Rain water for drinking

In the rural regions of NZ, rain water is kept for household use, because many houses are far away from town water supplies. Rain water from the top and the southern roof is collected into a concrete tank on the ground with a capacity of 15,000 liters. The growth of bacteria in the tank is minimal, because sunlight is prevented from entering the concrete tank.

Rain water concrete tank

Some of the water in the concrete tank is pumped up to the header tank on top of a wooden tower reaching to the solar room. From there it flows to the water tanks in the solar room. Cool water is also pumped up and supplied to the faucets. It is important to be aware how much water can be used depending on rainfall. An average household in a Japanese large city uses more than can be stored even during heavy rainfall. During a shower, hot water runs even when we soap ourselves. Therefore, making an on-off switch for showering would help to conserve water and energy. To reduce the amount of water used in toilet flushing as well as using less than 35 liters of water per shower would mean that the water necessary per person per day would amount to approx. 170ltrs. Saving water is very essential to a sustainable lifestyle.
There is a lot of rainfall in N.Z. A rain water force generator could change a disadvantage into an advantage. When 2 tonnes of rain water drop down from a 6m hillock, we can use the potential energy to run a 1kw heater for 140 seconds.

(2) Using nature-friendly materials from the local area.

(2-1) Cobbed walls

(2-2) Thatched roof


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