Marin County Real Estate: Reduce your Water Bill: Reuse an already free resource: Rainwater Catchment
Marin County Real Estate: Reduce your Water Bill: Reuse an already free resource: Rainwater Catchment
Capture this natural resource in your garden, yard or directly from your rain gutters. There are a number of ways to gather rain water to reuse in your home and garden and reduce your monthly water bill. Rainwater catchment in becoming a very popular buzz word in the greening of homes and businesses.
What is Rainwater Catchment? Harvesting rainwater or capturing and containing the rainwater for re-use but here is a more detailed description from Wikipedia. Turns out it’s not really a new concept. According to Wikipedia it’s a 3,000 year old practice and evidence can be found in many cultures from Malta to Egypt to the Roman Empire .
With the increase in homeowners desire to “green” their homes and gardens and decrease their water and energy bills, rainwater harvesting has become increasingly more popular and catchment devices are easy to find. Consider the Rainwater Hog, designed by my friend Sally Dominguez, a designer/inventor/aussie-celeb/writer. She could not find a good solution for a system to harvest rainwater and store under her house so in 2003 she designed the Rainwater Hog.
A few compelling reasons to consider a rainwater harvest program in your home:
- Reduce water bills including city storm sewer charges
- Alleviate demand on municipal systems
- Avoid strict watering schedules
- Rainwater is extremely Rich in nutrients and therefore better than treated water
- Reduces fertilizer use
- No added chemicals in rainwater
There are simple solutions like the Rainwater Hog or barrel solutions and more complicated applications that can be designed into remodels or newly constructed homes and stored underground.
Before you make any decisions or plans for rainwater harvesting check with the state and city authorities. In some states, the rain that falls on your property might not be yours to keep. Check out HarvestH20.com for laws and statutes in your state.
Catch some water on your property, re-use a free natural resource and you can save money on your water bill while adding a green feature to your home. Rainwater harvesting, an ancient practice with a modern twist!