Tank water additive?

Discussion in 'Designing, building, making and powering your life' started by Ive Fargottin, Jan 5, 2012.

  1. Ive Fargottin

    Ive Fargottin Junior Member

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    Does anybody add anything to their tank water to stop parasites, bacterial contamination, etc?
    If so, what.......if you don't mind me asking?
     
  2. ppp

    ppp Junior Member

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    No. Nothing just plain rain water here.
     
  3. labradel

    labradel Junior Member

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    having been brought up on tank water only rain water into the tanks
     
  4. Grasshopper

    Grasshopper Senior Member

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    I try and watch the BOM site, if its going to rain I get up and clean the gutters.
    I got 2 gum trees hanging over the roof,my gutters are always full of leaves,tomorrow is cleaning day
    I have thrown in a few handfuls of lime to clean up some tannin in the water.
     
  5. Pakanohida

    Pakanohida Junior Member

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    Go to a pet store, get a UV Filter and replace the bulb every 6 months as per manufacturer suggestions else it will stop working effectively if you are worried about parasites, amoebas and the like. Other then that, use charcoal sandwiched between aquarium filter floss & you are golden. Just remember to remove 75% of the charcoal every 3 months.

    I am actually dumbfounded UV's aren't used more by waste stations.
     
  6. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    no! we use diverters for the 1st flush is all and keep screens clean, always run water in over the screen and have screened outlet to stop frogs et.,. coming into you tank. that's about as hard as it gets, the tanks we buy come with all screens, the diverter kits about $50 work on the floating ball cock system, each 1 meter length of 90mm down pipe you use catches about 7 litres of water off of 50sq/mt roof catchment app'. there's no pandemics of fatal illnesses in rural communities.

    len
     
  7. pebble

    pebble Junior Member

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    Location:
    inland Otago, NZ
    Climate:
    Inland maritime/hot/dry/frosty
    There's some evidence that all those bugs are good for us anyway. I'd be more careful in a tropical climate perhaps (but maybe that's just because I have no experience of one). But I've also often lived with tank-stored rainwater and never treated it with anything.

    First flush diverters sound a good option, and I would probably use one if I lived in a built up area (that's concern about heavy metals and pollution rather than microbes).
     
  8. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    can't edit my last post:

    but! the thing that concerns me is this new seemingly yuppie idea of having downpipes join under the houses to conceal them thn come upward to feed into the tank(s) this means for what could be long periods of time (drought) there is water trapped in the down pipe system stagnating and some of it getting the effects of sun on it which can percolate problems, then you get a fall of rain that flushes that stagnant water into the tanks. this doesn't happen in the tank just that material settles out which is good, i think we need to buy dark coloured tans as light coloured ones can promote the growth of mossy stuff, easily treated with chlorine. but i cringe for the future when i see those down pipe systems and the other where pipes go down underground then come up to the tanks just as bad. this sort of contamination would mean complete replacement of down pipes and tanks.

    run downpipes direct from collection area to tanks. we sued 1st flush in teh suburbs and the water was equal to rural water without 1st flush.

    len
     
  9. Ive Fargottin

    Ive Fargottin Junior Member

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    Thanks for the input guys.....

    I use diverters for the 1st flush and screens etc.
    There are gum trees from a neighbours property that dump a heap of leaves on the roof so I share the pain of gutter cleaning Grasshopper.

    I was brought up on tank water too, but I'm not sure if parasites and organisms are the only thing to keep an eye out for though.... found this CSIRO investigation on Melbourne water tanks....https://www.csiro.au/files/files/pk7r.pdf
     
  10. Ive Fargottin

    Ive Fargottin Junior Member

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    So.....I have an invested in an "undersink" purifying system for the drinking water plumbed to the kitchen.
    Its a two stage system...the first removes mud, slime, dirt, rust and other sediments.
    The second removes any unwanted chemicals.
    The only maintenence is changing filters.
     
  11. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    had a quick sqiz at that csiro report, need care with them they support the system above unbiased reporting. yes and these heavy metals in the suburbs mostly from traffic, are they in a soluble form when the enter the tank i reckon not and they harmlessly mostly sink to the bottom.

    len
     
  12. Terra

    Terra Moderator

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    Echo Len with the gutter to tank , never go down underground across and up into tank , imagine a dead rat in there , i have a couple of long runs to the tank i just use long posts with the pipe on top
     
  13. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    g'day terra,

    yeh frightens us up here north of gympie all home builder stumpies and slabs all go underground. our concern is that when it causes health problems that get identified they may make us all treat our water before drinking or put in some fancy treatment plant, just like these fancy home sewerage systems that cost a fortune have a use by date need 4 specialist treatments a year and pump chlorine and methane into the air, go figure hey.

    len
     
  14. Terra

    Terra Moderator

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    Yes Len authorities will complicate everything . There is a remarkable abount of rubbish can end up in tanks if there is no screening its been about 3 weeks since any rain here ( had 6mm today) one tank screen was full of fresh rubbish from strong winds last week and numerous millipedes ect .of course you can use the angle screens on your gutter outlets some great products availiable but fines will still get through and foul the water in down and up systems . Nastiest contamination ive heard of was my friend in the riverland , his pressure pump wouldnt shut off inspection found a 3ft snake with its head in the non return valve pretty yuk .
    Rob
     
  15. annette

    annette Junior Member

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    Hey Ivefargottin!

    Would you be able to give me the name of the system you have got there. Sounds like it what I'm looking for.
     
  16. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    yes terra,

    owner need to be diligent in preventative cleaning of screen, those of us who do should not be penalised for those other who don't. this rental has those leaf traps fitted like 1/2 a 5lt bucket, we cleaned them out we are only renting, they were so clogged with little gum nuts and fines if it rained heavy they over flowed. not a leaf in them good around here for that when one considers all the gum trees, when we build we won't be putting leaf guards in just diverters, only issue is pine needles from neighbouring properties not sure what to do about them, gutter guards are plastic and wouldn't help in a fire anyway, might melt all over the gutter and an insurance claim might be in order? don't like making claims especially with the excess we have.

    this water has very very slight tannin colouration, and not as sweet as it should be naught we can do about tenants don't have those rights in rural.

    len
     
  17. Woz

    Woz Junior Member

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    >water trapped in the down pipe system stagnating

    Not to mention leaching chemicals from the PVC.
     
  18. andrew curr

    andrew curr Moderator

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    I put bits of limestone and bits of marble in tank

    reason ?someone told me it removed heavy metals from h2o
     
  19. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    g'day andrew,

    yes i have heard like, i am yet to get some limestone chip to put in our water urn have spoken to someone who does same, they say marble also works, got a mate who puts bag of charcoal carefully into tank near out let, thinking of that one when we have our own tanks.

    len
     
  20. andrew curr

    andrew curr Moderator

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    monumental masons always have some quite handy chips lying around
    there is a thing doing the internet where if you sing to the water it also works
     

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