Let's all harvest rainwater!

by Melisa Camp

Published Feb. 28, 2011, edited Oct. 4, 2013

I've always thought rainwater harvesting was an appealing concept. Even though I live in Arizona, we have monsoon season. I've also been inspired by my own father’s water conservation efforts- yes he collects rainwater in garbage cans from his 2nd story patio runoff. The concept it simple, collect the free water provided by nature during a storm and use it when you need it to water plants or flush toilets year round. It is as easy as putting a barrel under a downspout or as complex as many interconnected barrels utilizing gravity and/or pumps. Tanks can hold 50 to 4000 gallons depending on the space you have available and the amount you want to collect. If you really want to get crazy you can get a ultrasonic monitor to tell you how much water is in the tank at any given time. There are also accessories to keep leaves, debris, mosquitoes, and pests out of the harvesting system.

 Here is how it works:  A storage tank is fitted to your stormwater drain from your roof, and falling rain enters the tank through a filter which removes leaves and other matter. The storage tank can be buried under driveway, a garden or can sit outside on the property, and contains a pump which pumps the rainwater to the building where it is piped to the toilets, and/or to the outside watering system. The systems can work for both homes and offices.It is estimated you can save about 30% of your tap water use and the average home collects about 100,000 liters (26,417 gallons) of water per year, according to  savetherain.com.  Oasis Water Harvesting  in Tucson sells a 250 gallon tank for $331 and goes up to a 4,000 gallon tank for $3,045. The accessory kit is only $30. They also have various decorative tanks but my favorite is a wagon wheel top tank they call “Cubo” for those looking for some more aesthetics and it ranges $239 for a 55 gallon to $385 for a 200 gallon tank.  

 

For the record, my Dad’s rainwater collection in random containers is the Polish way of rainwater collection, however he did save enough water to water all of the vegetation all week long and did not have to turn on the sprinklers. I’m proud of my parents for being mindful of their water use and proud to be Polish too! For more information  contact me.–Melisa Camp, M.Ed.

GoGreenInvestmentsLLC.com
Greenqueen.FeaturedBlog.com

greenhabremodel.com

Know someone looking to buy, sell, or invest anywhere in the world? I’d love to help and share what I know. Referrals always welcome!