Agri Vehicles Insurance from Greenlands

Author Topic: off grid water  (Read 14754 times)

hebber

  • Joined Mar 2008
off grid water
« on: October 13, 2008, 05:00:52 pm »
how do you go about storing and treating your own water?  Up here in the hebrides we have loads of the stuff - I'm sure I could manage off the mains, if I could work out how to do it.  I tried googling relevant information, but just came up with loads of expensive options to recycle mains water, and nothing about storing rainwater for use in the house, and as drinking water.

Fluffywelshsheep

  • Joined Oct 2007
  • Near Stirling, Central Scotland
Re: off grid water
« Reply #1 on: October 13, 2008, 08:43:40 pm »
I think the residence elder (rusty) will be able the help you on that.
Linz

garden cottage

  • Joined Sep 2008
  • forest of dean
Re: off grid water
« Reply #2 on: October 13, 2008, 10:45:39 pm »
HI, rusty probably is your man. for many years my parents were on a spring supply that was simply a concrete tank underground any sediment fell to the bottom the outlet was couple of foot above this, i think the main thing is keeping the water cool hence underground and away from any sunlight which will turn clean water into slimy gunge very quickly. distance from tank up in the woods to house was about 1/4 mile water was lovely to drink. it was tested every year and did eventually fail the test but this was after many years of use. filterclean technologies is a good site ive copied this section thought it might be helpful  Ultra-violet water treatment
The most cost effective and frequently used on private water supplies, UV treatment destroys micro-organisms by changing their DNA. This type of treatment requires a clear sample of water to allow the UV light to penetrate the water and is therefore typically installed with a sediment removal pre-filter. These units must be installed near to the point of use to ensure that the supply is not re-contaminated.   cheers neil

rustyme

  • Guest
Re: off grid water
« Reply #3 on: October 14, 2008, 01:32:25 am »
hello,
      this is one of those strange subjects really !!! there are as many different ideas on storage ,usage and the like as there are people doing it.  What suits one may not suit another . But , using any sort of water means that it has to be clean , for that reason (and I am lucky here ) I use a spring for my water . I have 2 one the land. Some people would test it by sending it away to the labs , I just drank it and waited to see what happened ? Well I am still here .... I myself , would rather drink cleaned (filtered) water from the river that runs through my land , than rain water . I know I could filter that too , but I don't like the idea of trying to get all the pollutants from planes etc out of rain water . I know there can be all sorts of pollutants on the ground too , but I know the area round here and that is what makes my mind up ...I know what goes on round here. You will know your area better than anyone else , as you live there. Rain water is fine for watering plants etc., and for using it for washing and the loo. You can then put that waste through a willow or reed bed filter system , and then reuse it again for the same things. If you were going to use rain water for drinking then , I am sure that it would be a good idea to put it through a filter. A home made one with sand and gravel would do the job . After it was cleaned it could then go through the UV system if you were using one , but , you would need to make sure that , in the event of a power failure , you had a backup source of power to run it. The water that comes out of a willow or reed bed system , is meant to be very clean if run properly , but I wouldn't really want to drink it if it had been used for the washing and loo systems though . So I would always make sure the drinking side of things was seperate from the grey side.  Storage of water is dealt with in many ways . As already mentioned , concrete tanks , are a good way of storing it . However , they are a very labour intensive thing to make , and they would cost a lot of money to make too. You can get plastic water tanks now , like fuel ones really . Once again they are dear, although easy to install. You can also get those square white plastic containers on a pallet , just make sure you get the ones suitable for drinking water though . Once again , even though second hand , they are dear if you want drinking water type ones. It all depends on what your needs are really . Storage for washing and toilet water is easy to sort out , but it starts to get costly for drinking water . LIke I said earlier I am lucky I have 2 springs , so my drinking water is sorted . Any other water i need is sorted too as I have a fast flowing river on the land. You may find you have water underground where you are ? it is then a matter of working out how much it will cost to get to it , or if it would be cheaper to use above ground supplies ie rain , river etc. You won't really need a huge container to store your drinking water , so don't do the sums for a huge 20' diameter tank . Work out how much water you do need and what amount for the different things ie,drinking washing loo etc. It is then quite easy to work out the best method of storing it and from which source . Small amounts of water for emergency use can be treated with ordinary plain bleach. I think it is about 1 teaspoonfull to 5 gallons ( but check that out before doing it !!!) I would use a double whammy on that one and boil it first , then add the bleach and then store in bottles.  C.A.T. has got many good books and information on water use etc. along with all sorts of info on living free of the mains network , as the name would imply, Centre for Alternative Technology !!.
http://www2.cat.org.uk/shopping/index.php?cPath=46_88&osCsid=bf5bcb5040efedec54616af4f88c25aa
   Sorry for the long winded and rather vague answer, but it is one of those subjects that will differ from person to person , and from situation to situation. I hope it has added at least something to what you have already checked , and good luck with what ever you do ... cheers

