looking at a large underground cistern and am wondering the feasibility of holding water over long periods of time due to potential drought conditions.
it's possible - but it takes a little more effort to keep it fresh. think recirculation pump, aeration, and some filtration/purification.
there is a park in AZ that stores rainwater in tanker cars off site, then brings them back when they need it. don't remember the name or designer - sorry.
a low tech version involves using sand filters, and aerated sand traps (sand exposed to the elements - water level underground to keep it nice and "fresh"
We had to do it in the bahamas, although i wouldnt call it all that "long term", a couple months at a time maybe? Its a pretty well established thing down there. We just had two 8,000 gallon concrete cisterns built into the foundation. Its hard to say how it would react in a different ecosystem, I remember being told to deliberately leave a little hole to the exterior for each because the little froggies that come live in them keep them clean. Youre also definitely going to need access hatches and two chambers so you can pump the water from one to the other and clean them once a year or so.
long term storage of harvested rainwater
any success/tips?
looking at a large underground cistern and am wondering the feasibility of holding water over long periods of time due to potential drought conditions.
TK, any thoughts on this one?
holtz: don't have any direct experience to share with you, but came across this article recently - you may find it useful:
Examples of Rainwater Harvesting and Utilisation Around the World
it's possible - but it takes a little more effort to keep it fresh. think recirculation pump, aeration, and some filtration/purification.
there is a park in AZ that stores rainwater in tanker cars off site, then brings them back when they need it. don't remember the name or designer - sorry.
a low tech version involves using sand filters, and aerated sand traps (sand exposed to the elements - water level underground to keep it nice and "fresh"
We had to do it in the bahamas, although i wouldnt call it all that "long term", a couple months at a time maybe? Its a pretty well established thing down there. We just had two 8,000 gallon concrete cisterns built into the foundation. Its hard to say how it would react in a different ecosystem, I remember being told to deliberately leave a little hole to the exterior for each because the little froggies that come live in them keep them clean. Youre also definitely going to need access hatches and two chambers so you can pump the water from one to the other and clean them once a year or so.
Actually.. I think it was two 16,000 gallon tanks? Gosh now I cant remember if it was 16 each or 16 total...
the geogrid is the structure, which is pretty cool.
^ cool.
earthen dams do fine for long term storage...but you have to store alot of water to make it economical....like lake size storage
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