Wed, 2008-04-02 10:32 — Debby
Hey guys, anyone have a rainwater collection cistern? We have 6 people in our family and are wondering how big of a cistern would we need to collect rainwater into? I realize this may depend on where we live. We are up in Northern Alberta. Lots of snow in the winter, good amounts of rain in spring and fall and some in summer as well. We are open to bringing in some hauled water if needed, but would like to have a big enough cistern to collect the rain that falls in a given year or more. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
Debby
Comments
Rainwater Harvesting Website
I found a great resource last night, with lots of links to articles, including an Excel file you can download to easily calculate your potential rainwater harvest per year. Check out http://www.harvesth2o.com/. Be sure to check out the articles, FAQ, and resources.
I plan to use a catchment system, although it sounds like there may be significant hurdles. According to the realtor I spoke to (who lives on the mountain and has a "grandfathered in" catchment system himself), the county will not allow it as a primary water source. He did say that it is about time someone "throw down the gauntlet" on this issue...I'm not sure I'm up for that just yet, but maybe after setting up a good system for recreational use in the meantime. The thought of trying to drill a well into the side of the mountain sounds almost as daunting!
Louanne
Hey John
John, I wasn't sure if you just disappeared or what? I'll look up your email address and contact you. I don't know where I put your phone number, so haven't been able to contact you. Would still love to come and see your system.
Debby
Debby-Rain water
Hello Debby,
I think I mentioned to you months ago when we spoke that I was using rain water instead of my well, and much happier for it.
I will tell you what works for me but every situation is so different that what works for me may be useless advice for you.It is like advice on a solar setup
My roof is roughly 44 ft long by 40ft the holding tank under the basement floor is 8ft wide 6ft deep and 21 or 22 ft long. it has a overfill line that when full the extra incomming water just drains to the pond outside.
I also have 3 225 gallon upright tanks sitting in a corner of the basement.
Its to late in the evenning for me to do the math but it works out to a lot of water.
When I first did this years ago the water did not last me all year as I never changed my consumption patterns.
I ran out sometime in Jan, or febuary. After I made some efforts toward consumption reduction I now can go year round no problem ( I can give you specific advice on reducing use if your interested) and it was the best thing I ever did.
No more rusty well water. While I can go year round, I do order in one truck full of city water in febuary for roughly 120 dollars for 3000+ gallons. I do this just because I want to flush the tank with good sterile, clorinated water to stop dead any bad stuff that might want to grow in the tank, though I have not had any problems in over 8 years.
It works well for me.ymmv.
If you have any specific question just e mail me, my address is in a previous post on this board somewhere.
John
:-)
I think Rod had some figures in the "RV living" post about how much water you could get off roof.
http://www.loghomebuilders.org/rv-living
Here's a few links about rain water harvesting.
http://www.rwh.in/
http://www.greenbuilder.com/Sourcebook/Rainwater.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=besl1h6t6FA
Lot's of math required for
Lot's of math required for that question. At the very least, I'd need to know your current water consumption, annual precipitation, and any unusual weather trends.