ᐅ Annual Garden Water Demand – Is a Rainwater Harvesting System Worth It?
Created on: 18 May 2020 13:41
B
Brainstorming
Hello everyone,
I am currently trying to estimate whether installing a rainwater cistern is worthwhile for our new build. We will have about 100 sqm (1,076 sq ft) of garden/lawn to plant. According to various online cistern calculators, I need roughly 8,000 to 11,000 liters (2,113 to 2,906 gallons) of water per year for this area in our region, which receives about 550 mm/sqm (22 inches/sq ft) of rainfall. The price for water and wastewater is approximately 2 euros per cubic meter. Based on this calculation, the cost for garden irrigation without a cistern would be around 22 euros per year.
If I now install a cistern with a capacity of 1,000 liters (264 gallons), I expect costs for the cistern, pump, and roof drainage connection to be between 1,000 and 1,500 euros. Assuming a budget of 1,000 euros, it would theoretically take more than 45 years for the cistern to pay for itself (without considering rising prices or repairs).
Am I missing something here? Could you possibly share your garden water consumption? Maybe the online calculators don’t match real-life usage.
Thanks
I am currently trying to estimate whether installing a rainwater cistern is worthwhile for our new build. We will have about 100 sqm (1,076 sq ft) of garden/lawn to plant. According to various online cistern calculators, I need roughly 8,000 to 11,000 liters (2,113 to 2,906 gallons) of water per year for this area in our region, which receives about 550 mm/sqm (22 inches/sq ft) of rainfall. The price for water and wastewater is approximately 2 euros per cubic meter. Based on this calculation, the cost for garden irrigation without a cistern would be around 22 euros per year.
If I now install a cistern with a capacity of 1,000 liters (264 gallons), I expect costs for the cistern, pump, and roof drainage connection to be between 1,000 and 1,500 euros. Assuming a budget of 1,000 euros, it would theoretically take more than 45 years for the cistern to pay for itself (without considering rising prices or repairs).
Am I missing something here? Could you possibly share your garden water consumption? Maybe the online calculators don’t match real-life usage.
Thanks
Once everything has established well and been properly mulched, it requires less water without looking neglected. But I don’t think 1000 liters (265 gallons) will be enough.
Many of our plants are still in their second growing season. We’ll have to wait and see.
The old apple tree needed watering last year. Otherwise, only one perennial has died in our private wilderness over the past two years.
There has been a water shortage here for years. My aunt has had a ban on irrigation and watering since March 2019.
If rainwater is being used, the system should be generously sized. Weeks without any rainfall, then heavy rain again. In that case, a small container fills up quickly but empties just as fast.
Many of our plants are still in their second growing season. We’ll have to wait and see.
The old apple tree needed watering last year. Otherwise, only one perennial has died in our private wilderness over the past two years.
There has been a water shortage here for years. My aunt has had a ban on irrigation and watering since March 2019.
If rainwater is being used, the system should be generously sized. Weeks without any rainfall, then heavy rain again. In that case, a small container fills up quickly but empties just as fast.
A
AleXSR70020 May 2020 11:22rick2018 schrieb:
76,000 liters May I ask how large your plot of land is? That’s an excavation of 20 x 2 x 2 m (66 x 6.6 x 6.6 ft), depending on the proportions, of course.A
Anmacatili20 May 2020 12:38I am currently looking into this topic as well. My parents had a cistern including a water pump installed in 2010 for flushing the toilets in their new build. They are quite satisfied with it, but it only has a capacity of 4000 liters (1057 gallons) and, accordingly, it has run completely dry during long dry periods, even this year.
We are also about to build a new house soon, and I find the idea of installing a cistern (without a water pump and toilet flushing) very appealing from an ecological point of view. I simply feel better about using rainwater for the garden.
However, our plot is only 550 m2 (5920 ft2) in total, so the question of whether it is worthwhile probably doesn’t even arise. Still, I haven’t completely ruled it out and need to do some research. The IBC containers mentioned here sound like an alternative to me. What would be interesting to know is where and how you have placed them? It’s not exactly aesthetically pleasing, if you know what I mean. How can they be well “hidden”?
We are also about to build a new house soon, and I find the idea of installing a cistern (without a water pump and toilet flushing) very appealing from an ecological point of view. I simply feel better about using rainwater for the garden.
However, our plot is only 550 m2 (5920 ft2) in total, so the question of whether it is worthwhile probably doesn’t even arise. Still, I haven’t completely ruled it out and need to do some research. The IBC containers mentioned here sound like an alternative to me. What would be interesting to know is where and how you have placed them? It’s not exactly aesthetically pleasing, if you know what I mean. How can they be well “hidden”?
A
Anmacatili20 May 2020 13:11What I’m wondering, since I’m still quite new to this topic, is... can you connect a rainwater tank to the outdoor faucet of a new house without much trouble? An outdoor faucet is planned, but without a separate rainwater tank or pressure system! I would ideally like to draw water directly from the outdoor faucet and switch to mains water when the tank is empty...
Similar topics