Part 4 Rainwater Harvesting

Introduction to
Rainfall Harvesting
Engr. Hadji Peejay U. Aranda CE RMP

ABOUT THE SPEAKER
– Licensed Civil Engineer ( May 2003 )
– Licensed Master Plumber ( Feb 2012 )
– BSCE ( Water Resources ) DLSU – Manila
( 2002 )
– MSCE (Water Resources ) DLSU – Manila
(ongoing)
– Principal – HP Aranda Engineering and
Design
– Faculty – University of the East – Caloocan
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Previous Employment:
– PropMech – GreenHeat Corp
(2010 – 2011)
– TIP – QC (2007 – 2010)
– UE – Mla (2012 – 2013)
– Adamson University (2012 - 2013)
Introduction
 Rainwater harvesting is an ancient

technique enjoying a revival in popularity
due to the inherent quality of rainwater
and interest in reducing consumption of
treated water.
 Rainwater is valued for its purity and
softness. It has a nearly neutral pH, and
is free from disinfection by-products,
salts, minerals, and other natural and
man-made contaminants.
Introduction
 Archeological evidence attests to the
capture of rainwater as far back as 4,000
years ago, and the concept of rainwater
harvesting in China may date back 6,000
years. Ruins of cisterns built as early as
2000 B.C. for storing runoff from hillsides
for agricultural and domestic purposes are
still standing in Israel (Gould and Nissen
Petersen, 1999).
Introduction
Introduction
According to Krisna (2003) the

advantages and benefits of
rainwater harvesting are numerous.
Introduction
 Water is free; the only cost incurred is
investing in collection and use.
 The end use of harvested water is located
close to the source, eliminating the need
for complex and costly distribution
systems.
 Rainwater provides a water source when
groundwater is unacceptable or
unavailable, or it can augment limited
groundwater supplies.
Introduction
 The zero hardness of rainwater helps
prevent scale on appliances, extending
their use; rainwater eliminates the need
for a water softener and the salts added
during the softening process.
 Rainwater is sodium-free, important for
persons on low-sodium diets.
Introduction
 Rainwater is superior for landscape irrigation.
 Rainwater harvesting reduces flow to
stormwater drains and also reduces non-
point source pollution.
 Rainwater harvesting helps utilities reduce
the summer demand peak and delay
expansion of existing water treatment plants.
 Rainwater harvesting reduces consumers’
utility bills.
Introduction
 Perhaps one of the most interesting
aspects of rainwater harvesting is learning
about the methods of capture, storage,
and use of this natural resource at the
place it occurs.
 This natural synergy excludes at least a
portion of water use from the water
distribution infrastructure: the centralized
treatment facility, storage structures,
pumps, mains, and laterals.
Rationale for Investing in
Rainfall Harvesting
 Rainwater harvesting also includes land
based systems with man-made landscape
features to channel and concentrate
rainwater in either storage basins or
planted areas.
Rainfall Harvesting
 Rainwater harvesting, if used on a
massive scale, can reduce significantly
the amount of water that passes through
water supply network.
 The use of Chlorine to disinfect water and
protect it from further contamination
downstream have an unintended
consequence with the production of
trihalomethane.
Rainfall Harvesting
 In contrast, the raindrop harvested on
site will travel down a roof via a gutter to
a storage tank. Before it can be used for
drinking, it will be treated by a relatively
simple process with equipment that
occupies around 9 cubic feet or so of
space.
Rainfall Harvesting
 7 Million die yearly due to water-borne
diseases. 2.2 Million of which are under
five years old.
 17 Million Filipinos are yet to have a
sustainable source of potable drinking
water.
Rainfall Harvesting
 1. 4 Billion people do not have access to
safe water.
 100 Million Filipinos need arout 3,577
MCM of fresh water per year while
Industries and Agricultural users need
about 56,036 MCM or a Total Water
Demand of 59,613 MCM.
Rainwater Harvesting
System Components
Regardless of the complexity of

