Water Archives - Page 4 of 14 - Living Off the Grid: Free Yourself

Off-Grid 101

Rainwater Harvesting: Global Storming – Bring it on

Installing a Rainwater Harvesting System (RHS) could be a major step in achieving your ideal, eco-friendly home. You could be collecting your own water through the beauty of nature rather than seeing the bills pile up on the doormat from the Utility Company. By installing a run-off system from your roof that leads to a storage area, pumps and purifiers, rainwater can be used across your home.
Even if you are already connected to the water supply, there are advantages to harvesting rainwater. If you are on a meter, your water bill will be reduced as the collected water can be put to use for non-drinking purposes such as showers, baths, flushing toilets, washing dishes. Drinking water is not easily renewable and if you wish to use your collected water for things that don’t require purification, harvesting is cost effective and requires little maintenance. It is also beneficial in terms of reducing wastage.
If you are cultivating your own crops and living off your plot of land, the collected water can be funnelled into an irrigation system. On an environmental level, the collection of rainwater will vastly improve the levels of groundwater. With a rise in population, groundwater levels have decreased and therefore increased the strife in parts of the world where water is scarce. Rainwater harvesting also reduces the level of surface water and lessens the chance of flooding, soil erosion and river contamination brought about by rainwater running through pesticides and other agricultural chemicals.

The disadvantages of rainwater harvesting are two-fold. Firstly, the initial cost of installing a storage system, purification methods and pumping can, according to YouGen, cost between $3000-$5000 (£2000-£3000 )and then running the pump will cost 5-10c a week. However you can now have your RHS plumbed straight into your existing piping and according to the Rainwater Harvesting Association can reduce your water consumption by as much as 40%. The use of a cistern to obtain drinking water in a city can be a tricky business. Shingled roofs, rather than clay or metal are less clean and liable to allow pollution to seep into the water. A pre-filtering system would have to be set up on the shingled roof prior to deposition in the tank to achieve drinkable water.

With water remaining in storage for a considerable degree of time, it is prone to stagnation, algal blooms and rodents spreading water-borne disease. Your harvesting system therefore has to be regularly maintained. Then of course, you are at the mercy of the clouds. Rainfall can be unpredictable and your levels of water will be affected by your geographical location.

The legal and red tape processes one has go through in order to begin to harvest your own water vary wildly. In 2012 a RHS case went viral when 64 year old Gary Harrington from Oregon was sentenced to 30 days in prison for illegal collection of …

December 16, 2015 1 Comment

Sad death of lad who was playing in unrpotected land owned by National Grid

Events

National Grid fined $3m for allowing boy’s death

UK Utility company National Grid has been fined $3m (£2m) after safety failings caused a young boy’s canal death. National Grid owns a huge swathe of Utilities in the North Eastern United States as well as running UK electricity and water infrastructure.

Robbie Williamson, 11, from Burnley in Northern England, died while playing with friends April 2014. The schoolboy fell from an exposed pipeline he was using to cross the Leeds and Liverpool canal, into the water below. National Grid said, adding: “We put guards in place on the gas pipe shortly after the accident and also on other similar crossings throughout our network too.

“We contacted other utility companies to make sure they were aware of what had happened so that they could take action as well.”

Little Robbie was pulled out of the water by neighbour Peter Graham – a former Royal Artillery soldier – and rushed to Royal Blackburn hospital. He died later that day.

National Grid Gas PLC was ordered to pay a seven-figure sum after admitting at Preston crown court it had failed to properly protect the exposed pipeline from the risk of injury from falls.

Judge Mark Brown, sentencing, said the exposed pipe, 3m (9ft 8in) above the water over a concrete surface, was “an accident waiting to happen.”

Brown said: “The pipeline was likely to have been attraction to young boys such as Robbie and was likely to be dangerous when it was wet and slippery.” National Grid did nothing to prevent or deter access onto it, the judge said.

“There is no doubt in my mind that the terrible and tragic death of Robbie has had a deeply profound affect on his parents. There can not be anything worse in life than for a parent to lose their child at such a very young age,” Brown said.

National Grid pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. Three boys were able to climb onto the 12in-diameter pipe from a ramped footpath because there had been no access prevention measures fitted. The company was ordered to pay £36,102.90 in costs.

The court had heard at first that National Grid Gas had a procedure for inspecting ground pipe crossings and requirements to block access to the structures. Yet records claimed that the pipe was buried in the bridge structure instead of being exposed – causing inspectors to miss the site and no access prevention measures to be fitted, such as steel “fans”.

