great thank you just setting up my water tank - however i have a bore for the garden so want to set it up for drinking water. Would a set up like this be ok?
If you google "first flush", there's a few different brands. The idea is that most of the dirt, leaves and twigs go down that pipe as waste and only fills your tank with clean(er) water. Hope this helps
The video title should be: "How to install a water tank, waste lots of money and help flood Hawkesbury/Nepean homes" That looks like a 3000L tank. Typical installed cost in Sydney including pump is around $2,000. Town water currently costs around $2.50/kl (in Sydney) so tank holds $7.50 worth of water. Typical pump is 1200W and pumps 3700L/hr so it will take 0.81 hrs to empty the tank and will use 0.97kWh of electricity. At a typical cost of 26c per kWh it will cost 25c in electricity, meaning the tank holds $7.25 worth of free water. Average annual rainfall in a typical Sydney suburb (Bankstown) is around 880mm. Typical catchment roof space is around 80sqm (not 200sqm as some sites claim because few older houses with retro-fitted tanks like this one collect from all downpipes). Total water falling on roof collection area is 880 x 80 = 70,000L per year, but a lot of it falls during storms and overflows the tank, so realistic collection amount is 50,000L per year, or 17 tankfulls. That saves around $123 in water rates per year or $2,460 over the 20-year life-expectancy of a poly tank. Even if roof collection area was 200sqm the saving would not be significantly more as most of it would overflow the 3000L tank each time it rains. A pump only lasts around 15 years so during those 20 years there will be at least $500 in pump repair/replacement costs, sludge cleaning and other maintenance. That means for an outlay of $2,500 over 20 years you get a return of $1,960. If you had invested $2,500 in the share market 20 years ago (June 2002) instead of installing a water tank, that investment would now be worth $9,700 (according to the stock market calculator on Noel Whittaker's website), meaning owning the tank would have cost you $9,700 - $1,960 = $7,700. But at least you get a warm fuzzy feeling that you are somehow saving the planet. Except that you aren't. The three recent floods in the Hawkesbury/Nepean, that cost insurance companies (meaning the public) tens of millions of dollars, would not have occurred if Warragamba Dam had been significantly lower, as would have been the case if not for all the BASIX-mandated water tanks in Sydney. There are downsides to everything. As for the black ball in the "first flush diverter" which another user asks about, the theory of the ball is to separate the initial dirty water from the clean water. Without it the initial dirt still falls into the diverter until it fills up, but the subsequent water passing over the top continually stirs up the water in the diverter causing most of the fine dirt to eventually make its way back out and into the tank. In reality the entire diverter setup achieves virtually nothing. The one in the video is around 1.2m long x 90mm diameter. It holds just 7.6L of water. It fills up within a few seconds during a downpour, long before most of the dirt on the roof has reached the guttering, let alone flowed along it and down the downpipe. Heavy sand etc. will fall into the diverter but the fine suspended silt and organic matter flows straight over it. To provide any dirt collection benefit at all the diverter should extend right to the ground, but the downside is that it then reduces water catchment during light rain. It also increases another problem which is a constantly damp, algae-covered patch on the concrete beside and around the tank, as the diverter slowly empties drip by drip, even weeks after the last rain. A hose can be connected to the diverter and run to the nearest lawn but that is often impractical. There is an excellent article titled "To First Flush, or not to First Flush" on the US Bluebarrel website (links aren't allowed here - Google it). It points out amongst other things that most rainwater tanks are used for watering plants and that the fine organic material that the diverters are supposed to eliminate is a good source of free fertiliser.
Very very very well put together. I completely agree with all of your points. Only thing I didn’t fully agree with was your thoughts on the diverter. I installed a diverter in my setup with the school of thought I don’t want algae/bacteria build up at the bottom of my tank in the long term. Apart from a small bit of differing view as above, completely agree with your thoughts. The primary reason for me installing a rainwater tank at my place is to add capacity to my two pits given I added a shed with roof of circa 30sqm. This extra catchment area has flooded my back yard twice in the recent 2022 Sydney rains we’ve had. I assume the two pits the builders put in when they built my house, the pits were only specd to support catchment off my roof only. Your post is a clear eye opener to anyone looking for the economical benefits of rain water harvesting! Well done. Alex
@@Gamer_Marcy_God Thanks for the comments. Diverters make little difference to algae or bacteria build-up. If you are mainly using the tank to water the garden then all you are doing is removing useful nutrients. Even a full-height diverter pipe only collects about 15L of water or about 10 seconds worth in a downpour. Bird droppings on the roof can take minutes to dissolve away. The diverter fills with water before the majority of bird droppings or other dirt, algae, lichen, dust etc. on the roof has reached the diverter. To confirm it for yourself just remove the tank inlet sieve and get a broom or mop and swish it around on the bottom for a few seconds then turn on the tap or pump and see how dirty the water is. If you want a permanently clean tank then get a Tankvac. They waste some water but often that water would have overflowed anyway. You can easily make one yourself for about the same price as a ball style diverter. Just google their patents, which have both now expired by the way. Obviously not much demand for them.