the system, the domestic
rainwater harvesting system
comprises six basic components:
System Components
 Catchment surface: the collection surface
from which rainfall runs off
 Gutters and downspouts: channel water
from the roof to the tank
 Leaf screens, first-flush diverters, and
roof washers: components which remove
debris and dust from the captured
rainwater before it goes to the tank
System Components
 One or more storage tanks, also called
cisterns
 Delivery system: gravity-fed or pumped
to the end use
 Treatment/purification: for potable
systems, filters and other methods to
make the water safe to drink
System Components
System Components
System Components
System Components
Catchment surface
 The roof of a building or house is the
obvious first choice for catchment.
 For additional capacity, an open-sided
barn called a rain barn or pole barn can
be built. Water tanks and other rainwater
system equipment, such as pumps and
filters, as well as vehicles, bicycles, and
gardening tools, can be stored under the
barn.
System Components
Catchment surface
 Water quality from different roof
catchments is a function of the type of
roof material, climatic conditions, and the
surrounding environment
System Components
Gutters and Downspout
 Gutters are installed to capture rainwater
running off the eaves of a building. Some
gutter installers can provide continuous or
seamless gutters.
 For potable water systems, lead cannot
be used as gutter solder, as is sometimes
the case in older metal gutters. The
slightly acidic quality of rain could
dissolve lead and thus contaminate the
water supply.
System Components
Gutters and Downspout
 The most common materials for gutters
and downspouts are half-round PVC,
vinyl, pipe, seamless aluminum, and
galvanized steel.
 Seamless aluminum gutters are usually
installed by professionals, and, therefore,
are more expensive than other options.
System Components
Leaf Screens and First Flush Diverter
 A roof can be a natural collection surface
for dust, leaves, blooms, twigs, insect
bodies, animal feces, pesticides, and
other airborne residues.
 The first flush diverter routes the first
flow of water from the catchment surface
away from the storage tank. The flushed
water can be routed to a planted area.
System Components
Leaf Screens and First Flush Diverter
 While leaf screens remove the larger
debris, such as leaves, twigs, and blooms
that fall on the roof, the first-flush
diverter gives the system a chance to rid
itself of the smaller contaminants, such as
dust, pollen, and bird and rodent feces.
System Components
System Components
 The simplest first-flush diverter is a 6- or
8-inch PVC standpipe. The diverter fills
with water first, backs up, and then
allows water to flow into the main
collection piping. These standpipes usually
have a cleanout fitting at the bottom, and
must be emptied and cleaned out after
each rainfall event. The water from the
standpipe may be routed to a planted
area.
System Components
 A pinhole drilled at the bottom of the pipe
or a hose bibb fixture left slightly open
(shown) allows water to gradually leak
out.
 If you are using 3” diameter PVC or
similar pipe, allow 33” length of pipe per
gallon; 4” diameter pipe needs only 18” of
length per gallon; and a little over 8” of
6” diameter pipe is needed to catch a
gallon of water.
System Components
 The standpipe with ball valve is a
variation of the standpipe filter. The
cutaway drawing shows the ball valve.
 As the chamber fills, the ball floats up and
seals on the seat, trapping first-flush
water and routing the balance of the
water to the tank.
System Components
Storage Tanks
 The storage tank is the most expensive
component of the rainwater harvesting
system.
 The size of storage tank or cistern is
dictated by several variables: the
rainwater supply (local precipitation), the
demand, the projected length of dry
spells without rain, the catchment surface
area, aesthetics, personal preference, and
budget.
System Components
Storage Tanks
 A myriad of variations on storage tanks
and cisterns have been used over the
centuries and in different geographical
regions: earthenware cisterns in
prebiblical times, large pottery containers
in Africa, above-ground vinyl-lined
swimming pools in Hawaii, concrete or
brick cisterns in the central United States,
and, common to old homesteads in Texas,
galvanized steel tanks and attractive site-
built stone-and-mortar cisterns.
System Components
Storage Tank basics
 Storage tanks must be opaque, either
upon purchase or painted later, to inhibit
algae growth
 For potable systems, storage tanks must
never have been used to store toxic
materials (this applies only to recycled
tanks)
System Components
Storage Tank basics
 Tanks must be covered and vents
screened to discourage mosquito breeding
 Tanks used for potable systems must be
accessible for cleaning.
System Components
Storage Tank siting
 Tanks should be located as close to
supply and demand points as possible to
reduce the distance water is conveyed.
 Storage tanks should be protected from
direct sunlight, if possible.
 To ease the load on the pump, tanks
should be placed as high as practicable.
System Components
Storage Tank materials
 Fiber Glass
 Polypropylene Plastic
 Wood
 Metal
System Components
System Components
Pressure Tanks and Pumps
 Standard municipal water pressure is 40
pounds per square inch (psi) to 60 psi.
 Many home appliances such clothes
washers, dishwashers, hot water on-
demand water heaters – require 20 – 30
psi for proper operation.
System Components
 Some drip irrigation system need 20 psi
for proper irrigation. Water gains 1 psi of
pressure for every 2.31 feet of vertical
rise. So for gravity flow through a 1-inch
pipe at 40 psi, the storage tanks would
have to be more than 90 feet above the
house.
System Components
 Since this elevation separation is rarely
practical or even desirable, two ways to
achieve proper household water pressure
are
– A pump, pressure tank, pressure
switch, and check valve
– An on-demand pump.
System Components
 Pumps are designed to push water rather
than to pull it. Therefore, the system
should be designed with the pumps at the
same level and as close to the storage
