Water Collection Project

 I have a metal roof, so I redirected rain water runoff to go directly to
my swimming pool. This allows me to stop using the ground water which
contains high levels of sulphur. Though the smell does go away after a
small dosage of bleach, I feel better using the water run off. In a
normal 1/2 inch rainy day, I can collect 1000+ gallons without any
trouble. On those downpour days, the pool overflows, which is no big
deal. I am using a 15ft x 4ft aboveground pool, this holds about 5000
gallons. My normal monthly usage is around 6000 gallons.

I installed a check valve on the return side of the Sand & DE filters.
This prevents drawing unfilter water from the return side. I installed a
brass 4 port hose adapter on the inlet & outlet sides of the filters.
This allows me to service each filter without shutting down the water
supply. I then installed a parallel bank of 4 10 inch .5 micron
polyester filters in clear filter housings in my laundry room. From
there it gets connected to both my toilet tanks.

This setup should drop my water consumption by 80 percent. The showers,
and faucets will continue to be supplied by the county, until I can
install a water conditioner before the 4 parallel filters. I was hoping
to find a nice whole house reverse osmosis system for under $
00, but I
will keep looking.

Jim Rojas

  Jim Rojas wrote:

One important note. In order to get this system to supply any water, you
must install a small on demand 30-45PSI water pump. It should shut down
automatically when the water is not flowing. You can get these in 12VDC
or 120VAC models. Just make sure it has a 3/4 inch inlet & outlet
threads. I have mine installed under my utility sink in the laundry
room. You should avoid installing these pumps outdoors, unless you place
it in a protected area for longer life.

As far as the .5 micro filters, since they have clear housings, you must
not expose them to sunlight. Otherwise algae will grow in it. I also
have my filter array mounted in the laundry room, right next to the
utility sink.

Jim Rojas

 Sounds nice, got any pictures?

Here is mine.  A bit smaller in scale.  And cost.
I think I have about $
0.00 sunk into this.

http://www.dropbox.com/gallery/14089695/1/Rain%20Barrel?h5f0d

I have been thinking of expanding this with a few more barrels
and adding a shallow well pump so I can get water up to the toilets
and flush them with rain water.  Right now, most of the water
I collect just goes down the overflow.

 Gordon wrote:

My grandson has my camera. I do have an old Sony Mavica FD92, but it
needs a new battery.

Jim Rojas

 Gordon wrote:

Here are some pictures I took with my old Sony camera:

http://www.dropbox.com/gallery/19690008/1/water%20project?h=f26a3a

Jim Rojas