Anyone collect rainwater, as a primary source of water?
The county I live in has a current well moratorium because of the poor salmon or some shit (we’ll keep the constitutionality of land owners rights out of this discussion)
Basically, you cannot drill for a well anywhere in the county I live in. This means, if you do not have a well on your property, or have access to city water lines… your property is essentially useless/worthless. Because of this, land values have dropped quite a bit, so now I’m able to find decently located raw land for roughly $10-$40k per acre. Land that DOES have access to a water source, and is located in a desired area, is selling for a premium (upwards of $100k per acre).
I got to thinking, the minimum amount of rainfall we receive in my area is 36 inches per year, but a more realistic number is 45-55". A 1,700 sq ft roof would collect roughly 49,000 gallons of water per year. During the dry summer months, I’d get through by purchasing bulk potable water, usually around $0.02/gallon. I’ve already planned out a home build, the roof would be 2,400 sq ft
As far as I know, if you can prove there is no access to a water source, the county has to approve building permits as long as the water cistern can hold 90 days worth water. (there would be 2 people, assuming 75 gallons per person, per day) so, a 15,000 gallon cistern would be adequate.
Are you planning to treat the water to make it potable or just use it for everything but drinking? My grandparents have a cottage on the St. Lawrence and they pump their water straight from the river and use it for everything except drinking water which they haul in. That would be the simple solution. You’d basically just need a series of filters on roof runoff or you’d quickly gunk up your cistern. Just step down in size each filter to first catch the leaves/helicopters etc, then something that would catch smaller debris like seeds/bugs and finally something that would catch the small stones that slowly wash off asphalt shingles. Since you’re building I’d suggest going with a metal roof since it wouldn’t shed fine stones like asphalt but if you’re planning to make the water potable you might need to be concerned with what metals get leeched especially since rainwater is slightly acidic. Add some bleach to your tank now and then to keep microbial growth under control and I think you’d be set. Trying to make the water potable gets into a whole host of other issues though.
Depending on your soil I would look to create a pond. If you have barren dry soil and a lot of land it’s most likely because there is a lack of vegetation. I know that seems counter intuitive but vegetation helps the water table. I would plant grass seed and let it grow then graze it with ruminants (Cattle if you can). This will help the water table and then you can look for natural low points and either build a pond or swails. Swails are probably the best bet and even then they can be used to divert water into a pond. You can draw off that if you wish and filter it.
Otherwise your collection option sounds good. Check your local laws about collecting rain water. Some places outlaw it.