tanks as possible.
System Components
 Pump systems draw water from the
storage tanks, pressurize it, and store it
in a pressure tank until needed. The
typical pump-and-pressure tank
arrangement consists of a ¾- or 1-
horsepower pump, usually a shallow well
jet pump or a multistage centrifugal
pump, the check valve, and pressure
switch.
System Components
 A one-way check valve between the
storage tank and the pump prevents
pressurized water from being returned to
the tank. The pressure switch regulates
operation of the pressure tank.
System Components
 The pressure tank, with a typical capacity
of 40 gallons, maintains pressure
throughout the system. When the pressure
tank reaches a preset threshold, the
pressure switch cuts off power to the
pump. When there is demand from the
household, the pressure switch detects the
drop in pressure in the tank and activates
the pump, drawing more water into the
pressure tank
System Components
System Components
On Demand Pump
 The new on-demand pumps eliminate the
need for a pressure tank. These pumps
combine a pump, motor, controller, check
valve, and pressure tank function all in one
unit. They are self-priming and are built
with a check valve incorporated into the
suction port. The figure below shows a
typical installation of an on-demand pump
and a 5-micron fiber filter, 3-micron
activated charcoal filter, and an ultraviolet
lamp.
System Components
System Components
On Demand Pump
 Unlike conventional pumps, on-demand
pumps are designed to activate in
response to a demand, eliminating the
need, cost, and space of a pressure tank.
In addition, some on-demand pumps are
specifically designed to be used with
rainwater.
System Components
Treatment and Disinfection Equipments
 For a nonpotable system used for hose
irrigation, if tree overhang is present, leaf
screens on gutters and a roof washer
diverting 10 gallons for every 1,000
square feet of roof is sufficient.
System Components
 If drip irrigation is planned, however,
sediment filtration may be necessary to
prevent clogging of emitters. As
standards differ, the drip irrigation
manufacturer or vendor should be
contacted regarding filtering of water.
System Components
 For potable water systems, treatment
beyond the leaf screen and roof washer is
necessary to remove sediment and
disease causing pathogens from stored
water. Treatment generally consists of
filtration and disinfection processes in
series before distribution to ensure health
and safety.
System Components
 The following equipments are available for
treating rainwater that were stored in the
tanks
› Cartridge Filters and Ultraviolet
(UV)
Light
› Ozone
› Membrane Filtration (Reverse
Osmosis and Nanofiltration)
› Chlorination
System Components
MONTHLY DEMAND
● Households served previously by a water utility can
read monthly demand from their meter or water bill to
find monthly demand for purposes of building a new
rainwater harvesting system.
● Divide the monthly total by the number of people in the
house, and the days in the month to get a daily per
capita demand number.
● There are instances in which a much deeper demand
analysis will be needed. Often demand can be
classified in this aspect as follows:
– Indoor Demand
– Outdoor Demand
MONTHLY DEMAND
● Indoor water demand is largely unaffected by changes
in weather, although changes in household occupancy
rates depending upon seasons and ages of household
members, more water use during the hot summer
months, and very minor changes in consumption of
water due to increases in temperature may be worth
factoring in some instances.
● The results of a study of 1,200 single-family homes by
the American Water Works Association (AWWA) in
1999 found that the average water conserving
households used approximately 49.6 gallons per
person per day
CALCULATING THE STORAGE
CAPACITY
● Once the median or average potential for rainfall
capture is known from rainfall data and
catchment area, it will be necessary to calculate
storage capacity.
● The decision of whether rainwater will be used
for irrigation, potable and domestic use, or both,
will dictate water demand, and therefore,
capacity.
CAPACITY
● A simple method of roughly estimating storage
capacity, popular among professional installers is
to size the storage capacity to meet quarterly
demand. The system is sized to meet estimated
demand for a three-month period without rain.
● Annual estimated demand is divided by four to
yield necessary storage capacity using this
approach. This approach, however, may result in
a more expensive system due to higher storage
costs.
CAPACITY
Example:
The total water demand of a 2 storey house with 8 known
occupants is determined to be at 523m3/year. Determine
the quarterly demand and the per capita demand of that
household.
Solutions:
523m3/4 = 130.75m3 – average quarterly demand
Per capita monthly demand = 523/12 = 43.58m3/8
= 5.45m3
5.45/30 = 0.18m3/day = 180 li/person/day
CAPACITY
● From the previous example:
– To satisfy the total quarterly demand using
pure rainfall water as a source, that household
will need 130-135m3 of storage.
– The amount of water needed by each person
is 180li/day. This could mean that there are
other amenities present in this household or a
number of fixtures is substantial.
● If the quarterly storage is deemed too much, the
water balance will then have to be determined.
CAPACITY
● If a rainwater harvesting system is to be the sole
water supply, overbuilding ensures a safety
margin.
● As with many things in life, it helps to hope for
the best but plan for the worst.
● Even when budget constraints may not allow the
user to install as much storage capacity as a
sizing method may indicate, it is important to
provide for an area where additional tanks or
cisterns can be installed at a later date when
finances permit.
ESTIMATING THE DEMAND
● The storage capacity that will be determined will
only be effective if it can fully serve the demand
to which is was tasked to supply.
● To make the demand analysis more accurate. It
will be necessary to determine the behavior of
the end user. This is quite difficult on our own but
a study by AWWA will be helpful.
ESTIMATING THE DEMAND
PROBLEM
Determine the water balance for a 232.38m 2 roof

