off the grid water

[stinkbelly]

No I am not a nutjob. Now that we got that out of the way.


We were looking at a house to buy this weekend and it turns out that the house uses 100% rainwater for everything. It does not have a well and it does not have water to the house. I looked at the rain water catch system and it was 2-8000 gallon tanks. They were both about 3/4 of the way full. I was pretty impressed because besides this weekend we haven't had any rain all summer. The more I thought about it and searched the internet I thought there is no way this will work. The internet says the average person uses 100 gallons per day. We have 4 people in the house. So we use 400 gallons per day. 400 times 30 days in an month is 12,000 gallons per month. I haven't been on a water meter in 20 years. So I don't have any clue if 12,000 gallons a month is right or not. So basically we would need enough rain to fill those tanks 3/4 of the way each month to be ok. I don't see that happening. I guess I could figure out the roof area and figure out how many inches of rain it would require to fill the tanks, but those tanks were about 12 feet high and 12 feet in diameter. I just can't see that happening.

Am I missing something here.

[systemnt]

a house surviving on rain water only.... in texas.....
I call bull****.

you're right, the math wont add up....but if you buy a house without water or plans for a well...you are a nutjob

[Rick]

If you like the house is drilling well not a possibility?

[clffrdfdge]

Following

[MadHatter]

I could very easily see that happening with 2 people. Probably an old school couple, who learned to make it work. 100 gal a day is based off the wastefulness of today's society, go back some years and the average person probably didn't use a 100 a month. I would agree though, its probably a stretch for a modern family of 4.

[SOLID EAGLE]

People bathe way more now than in times past.

[SFAbowhunter]

I don't see that adding up. Do they water their yard? My wife and I use 12,000 gallons a month on average throughout the year and water twice a week during the spring/summer months.

[Puncher51]

a house surviving on rain water only.... in texas.....
I call bull****.

you're right, the math wont add up....but if you buy a house without water or plans for a well...you are a nutjob

There are actually quite a few folks in Texas that rely solely on rainwater. And the ones I know have successfully done it for years in the drier areas of Texas.

OP it definitely is a change in lifestyle though, and 100 gallons a day per person is not feasible. The folks I know cut that number WAY back. When you rely on rainwater you have to train yourself and your family to cut back usage in every way possible. There’s no way my wife would ever go for an off the grid system.

I like watching Kniffen’s RWH videos on YouTube. He has quite a bit of them, but not all of them are geared for the house. Here’s the one that shows his house: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=llI8nR_r3KM.

Depending on your roof square footage, you could always look at adding more storage tanks. Personally though, I would rather have rainwater as a supplement and not supply 100% of my water.

[Puncher51]

I could very easily see that happening with 2 people. Probably an old school couple, who learned to make it work. 100 gal a day is based off the wastefulness of today's society, go back some years and the average person probably didn't use a 100 a month. I would agree though, its probably a stretch for a modern family of 4.

I agree with this as well.

[TxAg]

It's amazing the amount of water the average person wastes every day.

This spurred me to check my usage. It was 5900 gallons in June and 4200 gallons in May. This is for a family of 4 (two small kids). I have a nice yard that I hand water as needed.

[TxAg]

Here's a nice walk through from the Tucson, AZ area

https://youtu.be/pNXooT2FVXM

[systemnt]

There are actually quite a few folks in Texas that rely solely on rainwater. And the ones I know have successfully done it for years in the drier areas of Texas.

OP it definitely is a change in lifestyle though, and 100 gallons a day per person is not feasible. The folks I know cut that number WAY back. When you rely on rainwater you have to train yourself and your family to cut back usage in every way possible. There’s no way my wife would ever go for an off the grid system.

I like watching Kniffen’s RWH videos on YouTube. He has quite a bit of them, but not all of them are geared for the house. Here’s the one that shows his house: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=llI8nR_r3KM.

Depending on your roof square footage, you could always look at adding more storage tanks. Personally though, I would rather have rainwater as a supplement and not supply 100% of my water.

Outside of a couple of old hippies we know, that smell ALL the time, i dont know anyone that could do it....especially anyone with kids...
there is no way we could do it... to each his own i guess....but in this day and age... there's no reason to.

get a well.

How much of a major deal you getting due to no water? Certainly they arent using it as a selling point.

[mjhaverkamp]

I take a bath every Saturday whether I need it or not.

[MadHatter]

Outside of a couple of old hippies we know, that smell ALL the time, i dont know anyone that could do it....especially anyone with kids...
there is no way we could do it... to each his own i guess....but in this day and age... there's no reason to.

get a well.

How much of a major deal you getting due to no water? Certainly they arent using it as a selling point.

Oh there's always a reason. It's tinfoil area for sure, but as things become more and more digitally integrated, it becomes easier and easier for the entire grid to be shut down through a hack. And it wouldn't be much of a stretch for it to happen. Ever seen the movie, Zero Days? If we did it, it can be done to us.

[Puncher51]

Outside of a couple of old hippies we know, that smell ALL the time, i dont know anyone that could do it....especially anyone with kids...
there is no way we could do it... to each his own i guess....but in this day and age... there's no reason to.

get a well.

How much of a major deal you getting due to no water? Certainly they arent using it as a selling point.

Ya exactly, if you are on a RWH system then there is no way to shower or take care of yourself, you are guaranteed to stink! Also, just drill a well! There is an endless supply of water underground! 👍

There are many areas of Texas where underground water is not available, AND there is no rural water line. In these areas your only choices are to haul water to use for your house, not live there, or to use RWH. These people are not “hippies”, nor do they stink. They are very conservation minded and are able to live normal lives just like the rest of us.