It's good to see other people also using solar to pump water. We hear that solar electricity is actually cheaper than conventional sources, but the rub is that electrical storage is expensive. Water pumping for irrigation and pond aeration really is cheaper--it just pumps when the sun comes up, no storage batteries needed. And yet people spend thousands of dollars to trench for power lines--crazy.
In this context it is a no-contest... Inexpensive simple dc bilge pump and ideally a used solar panel with found wiring and you can move literally many many tons of water a day in a very resilient and simple way
@@edibleacres There are various options, with tradeoffs. If your 700 gph bilge pump is a Shurflo, it is brushless (good, never get a pump with brushes) but the maximum lift/head is 8 feet (100gph at that height). It is a centrifugal pump, which is good if there is some mud or grit in the water, and it comes with a 3 year warranty. By contrast I got a screw-type submersible pump for about $100 delivered . I need it to pump about 55 feet up to keep a pond from lowering in drought, as well as irrigation. The drawback of it is that screw type pumps won't stand for grit in the water but that's not a problem for me.
Good afternoon, I watch and love so many of your videos! I see what you are dealing with on the water overshooting your guttering and I think it could be remedied with a multipurpose solution. If you applied a single angle trim (maybe 2x2) to the edge of the roof metal it would interrupt the trajectory and I think you would catch all of the rain you needed. The trim would sit on top of and screw through the high ribs of the metal. Leave about 1/2” gap between the bottom edge of the metal and the bottom angle of the trim. This could double as a snow and ice retention system keeping snow on the roof to melt off instead of sliding off of the roof and potentially damaging your gutter system. All the best, Zeb
Nice idea here, thank you for sharing it and describing in detail. I wonder if I'd have the time/energy to put towards it but it is great to know it's an option and I can return to this comment when I can actualize it!
Hello. First off all - good job. If you don't mind, I will give you one piece of advice. Cover these white water bunkers. This is why you have green peace in the water.
Sean, have you thought about shade cloth over the tunner, held on by some simple 5-50 cordage back and forth over it, or adding in a vents at the ends of the tunnel to reduce the heat pressure? Living in Oklahoma, anything I design always has to deal with heat, and where we are at, many things full sun rated, still burn to a crisp on the plains lol.
@@edibleacrescertainly, just some thoughts on growing plants there still that like the heat less. You have a solution of just growing plants that like it. I always enjoy your videos and thoughtullness.
I'm a new subscriber and I'm love the video's, your calm voice makes it easy to follow. Could you do another chicken composting video please? I've modified my chickens run to start composting similar to yours but not on the same scale as mines an allotment. Thank you for your hard work and God bless
I work on gutters. As you go to the right the gutter appears drop pretty way too far down from the roof edge. It should be tucked as hi as possible on the left side and moving eater to the right only requires The gutter slope to drop 1/16 inch for every ft of length. And even if you double that for faster flow you will not want the top of the gutter on the far right side to drop to below 2 inches below the roof metal edge. This slope is with reference to gravity, measured using a bubble level or water level. It is not based on the roofline being level. Because it may not be. But if rood is not level it is best to start flowing water from what ever side of the roof is the highest. The last few feet of gutter runs water out the end, look like an end cap would correct that. Do you have to worry about the totes freezing in the winter???
We leave the valve open at the bottom so that they can freely flow out and away and so far it seems to be working OK. Thank you for the feedback on the gutter layout.
I had read its a good idea to wrap the water totes in black plastic as to discourage overproduction of algae, but that may just be in case you want to use it as drinking water or water for livestock? I guess it doesn't hurt to have algae in water you're going to water plants with? Not sure. Also, where do you find is the best place to acquire those totes? They run fairly pricey brand new, I've seen a couple show up on FB marketplace.
I'm also curious about the algae. Could it theoretically continue to grow to the point of diminishing the amount of water that can be collected? And also, how do you get rid of it? Is there some sort of way to rinse the material out?
Good system, I would use a waste tank to dump the first water off that roof, to remove debris. Just in case you need to use that water for something other than plants, like your pets. And yeah, black plastic or black paint on those tanks would cut down the algae growth.
Hi Sean. I have 2 IBC totes which I will be using to capture rainwater from my roof for purposes of watering plants. Do I need to protect them from sunlight? I suspect I don't but was wondering if you could comment on it. Thanks!
I like these ibc tanks but here in northern germany the frost will crack the tab and crashes the tank...do you have any tipps? Ich need water in spring very often but dont have rainwater because i cleared the tanks because of the frost ...
You have to empty them for winter... That has been my experience. We find that early spring when there haven't been rains yet, there are good filled areas of waterways we've dug in the past to pull from while we wait for thaw to refill these...