Only maintenance work had been carried out on the pipe, in place alongside the bridge since 1903, but records had not been updated. Measures have since been put in place on the site to block access to the pipes.

National Grid said in a statement: “We’re deeply sorry for what happened to Robbie Williamson.”

The schoolboy’s father, Dean Williamson, 38, told The Lancashire Telegraph the …

December 11, 2015 No Comments

Community

Replacing our 12 volt water pump

Most of the time, items are replaced when they fail, break or quit working. We decided to get a jump on replacing a critical piece of our daily life before it stopped working, I’m referring to our 12 volt water pump. I have written about our water system before, the pump is an integral part of our water system.

We had a 12 volt Shurflo pump, it came out of an old RV and has served us well. I liked having a 12 volt system because it hooks up directly to the batteries, not going through the inverter, so even if everything else is not working, as long as the batteries have juice, the pump will work.

We replaced it with a newer 12 volt Shurflo pump, but an improved model, this one has greater flow and it’s quieter. Honestly the noise factor for us isn’t such a big deal, PB has isolated the pump as much as possible from the structure of the SkyCastle, and most of the time, it’s just us here and we are used to any potential noise it might make. Also, there is a light switch type switch over the sink to cut off power to the pump should we wish it.

A day after the pump arrived, PB went to work exchanging the pumps. That went smoothly enough, we have the capability of draining the outside pipes/hoses so we don’t have to worry about it freezing and breaking. The pump needs to be able to draw the water up some 6 feet from the water tank and this one does it quite nicely, the first time. The second time we drained the water and turned the pump back on, no water.

The pump came on and make the appropriate sounds, but it was clear that it wasn’t pulling the water up. After some reading and troubleshooting, we discovered this pump has a bypass system built in, I’m not up to speed on all of this, but it has to do with the size of the pipes/hoses used, apparently if you are using smaller diameter hose/pipe on the intake side than you are using on the outgoing side, it doesn’t work. BUT after reading the info on the paperwork it came with, it turns out you can adjust the bypass part, once PB got back under there and fiddled with it, it works like a charm.

Our water system is fairly simple, it starts out in a tank outside, gets drawn into the SkyCastle, through the pump, next the pipe/hose is split with one line going back into the water tank, we merely have to turn a valve to drain the system for freezing weather. It goes next into the pressure tank, that keeps the pump from having to cycle every time the water is turned on.

From there it splits again into …

December 6, 2015 No Comments

Final Frontier – the Bathroom

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November 22, 2015 1 Comment

Natural swimming pools

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November 18, 2015 2 Comments

Kylie is a local hero for sticking two fingers to the water company

Urban

“I paid Sydney Water $800 a year — now I get it for free”

Living in a city it can seem hard to kick free from the grid, but in Sydney Australia, Newtown resident Kylie Ahern will soon become the latest environmentalist to live completely off the grid.
“I am currently getting all my water from a series of tanks – one is buried in the backyard and the others are above ground,” Ms Ahern said.“I used to pay $800 a year to Sydney Water, now I get it all for free from my roof.
“I also have a stormwater absorption pit so all the water coming off the roof goes straight into the tanks and then into the pit.

“I am putting solar panels up and installing batteries and my aim is to disconnect from the electricity grid.

“I am in the process of looking for the most energy efficient appliances and I am cutting off my gas as I will be using an electric induction cooktop.

“The coal seam gas situation in this country has been really upsetting, therefore I want to make sure I am not contributing to the problem.

“We are lulled into thinking we need to pay for these services like water and electricity that we can get for free. Sewerage and plumbing is my next task as I can’t get the tanks onto my property just yet but they are something I am definitely aiming for.

“I am expecting all the work to be completed by early next year.” The Newtown resident shared her disdain at the inaction of politicians charged with reducing global emissions and encouraged other like-minded conservationists to follow in her footsteps.

“I have watched politicians over the years do very little to protect our environment and fail to do anything meaningful around reducing our emissions, so I decided that I had to do more,” Ms Ahern said.

“I think most of us want to do more to protect the environment but it’s knowing where to start that’s the challenge.“You don’t have to do a full renovation of your home; you can do little things like buy energy-efficient appliances or use a diverter so excess rainwater goes into your garden.”

The process of creating a self-sustaining property may seem like a daunting or impossible task to some, Ms Ahern insists it is a relatively streamlined process, if you have the right help.

Ms Ahern, recruited the assistance of Chippendale’s Michael Mobbs, who famously took his home off the grid in March, hopes to achieve the same results with her two-bedroom worker’s cottage by early next year.

…

November 12, 2015 2 Comments

Rainwater harvesting, and a teaser!