Russ
« Last Edit: October 14, 2008, 05:13:07 pm by rustyme »

hebber

  • Joined Mar 2008
Re: off grid water
« Reply #4 on: October 14, 2008, 04:59:57 pm »
Thanks, that is helpful.  I couldn't find anything about storing and treating water.  I just remembered that I stayed at a friend's house in Australia where they stored their own rainwater, and you just had to remember to switch the pump on to get it.  That made me think it must be quite easy, but obviously things are very different in Australia - I think storing your own water is far more common in remote areas there.  I'll have a look at the CAT site.

garden cottage

  • Joined Sep 2008
  • forest of dean
Re: off grid water
« Reply #5 on: October 14, 2008, 05:25:38 pm »
regarding IBC plastic water tanks that come on pallets with metal frame over, loads on ebay make sure you know whats been in them, ex food industry ones are usually alright have them steam cleaned out, and if you can, get black ones as the water doesnt go yukky, sunlight cannot penetrate,other than that these are excellent for the smallholder and have lots of applications.    neil

Ash Field Farm

  • Joined Apr 2008
  • banbury
  • my girls
Re: off grid water
« Reply #6 on: October 14, 2008, 07:38:12 pm »
hi iam having a bore hole drilled well thats the plan  then the water is already part filterd the plan is to pump into a header tank but it depnds on the presure of the water  then the idea was to see if i can get it tested for drinking water  does anyone know where i would get that done and how much would it cost
 i can add a uv box and presure filter before it goes into the header tank  a tip i know of with the ibc containers is to make sure its black o r atleast paint it in a dark colour as it would protect it from the sunlight stoping the water going off  or going green  just make sure its sealed in the tank and nothing can get in to it that would cause a prob e.g birds

 :ladybug:

Fluffywelshsheep

  • Joined Oct 2007
  • Near Stirling, Central Scotland
Re: off grid water
« Reply #7 on: October 14, 2008, 07:50:07 pm »
or going green  just make sure its sealed in the tank and nothing can get in to it that would cause a prob e.g birds

 :ladybug:

or rats ooooh rats in a water tank ain't fun lol

doganjo

  • Joined Aug 2012
  • Clackmannanshire
  • Qui? Moi?
    • ABERDON GUNDOGS for work and show
    • Facebook
Re: off grid water
« Reply #8 on: October 14, 2008, 09:50:34 pm »
Local Council environmental health department will test water - Aberdeenshire costs £99, and they test for everything.  If you have any bugs in it, you have to get filters put in place then they will re-test for nothing till it shows clear.  They usually take water from the main tap in the kitchen.  You can't sell a property unless you have a clean water certificate and also septic tanks have to be registered with SEPA before you can sell.  I assume England and Wales are the same as Scotland in this respect but others may know different??  Perhaps this is in the Sellers' HIP reports?
Always have been, always will be, a WYSIWYG - black is black, white is white - no grey in my life! But I'm mellowing in my old age

Erika

  • Joined Jul 2009
About Solar Panels and System.
« Reply #9 on: July 24, 2009, 08:56:39 am »
See this Solar Panels and System. Hardy Solar Home Stezader 4 kW off grid energy generator system.1,500 Watt off grid Solar Panel System.

off grid system


sausagesandcash

  • Joined Jan 2009
  • UK
    • IrishHandcraft
Re: off grid water
« Reply #10 on: July 24, 2009, 09:43:39 am »
The whole water/wind power thing is just killing me as we have both water and wind in abundance. I want to install a system, and am able to construct both a wind turbine and a Turgo turbine (for water). I'm just stumped at where I go from there. I can connect both to two old petrol generators and produce 220 volts. However if the generator needs too much torque to be generated by either system, i'm back to square one. Has anyone experience of perma magnets/ alternators. I need a dummies guide to continue!