I agree with water tanks purchases v town water it's not financially viable at all. To be fully self sufficient you need at least 50-80k in home green energy investments to go fully or part off grid. The ROI on renewables is absurd considering the climate crisis we're in and green energy is the answer supposedly. Not to mention batteries, solar panels and water tanks do not last forever and do require maintenance. 50k-80k invested in the ASX at 10% dividend yields a year is 5-8k in extra income every year, which is more than enough to cover energy and water bills annually at current rates for most families.12-20k for solar batteries each! two batteries are generally needed for most families energy needs if you want sufficient energy storage. 4-8k in slimline water tanks for 5,000-10,000 liters to fit most homes is still not enough water storage, 6k for 6.6kwh solar systems is not that much energy when one heater alone can use 2kwh an hour, it all adds up $$$.... isn't this why they built dams, gas pipelines and coal fired powered stations in the first place back in the day? lol
Algae is beneficial. The small amount of sunlight through the mozzie mesh allows a little growth of algae to remove the small amount of nutrients from the occasional bird droppings. The water that comes is crystal clear. Millions of Australians drink water from rain tanks untreated. Golden rule: don’t put a tv antenna above a collection roof!
My idiot neighbour did not properly plumb the overflow water and completely ruined the boundary fence and my retaining wall plus placed the corner of my house foundations in danger. Please everyone, follow instructions .
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Jason Hodges is the greatest host of this show!
Australians have the actual technology to build these sort of tanks is amazing. I have goose bumps
Mate, absolutely perfect. Good stuff!
loved this video mate...well produced! Dad jokes are A-grade too!
great thank you just setting up my water tank - however i have a bore for the garden so want to set it up for drinking water. Would a set up like this be ok?
Wow, the dad jokes. And the dog was wearing a tye too
Love the humour
ensure that you have a structurally sound concrete base to place your tank onto!
Nice idea.
I’ve never seen that water divert pipe available in the U.K., it would be ideal here. Same as the 3000 flat tank in colours.
GREAT...
Did I miss the part where they secured to tank to the shed?
I think you dont have to. 1000L of water is 1 ton
Tell us more about the pump please. I need to add one, but that looked like it required 240v?
That pump did need 240v and most you find will, if you don't have power nearby you could look into solar powered pumps.
@@mrbrown3546 or run an extension lead and waterproof housings
Any detailed info (link) on that black ball ? Not sure about it's functionality.
If you google "first flush", there's a few different brands.
The idea is that most of the dirt, leaves and twigs go down that pipe as waste and only fills your tank with clean(er) water.
Hope this helps
What does that set up cost?
I would sugges solid concrete Base, otherwise base might get damage with the weight over time.
The video title should be: "How to install a water tank, waste lots of money and help flood Hawkesbury/Nepean homes"
That looks like a 3000L tank. Typical installed cost in Sydney including pump is around $2,000. Town water currently costs around $2.50/kl (in Sydney) so tank holds $7.50 worth of water. Typical pump is 1200W and pumps 3700L/hr so it will take 0.81 hrs to empty the tank and will use 0.97kWh of electricity. At a typical cost of 26c per kWh it will cost 25c in electricity, meaning the tank holds $7.25 worth of free water.
Average annual rainfall in a typical Sydney suburb (Bankstown) is around 880mm. Typical catchment roof space is around 80sqm (not 200sqm as some sites claim because few older houses with retro-fitted tanks like this one collect from all downpipes). Total water falling on roof collection area is 880 x 80 = 70,000L per year, but a lot of it falls during storms and overflows the tank, so realistic collection amount is 50,000L per year, or 17 tankfulls. That saves around $123 in water rates per year or $2,460 over the 20-year life-expectancy of a poly tank. Even if roof collection area was 200sqm the saving would not be significantly more as most of it would overflow the 3000L tank each time it rains.
A pump only lasts around 15 years so during those 20 years there will be at least $500 in pump repair/replacement costs, sludge cleaning and other maintenance. That means for an outlay of $2,500 over 20 years you get a return of $1,960.
If you had invested $2,500 in the share market 20 years ago (June 2002) instead of installing a water tank, that investment would now be worth $9,700 (according to the stock market calculator on Noel Whittaker's website), meaning owning the tank would have cost you $9,700 - $1,960 = $7,700. But at least you get a warm fuzzy feeling that you are somehow saving the planet. Except that you aren't. The three recent floods in the Hawkesbury/Nepean, that cost insurance companies (meaning the public) tens of millions of dollars, would not have occurred if Warragamba Dam had been significantly lower, as would have been the case if not for all the BASIX-mandated water tanks in Sydney. There are downsides to everything.
