Top Solutions for Storing the Excess Rain Water You Harvest

The article below outlines for good points and ideas. Polyethylene water tanks are subject to price fluctuations but in South Africa, JoJo Tanks usually fix prices for at least a year, even with oil/fuel price hikes.

Harvesting rainwater is arguably the best way to save money on water, especially in arid climates, while doing your part to preserve the world’s most precious and dwindling resource.

Polyethylene tanks are excellent, but can be expensive when oil prices are high.

When it comes to storage, there are several options. You’ve taken the step of harvesting rainwater; now make sure you can put it to good use in the ensuing days and weeks. Follow this guide to storing harvested rainwater.

Major Storage

For large amounts of rainwater, more than 50,000 gallons, coming from projects such as water gleaned from very large parking lots or rooftops, subterranean storage containers are the best option. Prefab, watertight concrete vaults are a great way to store water underground. Water can be allowed to bleed into the surrounding ground to revitalize the soil, or can be pumped out for concentrated usage.

They’re permanent and they don’t require a lot of maintenance, but they are expensive (budgeting is a must; check out these budgeting tools) and require some logistical work and know-how.

Medium Storage

If you’re storing between 1,000 and 20,000 gallons, you – like most commercial operations – fall into the medium storage category. Since this is the largest category, there are many manufacturers and styles from which to choose. Some of the most popular types of medium storage tanks are fiberglass tanks, polyethylene tanks, and steel tanks. Most harvested water in this category is bled back into the earth to revitalize the surrounding soil, irrigation, indoor plumbing, and landscaping or power washing uses.

Little Storage

Most people and businesses harvest small to moderate amounts of water.

If you’re storing a small amount of harvested rainwater, anywhere from 50 to 5,000 gallons, you’re probably going to want to go with steel or polyethylene water tanks. These options are for homeowners or owners of very small businesses for uses such as flushing toilets. The most popular tanks, made of polyethylene, are a great option because they last essentially forever and they can be stored either indoors, outdoors, sheltered, or underground. One drawback is that since they are petroleum based, they are subject to cost swings as the price of oil goes up and down.

Water is the most precious, scarce, and dwindling natural resource on the planet. Only a tiny percentage of water is drinkable freshwater, and the vast majority of that is trapped as ice on the Earth’s poles. When it falls out of the sky, it is certainly wise to try to catch the part that you can’t use immediately.

Once rainwater is harvested, storage strategy is paramount. Improperly stored standing water is dangerous, but stored properly, you can save money – and the planet – with minimal effort and expense.

Source: Andrew Lisa (Andrew is a freelance writer living in Los Angeles. He writes about rainwater harvesting and the green movement).

JoJo Tanks South Africa offer a wide range of products such as plastic water tanks and chemical tanks to suit every household, business or agricultural need, including silo tanks and silo tank stands as well as other high quality JoJo Tanks products.  See JoJo Tanks’ VERTICAL TANKS, HORIZONTAL TANKS (transporter tanks), STEEL TANK STANDS and OTHER JOJO PRODUCTS and see JoJo Tanks’ NEW 6000 LITRE UNDERGROUND TANKS. Also see our FAQ and WATER TANK PRICES.