March 30, 2020

Rain Water Harvesting Techniques

By Robert N. Perry

Rain water harvesting techniques are one of the most common options for people who are developing an emergency water supply or are into recycling water to minimize consumption from municipal and city water lines. While not overly complicated, rain water harvesting does have its fair share of challenges and demands. In this post, we will talk about having a rain water collection system in the context of disaster preparedness so you can learn how to harvest rainwater for yourself very easily.

Now, the premise of water harvesting is fairly obvious: you should be living in an area that sees ample rain the whole year round. It is foolish to consider harvesting water from seasonal rain if you know you don't have enough of it to begin with. Given this, your first challenge is to determine whether the area you are located in is suited to a rain water harvesting system or if you are better off finding emergency water supply from some other source.

Let's suppose you are in an area where rain water harvesting techniques are plausible. Your next challenge is setting up your collecting system. In truth, there aren't many variations to rain water harvesting and most require minimal skills to setup. One can even purchase a system from a local hardware store and have someone bring it to your home and assemble it.

If you choose to do it by yourself, you will need a rain water collection system and a storage facility. Intermediate purification systems may also be required depending on the quality of the gathered water. For example, homes in the tropics that see plenty of leaves on the roof also accumulate a lot of contaminants that require additional purification prior consumption of the water. However, if the water is just going to be used for things like watering the yard or garden this wouldn't be necessary.

The best collecting mechanism is a trough that lines the end of your roof. It is also advisable that your roof is angled so that the water naturally flows into the trough. This trough is then routed into a drainage pipe that leads straight to a storage tank. If purification is required, a series of simple filters consisting of screens and meshes can be installed to gather the contaminants. However, these filters must be regularly cleaned to prevent blockage which can reduce your rain water harvest. As an additional note, rain water cisterns can also be used in place of storage tanks although you have to remember that if water is stored below the level at which you will need to use it, then you are going to need a pump to make the water flow during usage.

Rain water harvesting techniques are very simple to do but the system must be installed correctly so you can ensure a steady harvest that produces usable water. Brush up on plenty of relevant references on the web and talk to commercial suppliers so you can determine the best rain water collection system for your home that will perfectly serve you and your family's needs.

If you are going to use your harvested water for drinking purposes you need to do a lot more research. Be sure and browse through our large number of articles on emergency water purification to gain more knowledge on the subject.