collector in the city of manila. The demand and
other assumptions are given below:
PROBLEM
● Two methods of determining system sizing are shown below.
In the first example, monthly average rainfall data are used,
and in the second example, monthly median rainfall data are
used for calculations.
● the basic monthly water balance calculation is
Water available (liters) = Initial volume in storage (liters)
+ Liters captured – Liters used
In an especially wet month, gallons in storage + gallons
captured may exceed storage capacity; storage capacity
could become a limiting factor, or a slightly larger cistern may
be considered
ASSUMPTIONS
● Demand of 11.34 m3/month
● Collection efficiency of 85 percent
● 9.92 liters per square meter of roof area per 10mm of rain
● 37,800-liters storage capacity
● 3,780 liters in storage on January 1 to start out.
(The water may have been collected between the time of system
completion and new home occupancy, or it may be hauled water;
systems designed for irrigation use only should be completed in
the fall to collect rainwater during the slow-/non-growth season.)
● 567 li per month of Irrigation. Irrigation volume is estimated
based upon a small ornamental landscape, and limited
supplemental irrigation, since this example is used for potable
supply.
CALCULATIONS USING
MONTHLY AVERAGE DATA
● Obtain the monthly rainfall data from relevant
government agencies
CALCULATIONS USING
● Adjust the data by setting trace data to zero
CALCULATIONS USING
● Using spreadsheets, obtain the average rainfall
for each month
CALCULATIONS USING
● Using the average value of 19.99mm of rain for
January in Manila Port Area, the number of liters
of rainwater that can be expected to be stored in
January from a 232.37-square-meter roof
assuming 85% collection efficiency is determined
from the equation:
Rainfall (mm) x roof area x 9.92 Li/m2/10mm. rain
x collection efficiency
19.99mm * 232.38 m2 * 9.92 li/m2/10mm * 0.85
= 3916.73 liters
CALCULATIONS USING
CALCULATIONS USING
MONTHLY MEDIAN DATA
● Using the median value of 9.80mm of rain for
January in Manila Port Area, the number of liters
of rainwater that can be expected to be stored in
January from a 232.37-square-meter roof
assuming 85% collection efficiency is determined
from the equation:
Rainfall (mm) x roof area x 9.92 Li/m2/10mm. rain
x collection efficiency
9.8mm * 232.38 m2 * 9.92 li/m2/10mm * 0.85
= 1920.16 liters
CALCULATIONS USING
MONTHLY MEDIAN DATA
STORAGE SIZING
● The water balance that were obtained in the
previous computation have determined that for 8
months of the year, there is a surplus of water
● It is also shown that the surplus is far more than
what the storage can be made realistically.
● From the previous computations (or guesses of
storage) we can say that the maximum assumed
storage value (130m3) is viable under the rainfall
condition (median)
● Constraints in the lot area can cause the maximum
possible area to be reduced
STORAGE SIZING
● Viable storage options for this problem will be:
– 36m3
– 43.5m3
these are also applicable under the quarterly demand

rule of thumb that the rainwater storage must supply at
least 3months of rain.
● If for example, the area that is set to accommodate the
rainwater storage + water treatment facilities cannot
accommodate the given volume above, a one month
storage is viable but it will be a water supply system
that is both connected to the municipal water supply
and the private rainwater harvesting facility.
STORAGE SIZING
FOR QUESTIONS OR COPY OF

PRESENTATION
PLEASE EMAIL ME AT
hparanda.engg@gmail.com

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Part 4 Rainwater Harvesting

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Introduction to

Engr. Hadji Peejay U. Aranda CE RMP

 Rainwater harvesting is an ancient

According to Krisna (2003) the

Regardless of the complexity of

Determine the water balance for a 232.38m 2 roof

these are also applicable under the quarterly demand

FOR QUESTIONS OR COPY OF

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