Tips to maintain the quality of drinking water in your rainwater harvesting tank

Now is probably the right time to jog our memories and put whatever we learnt about rainwater harvesting into implementation. But before we start digging deeper into the topic at hand and understand how we could maintain the quality of drinking water in our rainwater tank, let us understand what rainwater harvesting is all about, in case you have forgotten.

Rainwater harvesting is the process in which you collect rainwater from different surfaces and filter the same water to be used for various purposes. However, you cannot just wake up one fine day and decide on harvesting rainwater.

Rainwater harvesting can only be done by following a strict protocol, violation of which could compromise with the quality of the water. Rainwater harvesting is one of the best ways to preserve water, especially at a time when the resources of this planet is almost maxed out. Therefore, the sooner we understand the necessity of harvesting rainwater, many of our problems concerning the scarcity water on Earth could be contained.

Rainwater harvesting comes with a few components that you must know of if you are to go about the process efficiently. We have put together some information about those components in brief so that you are well aware of the ways in which the process of rainwater harvesting functions.

The catchment is the surface that receives the rainwater and then allows it to flow to all the other parts of the system. Depending on the material that your entire order is made of, the catchment can be of several types.

The coarse mesh is sort of a filter that prevents the passage of debris along with the water from the catchment. 

These are the channels that act as passages for the rainwater to reach the storage tank. You could even call them as pipelines. 

Conduits channel the flow of rainwater from the catchment to the harvesting system. They are mostly made from galvanized iron and polyvinyl chloride because these are readily available materials.

A first-flush device flushes out the runoff and residue from the first rainwater and prevents them from entering the system. This step is essential to keep the quality of the rainwater in the harvesting system drinkable. 

A filter is used in the rainwater harvesting system to purify the rainwater of all the remnants and make it usable. Filters can be of several types, and it is essential that you identify the type of filter that would support your system.

Now that we have covered the basics of rainwater harvesting, it is time to understand the ways in which you can maintain the quality of drinking water in the rainwater tank.

One of the best ways to keep the quality of drinking water in the rainwater tank at its best possible health is by investing in a decent rainwater tank that is made out of the right materials. For instance, materials like steel, concrete and fibreglass are widely used in the construction of rainwater tanks. These elements do not react with the rainwater and tamper their quality, which is why it is imperative to buy a tank that is only made of the materials that conform to the industry standards.

Also, while you go about getting your hands on the right rainwater tank, make sure that you scour through various websites to compare the water tank prices in Australia (since Australian tanks are what are considered suitable for harvesting rainwater) and only then set your mind on buying one.

So you have installed the best tank to meet your rainwater harvesting endeavours. But is that all that you must do to maintain the quality of rainwater in the tank? There are several other measures that you must take to see to it that the water that you have harvested and stored in the tank is drinkable. Here are a few pointers that you must keep at the back of your mind while tending to the maintenance of the tank.

Buying and installing the tank is not all that there is to rainwater harvesting. To ensure that the rainwater is pumped safely to every part of the residential or commercial area, you must also invest in the proper fittings of tubes, pipelines and other tank fittings.

The entire system, from the tank to all its accessories, must be appropriately checked and approved of its quality so that there isn’t any glitch anywhere in the entire system.    

Harvesting rainwater might seem and sound like a cakewalk at a cursory glance. But it is only when you delve deeper into the topic and understand the intricacies related to it that you realize that the process needs several factors to be kept in place to function efficiently. You cannot tamper or compromise with the quality of drinking water, which is why it essential that you see to it that every factor that contributes to the process of rainwater harvesting is doubly checked for quality and efficiency. Rainwater harvesting, when done right can contribute towards the preservation of water resources and can help maintain the balance of the ecosystem in all its glory.