Rainwater Tanks for New Homes

Building a new house and you would like a rainwater tank?

There are two options

• Install a rainwater tank near the house and have a tap on it for watering your garden

or

• Get your builder to adjust the internal plumbing inside the house whilst building and have rainwater from the tank pumped to your toilets and washing machine or more.

A common set-up now, even with some new developments around Fremantle, is to plan the new home to have:

• a 3000 litre slimline rainwater tank
• roof capture directing rainwater into the tank
• a submersible pump inside the tank
• dedicated plumbing inside the house whereby rainwater is supplied to the toilets and washing machine
• an auto mains/rainwater changeover device, for when the tank is empty it automatically reverts to mains water

Stage 1 – Provisions for Rainwater Installed – during the build process by the builder.

• The builder’s plumber provides a copper loop on the outside wall of the house that will direct rain water to the toilets and washing machine
• Have a power point installed near this loop for the pump
• Plan to have access to a soak well where the tank overflow can go
• Provide a concrete or paved plinth/base slightly larger than the rainwater tank for it to sit on

Stage 2 – Tank, pump and pipework – completion of the build, by Water Capture.

• We bring in the rainwater tank and connect the downpipes into it
• Overflow from the tank is run to soak wells
• Submersible pump is positioned inside the tank (can be a surface mounted pump)
• Install an auto mains/rainwater changeover device into the copper loop
• Set up the pipework, filtration and other options such as pressure vessels, water meters, water level gauges, valves etc
• Once there is rainwater in the tank we test the system