New Catchment Tank

[kalakoa]

quote:

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some use smaller dedicated stainless rain collection systems exclusively for kitchen/cooking use and drinking, an idea I'd like to pursue.

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Saw a picture of one: PVC pipe frame, polycarbonate roof panel, 5 gallon glass jug. The roof panel was "folded" to create a funnel, sides pitched at a tall angle so that it wasn't attractive to birds; the pipe is too small for rats to climb.

Seems like the water might not be "completely" pure, but close enough that it would be trivial to purify -- no contamination from rust/galvanized screws/birds/rats/paint/etc, and the device would also be small enough that it could easily be kept clean.

Haven't tried building one yet, nor has there been much rain to catch with it...

[MarkP]

The dedicated catchment system sounds logical. I would say though that at that level of complexity RO filtration to remove chemicals would become competitive.

One issue I have with RO is that it sends 75% of the water to the drain while it gives you the remaining 25% as clean drinking water. This is wasteful of both water and energy. As I type I am wondering whether you can send the 75% back to the catchment tank. As for the energy it may be another example of the money to fix the problem being best spent on another solar panel. Or another blue cube. Any time you handle the water there is a risk of contamination though.