Rainwater Harvesting and Life on Maui


Close-up of a worn, metallic fountain pen nib on a black surface.As some of us living in colder climes hunker down for the cold weather, now is a good time to share an article from Maui Now about green living with rainwater catchment systems.

The article effectively and simply illuminates the benefits of collecting rainwater for either landscaping or drinking water, outlining the components and why each is important for a system that will either supplement or replace city water.

Some folks may find (at least on Maui) that the property they’re interested in purchasing is off grid, with no city water source available. Others want to supplement city water to save money and reduce demand on city infrastructure,decelerating the onset of potential future water shortages.

According to the article, ‘With a rainwater catchment system, you will be able to capture rainwater, divert it to a storage area, save it in a safe and clean place for later use, and then create a system for water distribution.”

RainBank is an experienced rainwater collection system design firm and consults on systems for residential and commercial use. RainBank designs potable and non-potable systems to be used for irrigation, laundry, toilet and wash down facilities. RainBank follows its designs through the permitting process; clients have an advocate to navigate the confusing maze of government entities and regulations. RainBank president Ken Blair is ARCSA AP (Accredited Professional) and IS (Inspector Specialist), both of which require continuing education for certification. RainBank also serves as ARCSA’s Pacific Coastal Regional Representative.

King County Technical Changes to Rainwater Collection Codes


Seattle skyline featuring the Space Needle under a cloudy sky.Public Health Seattle & King County On-site Sewage System Program Supervisor Lynn Schneider goes before the King County Board of Health to explainthe adoption of reference numbers to align with state references to plumbing code for individual wells. As rainwater collection moves into themainstream, King County Codes are being updated for rainwater collection to align with the health code numbers.

Click below to watch clip (referenced media is from 1:03 to 1:07:

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Live and Recorded Public meetings of Board of Health on 2015-10-15 1:30 PM for King County

No changes are being made to rainwater collection codes, just the numbers, so as to mitigate confusion between King County code numbers and state Board of Health documents. It represents a technical, not a policy change.

How to Ensure Stored Rainwater is Clean


RainBank Rainwater Systems installsgutter screens and Wisy products to ensure water being collected is as clean as possible before storage.

Collected rainwater should be free of organic matter before entering the storage tank. This can be achieved with a quality gutter screen and the use of pre screening or filtering to remove debris and aerate the water before storage.

Pine needles, leaves, and other debris can cause collected rainwater to become fouled with decaying organic matter. These contaminants can be a host or food for bacteria, causing your collected water to become septic. Accumulated debris generally piles up in turns in the conveyance lines and can fester over time. Water passing through these pile-ups will pick up odor, discoloration, and bacteria, resulting in fouled water entering your storage tanks.

Care must be taken to ensure that water being stored is as clean as possible. The use of gutter screens will reduce the chore of gutter cleaning, but do require a certain amount of maintenance. Periodic cleaning of screens should be conducted as needed. When pine needles or leaves pile up on gutter screens, they need to be removed. This can be done with a garden hose or a brush and is a lot less work than cleaning the gutters themselves.

Quality of stored water can also be improved by the use of Wisy products. Before entering the storage tank, rainwater should be filtered and aerated. Filtration removes particulate matter, which frequently carry and feed bacteria. Removal, along with aeration, greatly reduces the amount of bacteria in the storage tank.

The video below shows how debris falls to the bottom of the filter, while the desired water is sent through a screen horizontally, and then clean water can be conveyed to storage. The vortex filter requires very little maintenance and is as easy as removing the screen and washing.

Rainwater is relatively clean to begin with; it is what it comes in contact with that needs to be addressed. By gutter screening, filtering, and aerating rainwater before storage, you will be assuring that your stored water is of the quality you desire while helping filtration and disinfection for end use.

Close-up of a worn, metallic fountain pen nib on a black surface.

RainBank Rainwater Systems is the leader in designing and installing rainwater collection systems in the Seattle area for more than 15 years, and is preferred by homeowners, architects, and engineering firms for its quality solutions to rainwater harvesting. We offer engineered systems for potable and non-potable systems, commercial and residential.

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