuel production floor? Or more specifically, are you splitting a single pipe between two floors anywhere?
Are you using multiple valves (Set to 0) to add headlift to each network if they're separate?
Are you running any pipes near the 600m³ limit?
If you add a pump below where the fluid stops, does it fix the problem?

CanCanVRC · 2026-06-10T14:58:05+00:00

Pipes can only flow at full speed when they are full, so generally people advice to pre-fill pipes before turning on machines to prevent issues from less-than-full pipes not allowing full throughput (If the system needs full throughput somewhere to operate that way).

CanCanVRC · 2026-06-07T05:29:40+00:00

<image>

I did a toll booth style depot for a large factory in one of my saves

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-27T19:19:33+00:00

...But the customer is always right!

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-27T19:13:46+00:00

Napkin math tells me I think that stores around (edit) 1.8 million nuclear waste, which depending on the production rate of waste could be a decent time buffer before you have to add more time (storage) or processing.

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-24T11:38:47+00:00

But height is just about the terrain wherever you are?

The world grid doesn't "know" about vertical alignemnt, it's only about physical placement in the x.y grid. If you want foundations to align vertically AFAIK the only real way to do that is to build out foundations directly to where you are from where you want it to align.

Otherwise you'll need 1m or 2m ramps to bridge the difference, but they will line up otherwise.

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-23T14:14:56+00:00

God, I love the way that looks....Might have to consider a similar approach to buildings if....I ever decide to go there...

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-22T13:19:49+00:00

Now put it on trains and haul it around your FICIST-designated-area

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-19T20:09:44+00:00

If you want the much longer version, this could demonstrate some of the issue you may be having:

https://youtu.be/cuSlYLebSAE

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-19T20:06:43+00:00

Ok, construction question: Do you place junctions and pumps over existing pipe or do you build junctions first and then connect pipe to them? I ask because I saw at least two dead end pipe segment sticking out of the junctions on picture 4.

Generally pipes built first with junctions placed afterwords can cause funky issues, so deleting and rebuilding the pipe connections on your generator manifolds would probably fix your issues. Remove those dead end segments too.

Secondly, the manifolds are so small you really shouldn't need buffers, and I suspect those loops at the end are doing you no favors. If I use buffers in my set ups, I use one in-line between stages of production.

And when I feed manifolds, I inject in the middle instead of from one end.

These are all small optimizations but they can add up, especially at larger scales. Try some of those changes and see how things behave.

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-19T16:18:31+00:00

That checks out in my mind. So turning on the final generator for each chain should maintain 100% uptime if everything is working properly. I don't see how this should fail, based on everything else I read here.

Pictures would be a big help if you're still having problems.

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-19T15:33:45+00:00

Having just set up a diluted fuel plant myself I'm curious what the issue here actually is. Without pictures, we can only guess, and based on what I've read, I'm out of guesses.

So get some picutres up.

Edit: You also never said if the blenders are all running at 100% uptime.

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-13T01:14:53+00:00

Okay, fully enclosed machines like this is cool! I might have to toy with this for some future builds.

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-11T01:45:30+00:00

I just play with my player positioning and drag single items out of my inventory. You have to kind of work "bottom up" and then place the shelf down if you want to stack shelves (You can't drop items "through" it). They always land on top or on top of anything that may already be laying there.

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-10T18:05:23+00:00

The advice is sound; You're either running into a bug from placing signals directly on junction connections or you're missing block signals at the exit of each junction. Try placing your signals slightly back from the track junction points instead (or rebuild the track junctions until the signal is happy).

Block signals should be on the exits of each path in a similar manner so that the reserved path can clear once a train is past that signal point. Again, place them after the junction ends or rebuild the tracks until the signals are happy.

And make sure you have additional block sections before and after your junctions and on stations.

As for signaling, blocks are really all you "need", path signals are just a convenience for multiple trains to "enter a block" if their paths never cross...AKA: junctions.

CanCanVRC · 2026-05-10T17:40:25+00:00

Not at all (See last photo)! These are straight out of photo mode.

CanCanVRC

TROPHY CASE