All posts by Ken Blair

A rainwater collection systems designer and consultant, Ken has designed and installed residential and commercial systems, primarily in the northwest United States for more than 10 years and, in 2014, began consulting and managing builds in other states. Ken is an accredited ARCSA Professional Designer / Installer and Life Member, the Northwest Regional ARCSA representative and advisor to its education committee and is available to speak about Rainwater Collection Systems design and builds. Ken is a United States Navy veteran, having served on active duty during the Vietnam War era. A career entrepreneur, Ken created a new business focus with a commercial dive company in Hawaii in the mid 1980′s to respond to and clean up oil spills, oil spill equipment training, service and maintenance for the oil co-op service industry. Ken is passionate about having a positive impact on the environment and is also a founding director of BANK-ON-RAIN (2011-2014), whose mission is to create grassroots solutions for rainwater collection for consumption and agriculture in developing areas of the planet.

What Kind of Pump is Used to Transfer Water Stored in Rainwater Collection?

This is Part 7 in the series “How to Build a Rainwater Collection System”.  Click to see parts onetwothreefour,  five and six.

What Kind of Pump is Used to Transfer Water Stored in Rainwater Collection?Either a submersible pump or centrifugal pressure pump will be required to transfer water from storage to filtration and use. A submersible pump will need means of regulating flow.

A pressure tank with a pressure switch will tell the pump when to turn on and off by a drop of pressure in the pressure tank. This application is much like well system and is intended for household use. It could be used for irrigation, but keep in mind that the pressure tank will need to be frost protected.

What Kind of Pump is Used to Transfer Water Stored in Rainwater Collection?The most common method of conveyance would be a booster pump. These pumps are generally centrifugal pumps and can be placed in the mechanical room or well shed.  A centrifugal booster pump is used without an exterior pressure tank and is considered an “on demand” pump, meaning that when the faucet is opened, the pressure in the pump drops down to low pressure – usually 20 PSI, and the pump will start running and maintain constant pressure while the faucet is open.  Once the faucet is closed, the pump will continue to run until it meets its high pressure cut off.

Either pump system should always be used before filtration and disinfection — which will be our next topic.

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Rainwater Harvesting Cuts Costs & Reduces Stormwater Runoff

62907kirkland0503_PubSafetyBldgRainBank Rainwater Collection Systems is pleased to announce completion of two 5,300 gallon rainwater collection tanks for the new Kirkland Public Safety Building. Both tanks will collect water from a segment of the building’s roof and divert to irrigation for new plantings. The Safety building was a former Costco building remodeled for the city of Kirkland to be used as the new courthouse, police station and jail.

New landscaping will be watered automatically by the rain tanks via a computerized controller which will regulate how long and what times watering will take place. With 10,600 gallons of storage and a roof collection area of approximately 20,000 sq. ft., even a small amount of rain in the summer should supply the new plantings with rainwater.

Infiltration ofKirkland Public Safety the soil during watering will reduce the building’s stormwater runoff and save money by not using city water.

RainBank Rainwater Collection Systems is proud to be a part of this and other commercial projects making the Seattle area a better place to live.

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Rainwater Harvesting Lets Seattle Area Residents Opt Out of City Water

RAINWATER HARVESTING LETS SEATTLE AREA RESIDENTS OPT OUT OF CITY WATERDo you know that you can collect 624 gallons of water from 1 inch of rain with only 1,000 sq ft of roof area?  

That’s water that you can use for irrigation, toilet flushing, laundry, or even whole house potable (drinking) use. That’s right! 624 gallons. If you have a 1,500 square foot roof area in the Seattle area, this equates to 33,642 gallons of available water. Water that you don’t need to pay for. You can save money on your water, and sewage bill and, over time, pay for your system with that savings. Depending on the application of the captured rainwater, you can supplement your usage through a simple collection system for irrigation or by plumbing in your toilets and laundry facilities. Or, if you choose to have a whole house system designed and installed by a professional, you can eliminate your municipal water usage altogether and have city water as only a back up supply.

Water quality of collected rainwater after filtration and UV disinfection is above that of a municipal water supply, as long as the system is designed, installed and maintained properly. Annual costs of maintenance is much less than your current water bill and is easy to do. Periodic cleaning of your gutters and screening devices along with filter changes a few times a year and replacement of the UV bulb once a year is all there is to it.

Many people in the Seattle area are opting out of city water usage whether it is for potable or non potable use. Supplementary tanks with a small amount of storage can offset your water bill as much as 80%.

A decentralized private water system eliminates the possible threats to your drinking water from environmental concerns, water advisories, price increases,  additives such as chlorine and fluorides and possible rationing, such as in California. You are in control of the quality of your water and its use.Rainwater Harvesting Lets Seattle Area Residents Opt Out of City Water

Rainwater collection is a viable source of water that can sustain any household in Washington State. RainBank Rainwater Collection Systems has been designing and installing rainwater systems in Washington for residential and commercial applications for over ten years and is a American Rainwater Catchment Systems Association Accredited Professional.