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Summary: Information and advice on Rainwater Harvesting Systems and collecting and re-using rainwater to use in the home and garden
What is rain water harvesting?
This is a way of collecting the rainwater that would normally just come off your roof etc and go into your drain, then putting it to better use.
You can use collected rain water to flush toilets, water gardens and wash your car instead of using already treated water that you are paying for. If your house has a metered mains supply you will see the advantage already.
How do you harvest rainwater?
The first thing that you need to do is install a collection tank somewhere on your property. This will need to be connected to your rain water downpipe system. From yearly rainfall figures in the UK, your system would collect about 100,000 litres. The rainwater is filtered as it enters the underground storage tank removing debris and leafs etc. The tank is connected to your house with the use of a pump which is activated on a supply and demand basis.
The collected rainwater would then be piped through to your toilet systems and used for flushing or pumped to external taps around your property for the above mentioned car washing facilities and garden watering. This system can also be used on any commercial building where no drinking water is required.
Rainwater Harvesting systems can save you up to 50% of the treated mains water you use in your home and with commercial buildings save up to 80% of the mains treated water they use. They can be installed to old and new properties. It would be cheaper to install to a new build as it is easier to install the plumbing connections if you plan to use harvested rainwater to provide water to toilets etc inside.
Cost can vary from £2000-£5000; depending on the size of your property and therefore the size of the holding tank and also the location of your holding tank (if it is a long way from your property it will cost more in pipe work and a larger pumping unit).
The storage tank is designed to keep the rainwater oxygenated as this discourages algae growth and any sediment that gets in is kept at the bottom of the tank. This water is not suitable for drinking. If there is a long dry spell and the rainwater level falls to a low point, the tank is connected to the treated mains water supply so the tank can be topped up and not allowed to dry out.
Maintenance of your system is minimal, usually just washing the filter once every three months. If you live in a hard water area you will find that installing a rainwater harvesting system will mean that white goods, such as your washing machine, will often last longer as rainwater is soft and therefore lime scale is not such a problem.
The only Building Regulations in place for Rainwater Harvesting Systems are:
Building Regulations Part H
Building Regulations Part G
Grants for the installation of these systems are not available yet for private households but are available for commercial buildings in the form of Tax Relief Schemes (ECA) for suitable approved equipment on the water Technology List.
You might like to go to our video section on Rainwater harvesting to watch a film on what is involved in installing a system in your home. There is also a video on how to set up a water butt in your garden.
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