GeorgiaWaterTanks

This the current condition in Georgia. We are again in a Level 1 Drought as of September 2016. The area under Moderate Drought or higher has doubled from 20% of the state last year this time, to 40%. No additional watering restrictions have been added so far.

What should I do?

We all want nice green lawns, but grass is the most easily replaced part of the landscaping. It’s more important to protect trees and shrubs. However, the condition of the grass is a good indication of the moisture available to all the landscaping, IF WE WATER EVENLY.  So when you water, cover the whole yard!

There are various methods for conserving water in irrigation: some use weather data downloaded from NOAA. Others measure sunlight intensity, temperature, humidity, and the presence of rainfall. Others use soil moisture content. We will be experimenting with this, but my preference is always a direct measure of the desired result. So, moisture sensors. However, sensor quality can be highly variable no matter what kind, especially something mass produced for consumers.

And of course, collect rainwater! If drought levels worsen, there’s a real possibility of a total outdoor watering ban. How can a rainwater system help? Even the worst droughts in Georgia are a 50% reduction of rainfall. Which means that most buildings can double their effective rainfall with a rainwater system, which should be enough to protect trees and shrubs.

Please contact Georgia Water Tanks for help protecting your valuable landscaping. Our primary business is supplying equipment to contractors, with design assistance and on-site support during installation and commissioning included. If you are a property owner and are looking for an installer, we can recommend several that are experienced installers. And we are always looking to train more!

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“Check your local laws before collecting rainwater. . . it’s illegal in some states!” How many times have we heard that dire and vague warning. The truth is quite different. Click hereto see the current laws for your state.

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1. I recommend a tank size of about 1 gallon/square foot of rooftop if you are using rainwater harvesting as a stormwater management tool. This (slightly) exceeds City of Atlanta requirements, and simplifies the math. 1:1:1 is a good ratio, and easy to remember. 

1. 1 s.f. of rooftop : 1 gallon of storage : 1 s.f. of turf to irrigate.
2. Not interested in stormwater management, and just want to collect what you need? I recommend sizing a tank on a 1 month dry spell (happens almost every year), and collecting from up to twice as much rooftop as irrigation area. 3 gallons storage/1 s.f. of turf, collecting from up to 2 s.f/s.f. of turf.
3. Cooling tower makeup requires 7 gallons/year/square foot of air conditioned office space in Georgia. Also, cooling tower useage alone will use all the rainwater typically collected, for a 7 story building. So if you have a 3-4 story building, you only need to collect from half your rooftop, or you have excess that you can use for irrigation or toilet flushing.
4. 10 gallons/year/square foot for irrigating turf and other thirsty plants
5. 3 gallons/person/day for toilet flushing at an office, or 6 gallons/person/day for continuous occupancy.
6. 50″ rain falls/year in Atlanta, about 25 gallons/year/square foot rooftop is usable
7. Budget Prices: $2/gallon for an above-ground tank is good budget price. This is for a 10,000 – 100,000 gallon tank. That’s for tanks, pumps, the extra piping, and the filters needed for irrigation or cooling tower makeup.
8. $3/gallon for a below-ground tank, pumps, extra piping, and filters for irrigation or cooling tower makeup.

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Georgia Water *Treatment*???  GWT is now the Georgia industrial representative for Orival filters.  I’ve used these the past few years as my standard self-cleaning 5-10 micron filter.  For rainwater, we used them for flows from 5 – 150 gpm.  But Orival has standard products up to 24″ and 10,000 gpm, with custom manifolds bigger than that.

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