Small Acreages
Small Acreage... not just a dream.
Acreage living is, to many, an appealing lifestyle choice. Water, access to it, is essential to enjoying this lifestyle.
Even if town water access is available, the purchase of a rain water tank is regarded a wise decision. Not just a wise environmental decision, as the world runs out of natural drinkable water. Collecting and storing chlorine free water, has many advantages for your garden, washing your vehicles streak free and off course saving on water charges.
All water tanks are not the same though. Size, shape and colour are obvious distinguishing features. There is also how they are made and what they are made from.
Water tanks can be made from steel, fibreglass, concrete and polyethylene.
For the last 20 years and more, polyethylene has become the dominant material in tank sizes up to 50000 litres. Cost advantage and increase in the number of manufacturers being major contributors to this market dominance.
However, like there are different types of polyethylene, not all polyethylene water tanks are the same or made the same way.
Polyethylene Rain Water Tanks
Nu-Tank, a polyethylene manufacturer, commenced in 2008. Owned by a regional Queensland family, their commitment from the start was to manufacture using food grade materials, BPA free and heavy metal free.
A significant investment was made in the manufacturing process, purchasing computer controlled ovens, not cook over an open flame, to consistently produce quality tanks. Most inside their ribbed (more expensive to produce) mould.
And, that more raw materials be used in each tank, enough for the roof to be self-supporting, not a flimsy one propped up by an internal pole (that is prone to falling, resulting in the roof collapsing). Plus, with having a computer control the ‘cooking’, use the extra raw materials to make the walls of the tank thicker at the base of the tank, where the most pressure is exerted from the stored water.
The owners of Nu-Tank believed then, as they still do today, if you build a better product, word of mouth will be your best marketing and your business will grow stronger for it. And of course the other advantage of this is that Nu-Tank has less warranty claims. Which, as we offer up to a 20 years warranty, is a wise business decision, when longevity of the business is as important as the longevity and reliability of the products we produce.
A water tank is often not the only tank you will consider when opting for a rural residential lifestyle.
Pick your tank now!
What size?
Once you decide where to buy your tanks from, or the brand to insist from your local dealer, you will need to consider what size.
Available space could be a factor, depending on where you want a rain water tank located. Noting the diameter of our largest polyethylene tank is over 4.5 metres. (Nu-Tank also sell steel liner tanks, able to hold up to 353,947 litres. Handy to have on hand, in the event of a fire.)
There is also the height of the tank to consider, inlet height normally, as part of the tank will generally sit under the roof eaves, for the water to run downhill from the guttering into the tank. Nu-Tank has 20 different size polyethylene round water tanks and 2 slimline (rectangular) tanks (ideal for smaller spaces, click here for more information), with inlet heights ranging from one metre to around 3.1 metres.
Then, there is how much water you are likely to collect and how much you need to collect.
One (1) millimetre of rain on one (1) square metre of roof will produce one (1) litre of water. Consider how much rain water you could be collecting from your home and shed roof!
What colour?
Once a suitable tank size (height and volume) is determined, a colour needs to be selected. Nu-Tank has colours to match most Colorbond colours. Thus, a tank can match your shed, roof colour, garage doors. There are around 25 colour options. Plus, with Nu-Tank the cost of your tank is the same price, no matter what colour you choose.
* Colours subject to availability
The Fit-Out!
A question you will be asked when ordering your rain water tank is the fit-out.
A Nu-Tank rain water tank will be delivered with a strainer and light guard, an overflow and a, fitting split busting, poly fused and welded outlet (not bolted on brass) with a valve fitted to the tank. With our standard fit-out you really only need to advise what size outlet (1’’, 1.5” or 2”) you require. You can customise your water tank, perhaps with larger or more fittings, 2 outlets for example. It is just a matter of explaining to our Product Consultants how you intend to utilise the stored rain water and they can help work out the most suitable fit-out.
The second part of the fit-out question is where on the tank you want the fittings. To make this fairly simple to decipher, we provide you with this clock face diagram on which the inlet is indicated at the 12 o’clock position. Working from this point, determine where you want your outlet. It could be under the inlet for the water to run between the tank and shed (12 o’clock) or opposite it (6 o’clock), whatever position on the clock face you want to most conveniently connect to a pump, another tank, or run a pipe down a slope.
That’s leaves the position of your overflow. It too can be positioned anywhere on the tank, except at the 12 o’clock position. Consider connecting some PVC piping to your outlet to not having the excess water falling on your pad under the tank. And using the piping to direct the water away from the pad, on its low side, where it can best escape, if possible, so it doesn’t pool around the pad.
Your plumber can help you with making these decisions and connecting your tank.
Wise Decision
The decision to buy a rain water, septic and grey water tank when living on acreage is a wise one. It is hoped the above information helps you to choose a tank that will best suit your needs and provides you the longevity and reliability from the infrastructure improvement investment purchase that it is.
DON'T JUST STOP AT WATER STORAGE TANKS. YOU MIGHT NEED SOMETHING ELSE TOO...
Septic and Grey Water Tanks
If your not connecting to town water chances are you’ll require a Septic and/or grey water tank/s. Nu-Tank’s septic tanks are available in two (2) sizes, 4000 and 3200 litres. Grey water tanks are available in 3 sizes, 700, 900 and 1200 litres. Both, the Septic and Greywater tanks, are supplied as complete kits, which includes the inlet and outlet T-pieces.
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