Water tanks and no electricity

Can water tanks be useful to a business, farm or home where there is no electricity?  Of course! With a little forethought, water tanks can supply an ‘off-grid’ building with water, whether the source is from rain water harvesting or from other sources.

If rain water can be collected off a collection surface that is located at a higher elevation than the main building, sufficient pressure can be generated using gravity.  Although appliances requiring high pressure water input  may not be able to function at 100% efficiency, there will usually be sufficient pressure for faucets/taps and baths/basins.  An example would be a car port or other outbuilding that is situated above the house.  Rainwater tanks can be positioned under the roof where gutters and downspouts can direct collected rainwater into the water tanks.  The stored water in the water tanks can then be directed via pipeline down to the house or building using gravity alone.

If no pressure is required, water tanks can be installed below the main building’s roof and rainwater collected as above.  A tap or faucet at the bottom of the rain water tank allows the stored rainwater to be directed to the garden below the level of the tank or collected in a smaller container so that it can be manually taken to wherever it is needed (e.g. for toilet flushing, bathing, washing car, etc.).  Rainwater can also be used for drinking water if it is appropriately filtered/purified (rainwater is usually pure before it reaches the roof or collection surface but may be contaminated with dust, etc on the roof or in the gutters).  It is also important to select a good quality water tank that is inert and will not leach chemicals into the stored water.

In South Africa, we recommend JoJo Tanks products.  All JoJo vertical and horizontal water tanks are made with an inner food-grade (FDA-approved) lining that keeps the water fresher for longer and inhibits algae growth.  Click on the links below to view the wide range of JoJo water tanks, JoJo rainwater tanks, JoJo septic tanks, JoJo silo tanks, JoJo steel water tank stands and other high quality JoJo Tanks products.