Regards,

Morgan
« Last Edit: August 04, 2009, 10:34:42 pm by sausagesandcash »

rustyme

  • Guest
Re: off grid water
« Reply #11 on: July 24, 2009, 01:56:39 pm »
hello Morgan ,
               you seem to have hit the point I am at , my stumbling block is money  !!! I assume you want to connect either the wind or the water power (or both ?) to the old petrol genny instead of the engine?   This may be a problem !! most petrol gennies run at about 3000rpm , some faster some slower , but about that speed. The alternator part of the setup is made to run at that speed or there may be a built in gearbox to get it up to that . A windmill will need loads of complicated gearing and will need to be huge , if it is going to run a full genny . It would be better to run a car alternator off the windmill instead. A water wheel hits similar problems ...speed being the worst. A water wheel runs quite slow really , so would need huge amounts of gearing to get you up to speed ,and turbines  need vast quantities of fast flowing water with a good head . It is one of those things ..swings and roundabouts....I will be just using a water wheel to produce mechanical power for tools etc and to make a nominal amount of leccy , say up to a max of about 1000 watts  ish. I can put up a small windmill but I hit the problem of huge amounts of batteries £££££, so I'll forget that . The thing to think about is how much money you have to throw at it ?? If you want modern amounts of leccy to run a house , then get ready for huge amounts of money to go walkabout.  Or change the way of thinking and go back to the old ways of doing it , much cheaper but less leccy. You could also get an old lister CS genny . They will run on just about any oil you can get ie diesel, red or white, heating oil, cooking oil  (old or new) , engine oil even hydraulic oil !! and knock out about 2.5-3 kwt. , plus they only run at about 650 rpm . You can even buy a brand new one made in India , exact copies of the old listers. About £800-£900 for the engine and about £300 for the alternator bit . As a guide the genny part needs about a minimum  of 6hp ,constant, to work . The more leccy the bigger the engine the more it costs to run . I think a 6hp lister uses about 1 litre an hour to kick out 2.5 kwt. You do get a load of heat that can be used to heat water , with these . So you end up with a combined power and heat system (CPH) Which way to go depends on £££££ My system will therefore be a hotchpotch knocked up for as little as possible.


cheers

Russ

sausagesandcash

  • Joined Jan 2009
  • UK
    • IrishHandcraft
Re: off grid water
« Reply #12 on: July 24, 2009, 05:59:04 pm »
Russ, me 'ol mate. I want to export into the national grid....or if the grid goes down to run some essentials in the house without being reliant on petrol/diesel/oil. Does this site mean anything to you (i'm clueless) http://electronic-components.globalspec.com/Industrial-Directory/permanent_magnet_generator  . Any leccie people out there you can help Russ and I.....feel free!

Regards,

Morgan

rustyme

  • Guest
Re: off grid water
« Reply #13 on: July 24, 2009, 06:45:09 pm »
Hello Morgan ,
                I have come across that site before, but it means as much to me as it does to you I think ? ...I only want very small amounts of leccy and have no desire to get connected to the grid (or the money to do so !! ) , so haven't looked into selling to the power companies . My system will be the odd £50 here and there to set up and run , I think it would be a different kettle of fish if you are selling to the big boys ? ::) ;D My knowledge of anything leccy is flick the switch and it either works or it don't !!!! I can connect things up ok , but that is about it really . So ,what with being as thick as two short planks in series parallel , and being totally skint , I have adjusted my needs backwards , ie with as little leccy as poss. I have a wind up torch though ...why can't they make wind up tv's , pc's , etc etc ??? As it is , anything that costs money just winds ME up.... ;D

cheers

Russ

sausagesandcash

  • Joined Jan 2009
  • UK
    • IrishHandcraft
Re: off grid water
« Reply #14 on: July 25, 2009, 11:26:43 pm »
Found these sites too rusty.

http://www.fieldlines.com/faq/re_faq
http://www.otherpower.com/otherpower_wind.shtml
http://www.scoraigwind.com/#parts
http://www.ecoinnovation.co.nz/

Seems like a homemade system is possible. Hope to get the chance to do some reading on them!

Regards,

Morgan

 

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