We live on the West Coast in Canada, Eh, and I am looking to set up a system to collect rain water to be used to water the garden and lawn in the dry month (July)..to be used all year as we don’t get snow, just rain….
Does anyone have any experience on systems they have installed or materials for the storage?
Alex
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Replies
Buddy,
I dont know much about any of the systems, but I have been thinking about trying to set something up. Have you also thought about what I believe is called a 'grey water'collection system? This is a system that collects the used water from your sinks and sends it to a collection system or watering system. Unfortunately, thats all I can tell you about that also.
-Matt
I just completed one with two 45 gallon plastic drums, a small swimming pool filter and a old fashioned cast iron hand pump. It collects water off my roof and stores in the ground (drums are buried) and then we can draw it out via the hand pump. Fliter acts to keep out leaves and insects.
Not potable of course but works great for flowerplant usages and irrigation around the house where my wife waters with a watering can. Plus the old pump looks kinda nice in front of our pseudo Victorian style house.
Rain water collects FAST so I may consider adding another drum or two but don't want to dig any right now as its in the high 90s each day!
Mike
Mike , Dig down deeper for the new drums , it's cooler down deep .Ya know the saying colder than a well diggers butt.
If one lives in the Oregon outback, one must have firefighting water stored on site. I use two, 2500 (US)gallon tanks. They are a black plastic about eight feet tall and eight feet in diameter. Cost about $800 each plus delivery ($30). They are sturdy and can be rolled into place, then tipped upright and slid-jostled into position. Some folks just buy an above ground pool then swim in and store 30,000+ gallons. Large amounts of water do not freeze readily in western Oregon but western Canada may be a bit cooler in wintertime.
From what I have read, it is best to determine the amount of water you think you will need as some storage systems become cheaper as they get larger. Bonus - these black tanks do not grow algae as they omit all light. That is important as algae can clog drip irrigation systems.
I believe Fine Homebuilding had an article last year on a large storage system. It was poured concrete and had a divider in the center to section off each half for cleaning. collection and filter details were also shown.
This is an interesting topic to watch as predictions are that we will be short on water across the US by 2010.
Will
Depending on the amount of water you wish to store, I know leevalley.com has systems to collect water. Look under the gardening section of their catalog
Weekendwarrior is right about the Lee Valley drums. They look pretty slick, but barrels can only hold a rather limited amount of water.
How much money do you want to spend? There are a couple of serious options that come to mind, but you're looking at some bucks either way.
A large, in-ground tank (Or cistern) would be a good bet. I grew up with one of these back on the farm, which we used for our hot water. (Cold water came from a well - Made showers interesting) The last one I saw go in was an 8' X 8' X 20' tank, which took water from the house and barn's gutters. Add a well pump, expansion tank, and some frost proof hydrants and you've got a heck of a system. Leave the option to tie it into your home water supply, and you've got a backup water system if your primary one goes down. Or you could get by cheap and use a sump pump and flexible hose.
The second idea that comes to mind is a pond. You could easily get into some big bucks here, but ponds have other benifits too. (Fishing, swimming, erosion control, etc.) There's a slim chance you might not be able to build a 3 or 4 acre pond if you live on a 1/4 acre lot in the city though.
Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city.
BTW - Here's the Lee Valley stuff:
http://www.leevalley.com/garden/page.asp?page=10366&category=2,2280,33168&ccurrency=2&SID=
The only reason some people get lost in thought is because it's unfamiliar territory.