Shelter, food and water are the trinity of life, actually that should be in the reverse order, water absolutely comes first, without it, there would be no life for us. Water is becoming an increasingly rare and expensive commodity, fresh clean water is even more rare, there are but a few ways to get water. Where I live, many get their water from wells, fortunately our water is good water, the only reason to filter it is because of having to store it in tanks.

Another way of getting water is to collect what falls freely from the sky, I know that some states (in the USA) restrict rain water catchment, which I think is such a wrong thing to do to people. But for the states that do not restrict rain water catchment, it’s a great way to supplement your water use, it can even be used for your main water use.

We have a few water tanks around the Sky Castle, we have two tanks directly connected to the roof to catch the rain water, we have another tank under the house that holds more water, we gravity pump the water into that tank, it’s a 1550 gallon black poly tank, the other tanks are around 1000 gallon metal tanks. I am looking at getting two 3000 gallon black poly tanks, we could fill those easily in just a few good rains, considering we use between 200-300 gallons a month (yes, I said per MONTH), that amount of water would easily hold us. I would treat this water with bleach and run it through our Berkey Light water purifier for our drinking and cooking water.

Right now we are in our monsoon season, it lasts a couple of months, we get rain nearly everyday, usually in the evening, yesterday we had a deluge, a couple of inches of rain in a couple of hours, this morning as I was going out to work, I stopped at one of our low water crossings, the water had drained away, but there were some large rocks and small boulders in the middle of the road. I had some extra time before I had to go to work, so I hopped out of my truck, donned my heavy leather work gloves and moved rock. One of them was at the extreme end of my ability to pick it up, but I endured and got the road cleared. I could drive around it in my truck, but not everyone out here could have, I don’t mind doing that, it’s part of living out here on unpaved, mountain roads. It’s amazing how powerful water is.

On a completely different subject, this is a teaser for an article I’ll write this coming weekend, PB has been busy working on a clockwork mechanism, he manufactured it using spare parts, a saw blade, all thread, various metal …

July 24, 2015 No Comments

Water

A Shower in a box

If you need a portable shower, or a way of cleaning food or dishes – or even dogs – on the move, RinseKit is a portable, pressurized water tank with a hose hidden inside.

It opens like a toolbox. The company markets the $90 unit to surfers, fishermen, campers, and anyone who needs a spout off the grid.

You can fill it up at home or on the move, connecting the RinseKit to a garden hose with an included attachment piece. Add up to two gallons of tap water to the box, which then can be squirted out for a couple minutes before the reservoir goes dry.

No batteries are required, no pumping is involved. Water pressure from the tap is essentially transferred into the RinseKit. The box has a chamber that maintains about 65 psi of water pressure, guaranteeing a healthy spray.

Users who tested it out over a month were happy with the product. The RinseKit, invented by a surfer in California, is well-built and easy to use. It has come in handy across a range of outdoor activities.

At a beach, the hose is long enough for an ad hoc car shower. For camping you can use it to wash dishes. Or spray off a dirty mountain bike after a muddy trail day.

The hose head is a garden-style sprayer with settings from a light mist to a muddy-bike-cleaning “jet” mode. You do need to conserve the water, as it drains quickly on the high-power settings.

But its banked two gallons will last for up to three minutes of constant spray when set to a shower mode.

There’s a built-in ruler to measure fish. A solid handle folds up for carrying, and the hose coils to tuck inside when not in use.

The box weighs about 24 pounds when full of water. It sits in the back of a family van pressurized and at the ready.

For its price tag ($90) the RinseKit may seem a bit much for portable water. But it’s a treat for anyone tired of dealing with sand, grit, mud and other debris that a squirt or stream of water could easily wash away.…

July 23, 2015 No Comments

Water issues

Living in our little rural community in the mountains, we don’t have many choices for over the air radio stations, the mountains block most if not all of any potential signals we might receive, in fact for us, our only choice is Marfa Public Radio, it’s in the next town over and the only reason we can receive the signal is they installed a repeater tower on the edge of our neighborhood a few years ago.

Over the weekend I heard a story about California’s drought and folk running out of water, their wells are going dry and many in those communities, especially in the outlying areas are not on city water services. They are receiving 2500 gallon water tanks to get them through this terrible time. What really caught my attention though was the statement that this amount of water would last an average family 2 weeks, 2 WEEKS! I was shocked to hear that stat, it is a testament to how much water is apparently wasted by the people in their ordinary day to day usage.

One guy they interviewed stated that his well would run dry after 15 minutes, he was watering his lawn when he discovered this, well I’d say if you only have 15 minutes of water at a time, stop watering your lawn, it seems like a no brainer to me.