As for the black ball in the "first flush diverter" which another user asks about, the theory of the ball is to separate the initial dirty water from the clean water. Without it the initial dirt still falls into the diverter until it fills up, but the subsequent water passing over the top continually stirs up the water in the diverter causing most of the fine dirt to eventually make its way back out and into the tank.
In reality the entire diverter setup achieves virtually nothing. The one in the video is around 1.2m long x 90mm diameter. It holds just 7.6L of water. It fills up within a few seconds during a downpour, long before most of the dirt on the roof has reached the guttering, let alone flowed along it and down the downpipe. Heavy sand etc. will fall into the diverter but the fine suspended silt and organic matter flows straight over it. To provide any dirt collection benefit at all the diverter should extend right to the ground, but the downside is that it then reduces water catchment during light rain. It also increases another problem which is a constantly damp, algae-covered patch on the concrete beside and around the tank, as the diverter slowly empties drip by drip, even weeks after the last rain. A hose can be connected to the diverter and run to the nearest lawn but that is often impractical.
There is an excellent article titled "To First Flush, or not to First Flush" on the US Bluebarrel website (links aren't allowed here - Google it). It points out amongst other things that most rainwater tanks are used for watering plants and that the fine organic material that the diverters are supposed to eliminate is a good source of free fertiliser.
Very very very well put together. I completely agree with all of your points. Only thing I didn’t fully agree with was your thoughts on the diverter.
I installed a diverter in my setup with the school of thought I don’t want algae/bacteria build up at the bottom of my tank in the long term.
Apart from a small bit of differing view as above, completely agree with your thoughts. The primary reason for me installing a rainwater tank at my place is to add capacity to my two pits given I added a shed with roof of circa 30sqm. This extra catchment area has flooded my back yard twice in the recent 2022 Sydney rains we’ve had. I assume the two pits the builders put in when they built my house, the pits were only specd to support catchment off my roof only.
Your post is a clear eye opener to anyone looking for the economical benefits of rain water harvesting!
Well done.
Alex
@@Gamer_Marcy_God Thanks for the comments. Diverters make little difference to algae or bacteria build-up. If you are mainly using the tank to water the garden then all you are doing is removing useful nutrients.
Even a full-height diverter pipe only collects about 15L of water or about 10 seconds worth in a downpour. Bird droppings on the roof can take minutes to dissolve away. The diverter fills with water before the majority of bird droppings or other dirt, algae, lichen, dust etc. on the roof has reached the diverter.
To confirm it for yourself just remove the tank inlet sieve and get a broom or mop and swish it around on the bottom for a few seconds then turn on the tap or pump and see how dirty the water is.
If you want a permanently clean tank then get a Tankvac. They waste some water but often that water would have overflowed anyway. You can easily make one yourself for about the same price as a ball style diverter. Just google their patents, which have both now expired by the way. Obviously not much demand for them.
I agree with water tanks purchases v town water it's not financially viable at all. To be fully self sufficient you need at least 50-80k in home green energy investments to go fully or part off grid. The ROI on renewables is absurd considering the climate crisis we're in and green energy is the answer supposedly. Not to mention batteries, solar panels and water tanks do not last forever and do require maintenance. 50k-80k invested in the ASX at 10% dividend yields a year is 5-8k in extra income every year, which is more than enough to cover energy and water bills annually at current rates for most families.12-20k for solar batteries each! two batteries are generally needed for most families energy needs if you want sufficient energy storage. 4-8k in slimline water tanks for 5,000-10,000 liters to fit most homes is still not enough water storage, 6k for 6.6kwh solar systems is not that much energy when one heater alone can use 2kwh an hour, it all adds up $$$.... isn't this why they built dams, gas pipelines and coal fired powered stations in the first place back in the day? lol
What about algae growth? Charcoal??
Algae is beneficial. The small amount of sunlight through the mozzie mesh allows a little growth of algae to remove the small amount of nutrients from the occasional bird droppings. The water that comes is crystal clear. Millions of Australians drink water from rain tanks untreated. Golden rule: don’t put a tv antenna above a collection roof!
👏👏👏👍
Whats the name of the company who makes those tanks?
There's a few companies that make them, google "slimline tank"
Clark Tanks
My idiot neighbour did not properly plumb the overflow water and completely ruined the boundary fence and my retaining wall plus placed the corner of my house foundations in danger. Please everyone, follow instructions .
Also pays to check local laws etc, there are laws relating to all things water and plumbing, your neighbour would be legally liable for all damages
The most critical part, the overflow, should’ve been explained in the video. It shouldn’t just gush out near the tank but away from the home.
👋👍🏻👏👏
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