Backup Water Supply Tower/Pump?

[AlwaysRt]

Can anyone give me basic info/suggestions for backup water. Our water is turned off at least a couple hours every night and half the time 'they' are too lazy to turn the valve all the way back on and our pressure is low for the day.

How high does a water tank need to be mounted to provide decent shower pressure ect for a 1 story home? What is the tradeoff for tower/gravity fed vs surface mounted with pump? Please include approximate costs if you can as that is a major consideration since we are in a rental house.

[sonjack2847]

The outlet of the water tank would need to be 10 feet above the shower head (for electric) You would be better off with a floor mounted tank with a pump, I would imagine the cost to be 25k. But with floor mounted you have to consider the brownouts we get in this area.

Edited April 15, 2019 by sonjack2847

[Tukaram (Tim)]

We have one of those plastic drums on the roof (looks like a 50 gallon chemical drum).  It is mounted right next to roof, maybe 10 feet off the ground. We only use it during brownouts, when our pump goes off.  It provides plenty of pressure for showers. Not as good as my pump - but better than a bucket shower. 

[manofthecoldland]

49 minutes ago, Tukaram (Tim) said:

We have one of those plastic drums on the roof (looks like a 50 gallon chemical drum).  It is mounted right next to roof, maybe 10 feet off the ground. We only use it during brownouts, when our pump goes off.  It provides plenty of pressure for showers. Not as good as my pump - but better than a bucket shower. 

Each man has his preferences and learned traditions, but I have come to prefer using the timba & tabo.  If you can bend at the waist and raise your arm over your head comfortably, you get instant and flexible amount control, water use efficiency,  and minimum cost.

You can hedge against temporary water and electrical outages if you keep a larger, full timba in the CR to shower and flush with at will, despite temporary shortages. 

Not to mention the extra bit of exercise and stretching benefit.

Most of the time I don't even mess with the removable shower head, but it is good for those anti-gravity shots if you want or need them.

The comforts and ease that modern living brings are wonderful, but dependent on having all systems at go.... which at most of us know.... is not a given here.  Have to adhere to the old Boy Scout motto if you want to maintain sanity and peace of mind despite the too oft system failures, so stay flexible.

[Dave Hounddriver]

12 hours ago, AlwaysRt said:

'they' are too lazy to turn the valve all the way back on and our pressure is low for the day.

"They" do the same thing in my subdivision.  "They" found out that their water supply lasts longer if they provide less pressure so the tap is only partially on.

As to how high the water tank has to be:  Wait until a day when the municipality water pressure is at its best (middle of the night maybe?) then turn on your garden hose and lift it as high as you can (maybe get someone on a ladder of climbing a tree).  When the water stops coming out then you know how high you can build your water tank AND you will be able to get that same amount of pressure from it.  It eliminates a pump.  It fills when the municipal pressure is good and releases it back when the municipal pressure is not good (to you only if you have a one-way check valve in your line).

Lots have that in my subdivision and I plan to.  I also have a small pressure pump to install near the CR to increase pressure to the shower only. (cost about 5K pesos but I have to get around to installing the bloody thing after my tank is in).  I (most of us) only want the extra pressure when showering so there is no need to pressurize the whole system.  Plus the lines would not take "normal" water pressure.

[Tukaram (Tim)]

6 hours ago, manofthecoldland said:

Each man has his preferences and learned traditions, but I have come to prefer using the timba & tabo. 

My wife has come to prefer the shower and particularly the water heater.  We do keep a full bucket in the shower as backup, but only use it for brownouts, and occasional foot washing (after the beach). 

[manofthecoldland]

38 minutes ago, Tukaram (Tim) said:

My wife has come to prefer the shower and particularly the water heater.  We do keep a full bucket in the shower as backup, but only use it for brownouts, and occasional foot washing (after the beach).

I can totally understand that and empathize.... 

The dry season came late last year, with cool temps prevailing. I  always just stoically accepted whatever water temp came out of the spigot or shower head. The wife would add a kettle of hot water to the timba for her evening shower.  

This year, after enjoying the hotel water heaters on a couple of brief excursions, I relented and told her that we should get an on-demand hot water shower heater like all the other well-to-do folks have. She was so happy !   Then I got slapped with the off-budget whammies of an unplanned colonoscopy and a bamboo bridge rebuild job that emptied my pockets. She had the model and workman all lined out.... but, good woman that she is, now realizes that it will have to wait a bit, since she chose the new bridge over the new heater and table (she also had the lumber costs and neighbor carpenter lined up on that as well ).

They say that luxuries have a way of becoming necessities.  Haven't reached that point yet, but its coming. Once you go hot, cold showers are a NOT.

 

[Arizona Kid]

12 minutes ago, manofthecoldland said:

I can totally understand that and empathize.... 

The dry season came late last year, with cool temps prevailing. I  always just stoically accepted whatever water temp came out of the spigot or shower head. The wife would add a kettle of hot water to the timba for her evening shower.  

This year, after enjoying the hotel water heaters on a couple of brief excursions, I relented and told her that we should get an on-demand hot water shower heater like all the other well-to-do folks have. She was so happy !   Then I got slapped with the off-budget whammies of an unplanned colonoscopy and a bamboo bridge rebuild job that emptied my pockets. She had the model and workman all lined out.... but, good woman that she is, now realizes that it will have to wait a bit, since she chose the new bridge over the new heater and table (she also had the lumber costs and neighbor carpenter lined up on that as well ).

They say that luxuries have a way of becoming necessities.  Haven't reached that point yet, but its coming. Once you go hot, cold showers are a NOT.

 

I've always taken the Navy shower, maybe out of habit after serving 21 yr 9 months in the USN. Navy ships don't have a lot of water to spare so we were taught to get yourself wet, turn the water off, soap yourself up, turn the water back on to rinse off. I still do it. If someone in my house want a hot tubo shower they need to plug that electric thingy in and put it in the bucket to make the water hot.

[Tukaram (Tim)]

2 hours ago, Arizona Kid said:

I've always taken the Navy shower, maybe out of habit after serving 21 yr 9 months in the USN. Navy ships don't have a lot of water to spare so we were taught to get yourself wet, turn the water off, soap yourself up, turn the water back on to rinse off. I still do it. If someone in my house want a hot tubo shower they need to plug that electric thingy in and put it in the bucket to make the water hot.

When I got to my ship I started to take a Navy shower and the guys laughed & told me not to bother. Our ship never ran out of water. We were the West Coast test ship for a reverse osmosis machine.  The 2 distillers made 200 gallons an hour each, and the RO made 400 gallons an hour by itself.  With only 300 people on board, we ended up dumping fresh water overboard 5 or 6 hours every night. 

[earthdome]

1 hour ago, Tukaram (Tim) said:

When I got to my ship I started to take a Navy shower and the guys laughed & told me not to bother. Our ship never ran out of water. We were the West Coast test ship for a reverse osmosis machine.  The 2 distillers made 200 gallons an hour each, and the RO made 400 gallons an hour by itself.  With only 300 people on board, we ended up dumping fresh water overboard 5 or 6 hours every night. 

I like nice long hot showers with plenty of water. Developed this habit after serving for years on a submarine taking navy showers or sponge baths at time if on water rations.