We live in a desert climate here in far west Texas, we have a rainy season which we are in now, it lasts a few months, we get random rain the rest of the year but it’s not much. Some of the people in my neighborhood have wells, but the vast majority of the people out here use tanks and haul their water. Most of us use a 1550 gallon water tank, one single tank, a few have 2 or more tanks, but most have just one. On average, those tanks are filled about once a month, our local water delivery guy has an 1100 gallon tank on his truck, so the tanks aren’t filled 100%, they try to not let their tank get down to empty before calling for a refill, so you could say that the average family out here uses about 1000 gallons per month (+/-).

What is the difference here? Are we going without to save water? I’d say no, what we are doing is living with the amount of water we have, we don’t water lawns, we don’t take long showers, many of us don’t take daily showers, we don’t leave the water running when we aren’t using it, we stop leaks as soon as possible after discovering them, some of us have composting toilets so we aren’t flushing water down the toilet. Many of us use our water more than once, ie we have grey water systems that at the very least water trees, gardens and …

July 7, 2015 No Comments

Summer is (almost) officially here

I say almost because it doesn’t officially begin until the 21st of this month, and the fact that I am sitting here with thermal pants on, it’s cold! Well not really COLD, but cool, too chilly for shorts that’s for sure! I love living in the high desert of far west Texas, no where else in Texas is it this cool in mid June!

That being said, it’s still hot during the day, OK it’s nothing like it was when I lived between Dallas and Fort Worth, but after being here for 8 years, I’m spoilt, our rainy season is just starting and this is our hottest part of the year, we don’t have air conditioning (electric or swamp coolers), we rely on opening all the windows and using fans, we also have a few places around the property that are cooler, under the trees and under the SkyCastle too.

I found this article on how to keep cool in the heat of summer, let me know if you use any of these and how they work for you, AND if you have any improvements on these or other ideas for keeping cool.

Sweat beads up on your forehead and then all over your body. The heat becomes heavy and you can barely breathe in the hazy conditions. As summer gets closer in Charlotte, we’re already on the verge of breaking records. Use these Pinterest search results to ease the pain.

Soda slushy!

To be fair we haven’t tried this one so test it with caution. Per this Tumblr account, shake an unsealed bottle of soda and pop it in the freezer for about three hours. Loosen the cap to release pressure, then flip the bottle upside down to get out the goodness.

Freeze aloe for sunburns

Pop it in an ice cube tray, then chill before gliding over your scorched skin.

WordPress

Lighten your locks

When chlorine turns it green, freshen up your hair with olive oil. Put it on before swimming.

Build a homemade air conditioner

Thrillist

If you don’t want to run you the bill, get a bucket, a fan and a few more items to make your own ventilation. See how here.

Beach belongings

Clean out a sunscreen bottle and put your car keys or cell phone inside to trick a thief.

Pickup truck pool, anyone?

When the real version is out of reach, grab a tarp and make your own “cold” tub.

Frozen food

If you like your wine chilled but sun is warming it up too quickly, lower the temp by dropping in some frozen grapes.

Chill a beverage in minutes

Don’t worry if your forgot to put your drinks in the refrigerator. Wrap them in a wet paper towel and stick in the freezer for about 15 minutes. Voila!

Always have ice cold water

Fill your water bottle …

June 13, 2015 No Comments

Land

Indian getaways

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Here’s some ideas about where you could holiday off the grid in India…

MARITIME ADVENTURE

Sunbathe on pristine-white sand beaches, hunt for seashells and swim in the warm sea. Aquatic enthusiasts could take a dip and get `up close and personal’ with some of the world’s rarest underwater marine life, including schools of dolphins, sharks and manta rays in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.…

January 4, 2015 1 Comment

Community

Tree house vacation

Book a tree house on the Edisto River.

These tree houses have no electricity or running water, but are considered one of the South Carolina Lowcountry’s most unique getaways. Canoe down a dozen miles to the secluded site, then canoe farther down to check out the river the next day.

Each treehouse is tucked in the woods out of view of any other, nestled in the trees on the river’s edge and privately accessed by canoe.…

August 31, 2014 2 Comments

All you need to go off-grid

Water

Rainwater Harvesting: Global Storming – Bring it on

National Grid fined $3m for allowing boy’s death

Replacing our 12 volt water pump

Final Frontier – the Bathroom

Natural swimming pools

“I paid Sydney Water $800 a year — now I get it for free”

Rainwater harvesting, and a teaser!

A Shower in a box

Water issues

Summer is (almost) officially here

Indian getaways

Tree house vacation

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