Hast du mal an alte Badewannen gedacht? Musst du nur gut abdecken, damit keine Tiere etc... reinfallen können. Oder etwas aus Backsteinen gemauert, von innen verputzt plus Abdeckung. Grüsse aus NRW
Are you using a 120v pump with a 30v panel? If so cool, haven't tried that.... did you try putting 2 panels in series to dbl the voltage? Might make pump work a lot better. Like the ingenuity, im a bit of a tinkerer myself. 👍
This is off topic but I was wondering whether you got your hat locally or online? Comfortable? I still use a hat I bought from a box store many years ago but it's becoming worn out so I'm looking to buy a replacement at some point.
I got it online, I can't remember the name of it at the moment but it has been good. Having a very broad brim and the flap in the back to stop sun from getting on my neck is SUPER helpful
@@edibleacres Thanks! My cheapie has no back flap and a bit less brim but it worked so much better than a ball cap. When I figure out what works for me, I'm willing to spend more money on something good.
Just wondering whether larger tanks are available in the US. On RUclips, I see a lot of people using IBC’s to capture rain water but I can’t say I’ve noticed anything larger. Here in Australia living entirely off rainfall is common in the countryside so large tanks are also common. For instance, we have 5 tanks with a total capacity of over 100,000 litres (~26,500 gallons). I guess though that IBC’s might be cheap, especially secondhand. Just curious.
I'm sure there are larger tanks out there to be had, the IBC has just been a great unit that has a wonderful cost per gallon... Roughly 30 cents a gallon for storage, which is pretty good
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Necessity is the mother of invention. Good job!👍
Appreciate that
Lovely. Water collection is on my list for next year.
VERY worthwhile!
I love this system and seeing your greenhouse in action and full swing too!
So so glad!
Who would've guessed that a water catchment system could be so exciting? I can hardly wait to implement this system in my food forest.
Glad you find it interesting!
Your system continues to inspire me to cache more water!
So great!
When I first came to Portugal over 30 years ago, everybody who lived in the country did this.
I love to see how your projects keep evolving!
I'm so glad!
It's good to see other people also using solar to pump water. We hear that solar electricity is actually cheaper than conventional sources, but the rub is that electrical storage is expensive. Water pumping for irrigation and pond aeration really is cheaper--it just pumps when the sun comes up, no storage batteries needed. And yet people spend thousands of dollars to trench for power lines--crazy.
In this context it is a no-contest... Inexpensive simple dc bilge pump and ideally a used solar panel with found wiring and you can move literally many many tons of water a day in a very resilient and simple way
@@edibleacres There are various options, with tradeoffs. If your 700 gph bilge pump is a Shurflo, it is brushless (good, never get a pump with brushes) but the maximum lift/head is 8 feet (100gph at that height). It is a centrifugal pump, which is good if there is some mud or grit in the water, and it comes with a 3 year warranty. By contrast I got a screw-type submersible pump for about $100 delivered . I need it to pump about 55 feet up to keep a pond from lowering in drought, as well as irrigation. The drawback of it is that screw type pumps won't stand for grit in the water but that's not a problem for me.
I'd love to see the slow drip swale nourish your plants. That's a cool video hopefully upcoming :D
I'll try to make time to film some. It's hard since my hands are all in it when it would be a good time to film!
Good afternoon, I watch and love so many of your videos! I see what you are dealing with on the water overshooting your guttering and I think it could be remedied with a multipurpose solution. If you applied a single angle trim (maybe 2x2) to the edge of the roof metal it would interrupt the trajectory and I think you would catch all of the rain you needed. The trim would sit on top of and screw through the high ribs of the metal. Leave about 1/2” gap between the bottom edge of the metal and the bottom angle of the trim. This could double as a snow and ice retention system keeping snow on the roof to melt off instead of sliding off of the roof and potentially damaging your gutter system.
All the best,
Zeb
Nice idea here, thank you for sharing it and describing in detail. I wonder if I'd have the time/energy to put towards it but it is great to know it's an option and I can return to this comment when I can actualize it!
I love learning from you! Thank you for your helpful sharing. Truly love this channel!
Always happy to share!
Great water harvesting system. Kudos.
Thank you!
Seany, this is rad.
Miss you my friend, lets catch up SOON!
Hello. First off all - good job.
If you don't mind, I will give you one piece of advice. Cover these white water bunkers. This is why you have green peace in the water.
Thanks
Love it!
Yay!
Sean, have you thought about shade cloth over the tunner, held on by some simple 5-50 cordage back and forth over it, or adding in a vents at the ends of the tunnel to reduce the heat pressure? Living in Oklahoma, anything I design always has to deal with heat, and where we are at, many things full sun rated, still burn to a crisp on the plains lol.
