Albemarle Housing Improvement Program
Improving Housing ...
Building a Community
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Albemarle Housing Improvement Program Improving Housing ... Building a Community
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Product ProfileRainwater Storage and Reuse SystemsMany of the calls AHIP receives year in and year out are from folks whose water supply is failing. The 5 year drought certainly made things worse. In an effort to add new alternative water supplies to AHIP’s toolbox of client assistance, we researched rainwater harvesting systems. In doing so, we contacted Nickolas Sojka with Water Recovery of Virginia, central Virginia’s RainWater System dealer. Mr. Sojka explained, “For every inch of rainfall an average of 1,200 gallons of rainwater can be harvested from the roof of a 2,000 square foot building. Harvested rainwater can be used for a variety of purposes. Residential uses include watering gardens and land-scaping and as a source of water for toilets and washing machines. With a filtration system, potable water, tested to be purer than average municipal water, is also possible. What’s more, you will have the control of the use of this water resource should authorities restrict usage for plant watering, car washes or filling pools.” For centuries throughout the world, people have relied on rainwater harvesting to supply water for households, landscape, livestock and agricultural uses. Before large, centralized water supply systems were developed, rain-water was collected from a variety of surfaces - most commonly roofs - and stored on site in tanks known as cis-terns. With the advent of large, reliable community treatment and distribution systems and more affordable well drilling equipment, rain harvesting systems have been all but forgotten, even though they offer a source of pure, soft, low sodium water. A renewed interest in this time-honored approach has emerged in Virginia and elsewhere due to:
Harvesting systems can be a simple as a barrel at the bottom of a downspout to a 10,000 gallon above ground tank. All are self contained to keep out bugs and falling debris. Water Recovery of Virginia utilizes a roof washer in many of their designs and installations. The unit receives rainwater and then filters it before it enters the cis-tern or storage tank. The first rain to fall on a roof washes off dirt and debris that has accumulated since the last rain. As this first and dirtiest water enters the roof washer, the largest debris is removed by screens in the “leaf catcher” compartments. This first water is collected and held in the bottom “quiet chamber”. Once this chamber fills, additional incoming water begins passing through the filter element and into the storage tank. A small weep-hole in the overflow/clean-out pipe discards the dirty water and allows the “quiet chamber” to drain between rains. AHIP has applied for funding for sustainable and environmentally responsible products for the Camp Springs homes. If grants are awarded, one of the first products to be installed is the rainwater harvesting system. We will sponsor a “Sustainable Product Fair” on site and will have product manufacturers on site to demonstrate and showcase their wares. Stay tuned . . . Until then you can find lots of information at www.rainwatersystem.com.
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