Active rainwater harvesting is the practice of collecting rainfall in a container so the water can be used for water-requiring activities. Depending on the overall equipment and any governmental regulations, rainwater harvesting can be used for any activity that requires water inside and outside a home, farm, business, or industry.
A simple rainwater collection setup may include a single rain barrel or rain tank, and/or a few rain harvesting accessories such as a downspout screen, first flush diverter, or tank screen. A mid-range rainwater setup may also include some PVC pipe and a water pump to provide water pressure.
A complex system may include a large capacity rain tank or underground cistern, many or all the available rain harvesting accessories, a water pump, and a filtration and treatment system to purify the rainwater for potable grade quality. A complex rainwater system may also include an additional rain tank or tanks and/or a pressure tank to store the water for use on demand.
What Can Rainwater Be Used For
The type of setup will determine what harvested rainwater can be used for. With the right equipment, rainwater harvesting can be used in any activity that requires water. Local laws and regulations can also affect acceptable rainwater uses, but this mostly applies to indoor fixtures and applications.
Common applications rainwater harvesting is used for:
- Water gardens, house plants, and food plots
- Sprinklers and landscape irrigation systems
- Fill ponds and other landscape water features
- Fill pools and maintain water levels
- Wash vehicles, equipment, and machinery
- Complete water use in homes and businesses including flushing toilets, appliances, sinks, showers, and bathtubs
- Supplement well water supply
- Provide drinking water for livestock, pets, and wildlife
- In agriculture for irrigation, pasture care, animal care, processing, cooling, and cleaning
- Aquaculture applications
- Hydroponic and aquaponic growing
- Fire suppression systems and fire fighting
- Emergency water supply during disasters and survival scenarios
- Reduce and manage stormwater runoff
How Can I Use Rainwater for Anything I Want
The first step to being able to use rainwater for anything you want is to know specifically what you plan to use it for and how clean you need the water to be as this will directly relate to any additional equipment or plumbing that will be needed.
Will you use rainwater harvesting to water your garden, landscape, or lawn, or will it be used to provide drinking water to animals such as livestock, in agriculture type activities, in a fire suppression system, or used indoors for non-potable and/or potable applications?
Simple outdoor watering of a garden with a watering can or low-flow hose may only require a simple rainwater setup that can benefit from a leaf eater or tank screen accessory to remove debris. Using rainwater with a sprinkler, spray nozzle, or irrigation system will need a water pump so there is enough water pressure.
To be able to use rainwater for any application without concern, the rainwater must be potable grade quality. The most effective and consistent way to achieve drinking water quality rainwater is to use a pump, cartridge filtration, purification treatment system, and the plumbing to make all the necessary connections.
For more information, see our post on How to Turn Rainwater into Drinking Water.
Have Enough Rainwater for Use
Another important point is to know you will be able to collect enough rainwater for use. Simple watering may not have any set volume needs if it will only be used to conserve water from the municipal supply. However, water-vital activities such as maintaining plant life, growing crops, providing water to animals, and indoor uses are highly reliant on whether water is available or not, so knowing how much rainwater you can collect is important.
To collect more rainwater and ensure you have enough water on hand for use, you can:
- Increase the size of the rain catchment area – often done by connecting multiple downspouts and different sides of a structure together.
- Build an additional structure solely to harvest rainwater from.
- Upgrade an existing rain barrel or rain tank to a new one with a larger storage capacity so it can hold more water before becoming full.
- Add an additional rainwater container or containers and connect them to the existing container using plumbing to expand your total storage capacity. (See our post with all the info on connecting tanks together.)
- Purchase a galvanized steel water tank or a bladder tank to be able to harvest a substantial volume of rainwater.
Takeaway | What Can Rainwater Harvesting Be Used For
With the right setup, accessories, planning, and plumbing, rainwater harvesting can be used for any activity on a property or business that requires water, given local regulations allow. The main questions are: is non-potable water okay or does it need to be potable water, will a water pump be necessary, and will you be able to collect and keep enough water on hand.
For those interested in the practice and wanting to learn more about rainwater harvesting, check out our Rain Tanks Series in our knowledge base and you can be on your way to becoming an expert rain harvester.
If looking to start up your own system or add onto an existing one, we offer ANSI/NSF 61 drinking water certified rainwater collection tanks and many of the commonly used accessories including UV treatment systems. We also offer galvanized steel water tanks for large rainwater capture and use applications.
We are America’s liquid tank superstore, providing some of the lowest prices available online for these products. If you have questions or need help in product selection, contact our support professionals today.