I don't think our heat in the summer is as intense....
@@edibleacrescertainly, just some thoughts on growing plants there still that like the heat less. You have a solution of just growing plants that like it. I always enjoy your videos and thoughtullness.
perhaps a backstop for the gutter system?
Yeah, the pitch and layout could be optimized for sure
I'm a new subscriber and I'm love the video's, your calm voice makes it easy to follow.
Could you do another chicken composting video please?
I've modified my chickens run to start composting similar to yours but not on the same scale as mines an allotment.
Thank you for your hard work and God bless
We'll do an update on the chickens soon enough, so glad to have you with us and welcome!
I work on gutters. As you go to the right the gutter appears drop pretty way too far down from the roof edge. It should be tucked as hi as possible on the left side and moving eater to the right only requires The gutter slope to drop 1/16 inch for every ft of length. And even if you double that for faster flow you will not want the top of the gutter on the far right side to drop to below 2 inches below the roof metal edge. This slope is with reference to gravity, measured using a bubble level or water level. It is not based on the roofline being level. Because it may not be. But if rood is not level it is best to start flowing water from what ever side of the roof is the highest. The last few feet of gutter runs water out the end, look like an end cap would correct that.
Do you have to worry about the totes freezing in the winter???
We leave the valve open at the bottom so that they can freely flow out and away and so far it seems to be working OK. Thank you for the feedback on the gutter layout.
I had read its a good idea to wrap the water totes in black plastic as to discourage overproduction of algae, but that may just be in case you want to use it as drinking water or water for livestock? I guess it doesn't hurt to have algae in water you're going to water plants with? Not sure. Also, where do you find is the best place to acquire those totes? They run fairly pricey brand new, I've seen a couple show up on FB marketplace.
I'm also curious about the algae. Could it theoretically continue to grow to the point of diminishing the amount of water that can be collected? And also, how do you get rid of it? Is there some sort of way to rinse the material out?
I've never had an issue with algae growing in the tanks. It grows but it just doesn't seem to be a problem!
Good system, I would use a waste tank to dump the first water off that roof, to remove debris. Just in case you need to use that water for something other than plants, like your pets. And yeah, black plastic or black paint on those tanks would cut down the algae growth.
Good notes thank you!
Hi Sean. I have 2 IBC totes which I will be using to capture rainwater from my roof for purposes of watering plants. Do I need to protect them from sunlight? I suspect I don't but was wondering if you could comment on it. Thanks!
It is ideal if you can protect them from light, but isn't a flat out requirement...
How do you keep algae from growing and turning the water green/black?
We don't worry about it
I like these ibc tanks but here in northern germany the frost will crack the tab and crashes the tank...do you have any tipps? Ich need water in spring very often but dont have rainwater because i cleared the tanks because of the frost ...
You have to empty them for winter... That has been my experience. We find that early spring when there haven't been rains yet, there are good filled areas of waterways we've dug in the past to pull from while we wait for thaw to refill these...
Hast du mal an alte Badewannen gedacht? Musst du nur gut abdecken, damit keine Tiere etc... reinfallen können. Oder etwas aus Backsteinen gemauert, von innen verputzt plus Abdeckung. Grüsse aus NRW
Are you using a 120v pump with a 30v panel? If so cool, haven't tried that.... did you try putting 2 panels in series to dbl the voltage? Might make pump work a lot better. Like the ingenuity, im a bit of a tinkerer myself. 👍
This is a 12v 700 gallon per hour DC bilge pump... Single panel directly wired + to + and - to - and it just runs when the sun is up :)
This is off topic but I was wondering whether you got your hat locally or online? Comfortable? I still use a hat I bought from a box store many years ago but it's becoming worn out so I'm looking to buy a replacement at some point.
I got it online, I can't remember the name of it at the moment but it has been good. Having a very broad brim and the flap in the back to stop sun from getting on my neck is SUPER helpful
@@edibleacres Thanks! My cheapie has no back flap and a bit less brim but it worked so much better than a ball cap. When I figure out what works for me, I'm willing to spend more money on something good.
Just wondering whether larger tanks are available in the US. On RUclips, I see a lot of people using IBC’s to capture rain water but I can’t say I’ve noticed anything larger. Here in Australia living entirely off rainfall is common in the countryside so large tanks are also common. For instance, we have 5 tanks with a total capacity of over 100,000 litres (~26,500 gallons). I guess though that IBC’s might be cheap, especially secondhand. Just curious.
I'm sure there are larger tanks out there to be had, the IBC has just been a great unit that has a wonderful cost per gallon... Roughly 30 cents a gallon for storage, which is pretty good
Bag of clams in there?