Got a roof? Get a tank. Harvesting rainwater is a great way to conserve this one of the scarcest natural resources and save your dollars in the bargain.
An average family uses about 107,000 gallons of fresh water every year. Much of this is flushed down the toilet, goes down the drain or is used to water the garden. So if you have a house, then installing a rain barrel to reduce water waste seems like a no-brainer.
This spring many cities and communities all over the US and Canada are rolling out rain barrel and cistern programs. For some communities these are new programs while for others they are part of their now standard water conservation efforts. Many areas affected by drought such as those in California, Florida and New Mexico are offering rebates to jumpstart their water conservation efforts. For information in your area, contact your local water agency or city conservationist.
Many different tank sizes are available these days to fit either below or above the ground. They can even be flat so you can use them as a fence or under decks. Check out Aaron’s Rain Barrels for a variety of barrels made from wood or recycled plastic. Alternatively you make this a DIY project by setting out buckets to collect small reservoirs of rain that you can use to water your plants when rain is scarce.
More from GLI:
Bravo on this post! Rainwater harvesting is one of the easiest and most effective ways to make an direct impact by homeowners! Loved your photo, it demonstrates good scalability with the second tank there on the left.
The D-I-Y approach is taking off and people are finding you can build these systems yourself for a fraction of the cost of buying the pre-made ones on the net. There’s nothing wrong with those, but why not save the cash and build a better system? Free D-I-Y plans are available at http://www.BuildUrbanDams.com .
The power of water harvesting:
http://www.munnaontherun.com/2008/10/power-of-water-harvesting.html
Rain harvesting has been popular in Australia for years! A common complaint of traditional rain barrels is that they are hard to blend into your landscape, and/or are an eye-sore.
Check out this Australian designed modular system that you can design to integrate seamlessly with your yard or landscape. You can even install it under your house or beneath a deck!
http://mywaterfuture.com/i-162628-rainwater-hog-modular-rain-storage.html
Rain water harvesting is a great way to conserve fresh water. Another way might be to re-use gray water. There are also dozens of little things that we can do in our daily lives to save water. Things like taking shorter showers saves 5 gallons a day, and installing a smart sprinkler controller saves 40 gallons per day! Here are some more simple tips on water conservation: http://www.bewaterwise.com/tips01.html
Hope you find this useful!
rainwater harvesting guide – http://www.kingspanwater.com/rainwater_harvesting_information.htm
I’m looking forward to made a system conservation water but I have many questions about it and I don’t know where or who contact
I live in Fontana California my front and back yards are a little bigger and I like to keep it green but water is very expensive I spend 35 ccf of water monthly is like 80.00 dlls
My plan is buy 4 or 5 white containers of 1000 liters or 34 ccf if collect from rain I can have water for more then 6 month
I saw on different pages the containers are green and opaque could some body explain me why or if I can keep going with my white containers
Thanks for your help
Hi Marco,
I would recommend the folks at http://greywaterguerrillas.com as a source of additional information.
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