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.

Why Rainwater Catchment Systems Matter

Do you know that the average annual rainfall of 36 inches in Seattle and a 2,000 square foot roof can collect over 44,000 gallons of rain annually?  That’s over 120 gallons per day of potential usage; well enough to sustain a household of four.

The Elk River in Charleston, W.Va. A coal-processing chemical spill last week cut off water to more than 300,000 people. Tyler Evert/Associated Press
The Elk River in Charleston, W.Va. Tyler Evert/Associated Press

A recent chemical spill in West Virginia emphasizes the vulnerability of our water supplies and reinforces the value of harvesting rainwater.  A professionally designed and installed rainwater collection system will provide a significant amount of clean, safe drinking water for residential and commercial use.

The average home within Seattle city limits may not have much space for storage, however, with just 3,000 gallons of storage, a potable supplementary rainwater catchment system with  2,000 square feet of roof, can mitigate up to 70 percent of your city water use. With new slim line designs of water storage tanks, affordable and practical rainwater catchment systems are being installed within Seattle city limits.

With the cost of city water on the rise, potential disastrous effects such as the West Virginia spill, along with other incidents to municipal water supplies, rainwater harvesting is a viable, safe, and affordable alternative. Whether potable for full household use or non potable for irrigation, toilet, and laundry use rainwater collection is legal in Washington State and in Seattle.

Rainwater collection can create SAFE, decentralized water supplies.

Do you want to learn more about rainwater harvesting? Complete the form below to consult with Ken Blair.

Congratulations Seattle Seahawks – 2014 Super Bowl Champions

Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images
Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images

RainBank Rainwater Collection Systems would like to congratulate the Seattle Seahawks – the 48th Super Bowl champions!

What is a First-Flush Diverter?

This post is part of the series How to Build a Simple Rainwater Collection System.

What is a First-Flush Diverter?A first-flush diverter helps keep your rainwater harvesting system clean by enabling the removal of dust, other debris, and any fecal matter that collects on your roof and in your gutters between rainfalls, so it is flushed out at the very beginning of the water collection process.

What is a First-Flush Diverter?
Click to view larger version of First Flush Diverter Diagram

The cleaner your water is as it goes into your system, the cleaner your water will be when you use it. Studies have shown a tremendous drop in fecal bacteria levels when the roof is flushed before water enters the tank. Bacteria also like to live in decaying leaves and other organic matter that collects at the bottom of the tank. A first-flush diverter “washes” the roof, so there is less rubbish on the tank’s bottom.

Do you want to see more articles about how to build a simple rainwater harvesting system? Check the “Notify me of new posts by email” button below.