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Connecting Two Rainwater Tanks

April 28, 2014 @ 20:13 By Gavin Webber 13 Comments

One of my goals for the year was to buy and install a third rainwater tank.  After a few good months of saving, I had enough to call up the tank manufacturer in Ballarat and order one.

We got it delivered a week before Easter, so as it was raining, I thought it best to connect it right there and then.  The connection was a shocking job, and I rushed it.  So I decided to redo it over the weekend.

Connecting two rainwater tanks

The new tank is on the left.  Don’t ask me why we ordered a different colour.  Okay, I will confess.  During the ordering process, Kim and I were convinced that the original tank was the light green colour, and as it was dark and cold we didn’t bother to check.  Our bad, but not to worry because it still holds water and that is the main thing, isn’t it?

So on to the connecting business.

The dark green tank was already connected through to the irrigation systems, so I disconnected it all.

IMG_0517

I have seen some people connect the tanks at the top through the storm water drain outlet, and this does work, however the light green tank is slightly higher than the original tank, so this method would not have worked (water doesn’t run up hill).

The only option I had was to connect at the bottom via two taps and some pipe.

Two taps and the irrigation pipe

I drilled a whole in the bottom, through the threaded hole, with a 22 mm spade bit.  The hole is 25 mm, so the smaller spade bit ensures that you don’t strip the thread away.  It is a fairly simple exercise, because there is a small guide hole for the tip of the spade bit.  I removed as much of the plastic waste as possible back through the hole.  I then lined the thread with teflon plumbing tape to stop any potential leaks via the thread, and screwed in the tap.

I then fitted a reducing thread to get it down to a workable 20 mm, which is the right size for most garden fittings.

IMG_0519

With more teflon tape, it was ready to connect to the original tank.  Note; the water on the ground is from when I disconnected the two tanks to make these modifications.

IMG_0521

Then I had to work out a way to balance the two tanks without all the water going into the garden.  I found an old tap in my box of tricks.  I think I recovered this when I unplumbed the original irrigation system when we first moved in.  I keep most things like this, because a) they are expensive to buy, and b) you never know when you are going to need one!  I fitted a T-piece that had a 20 mm thread, with two 19 mm barbs.

IMG_0523

Then I pushed in two pieces of 19 mm poly pipe and clamped them.  I then measured the correct length for each pipe, then cut and connected to two 20 mm threads with barbs and clamped again.

It all lined up perfectly.  As you can see above, with the main line tap off, and the two tank taps on, it balances the water from the dark green tank to the light green one on the left.  The dark green tank is the one fed from the gutter, as I have only fitted one down pipe from the gutter.

Connecting two rainwater tanks

This is just simply magical.  The yellow tap stops the water flowing down the main-line when balancing the water.

Just one word of caution.  This is not pressure pipe and should not be used for normal plumbing installations, as it may burst.  The water in the tanks is not under pressure, so this is a fairly safe setup.  Besides, when not in use, I turn off both taps on each tank.  I have only been balancing the tanks when it has been raining to avoid any issues.  If, some time in the future that I wanted to plumb this into the toilets or laundry, I would use a plumber, who would use the correct pipe.

So there you have it.  Two connected tanks, we have increased our water storage capacity by another 2100 litres, and not a leak in sight.  I am very pleased with my efforts.

As with any project, if I can do it, anyone can! Connecting two rainwater tanks is easy. Now I have to figure out how to reconnect all those small water barrels back into the system. I better get my thinking cap on.

Can anyone think of a good use for small 100 litre water barrels?

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Related

Filed Under: Rain, Sustainable Living, water, Water harvesting

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About Gavin Webber

Gavin Webber's daily goal is to live a more sustainable lifestyle, in an effort to reduce his family's environmental footprint so we can all make a difference for our children & future generations to come.

Learn more about him here and connect with him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.

Comments

  1. Karl Sass says

    April 28, 2014 at 22:52

    It’s amazing how much water comes off a roof, an untapped resource. 1mm of rail over 1 square metre = 1 litre. Even a low rainfall area like Melton in a modest 140 sq metre house 500mm of rain is 70,000 litres per year. I’ve got a 4500L tank that does the toilet with only 2 people in the house. That’s only got 2 down pipes going into it and it still fills over winter. Next time I won’t bother with anything less than 10,000 litres and hook up the washing machine too. Tanks are much cheaper per litre the bigger you go. It’s surprising how much water gets used in the house, that’s where the big savings are to be made imo.

    Reply
    • Karl Sass says

      April 28, 2014 at 22:54

      That should say 1mm of rain*

      Reply
    • Gavin Webber says

      April 29, 2014 at 09:49

      Nice one Karl. A larger tanks is always better if you have the room. Unfortunately, space is at a premium at my place!

      Gav

      Reply
  2. Sol says

    April 29, 2014 at 03:38

    Hey Gavin, could you use the other water barrel to get water to the chickens or is that a crazy idea? would it go stale?

    Reply
    • Gavin Webber says

      April 29, 2014 at 09:48

      Hi Sol, great advice, but I already have a water barrel for the chooks; Chicken Nipple Installation.

      I do have to empty it every few months as it does get stale.

      Reply
  3. rabidlittlehippy says

    April 29, 2014 at 07:41

    small water collection areas. 😉
    Nice work Gav. How many litres do you have now?

    Reply
    • Gavin Webber says

      April 29, 2014 at 09:45

      Hi Jessie, remember that its not the size that matters, it is how you use it. I now have 6500 litres under management! 😉

      Gav

      Reply
  4. Lynda says

    April 29, 2014 at 19:23

    Can you use them for aquaponics Gav? There is certainly no end to your talents.

    Reply
    • Gavin Webber says

      April 29, 2014 at 20:42

      Probably could Lynda, but I installed it mainly for watering the veggie patch. Future proofing my garden, so to speak.

      Reply
  5. Hakan says

    February 13, 2015 at 19:49

    Hi Gavin

    What have you done with the overflow for each tank?

    Reply
    • Gavin Webber says

      February 13, 2015 at 21:21

      One tank is capped off because it doesn’t overflow, and the other goes down the storm water drain.

      Reply
  6. Broderick says

    April 6, 2017 at 21:25

    Hi Gavin,
    I’m coming to this conversation a bit late, as I’ve only just discovered it after doing a search for how to join two water tanks, as I will soon need to do this. I’m wondering how well the 19mm pipe performs when you have heavy rain. Is the water able to flow through to the second tank quick enough? Or is there a danger the first tank will overflow before the water equals out between the tanks? My tank supplier is able to fit a larger outlet on request, and I’m thinking of taking this option.

    Reply
  7. Julius says

    March 9, 2022 at 18:04

    Hey just curious about the two tanks connected at the bottom what is the use of the third valve after the T in the outlet

    Reply

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About Gavin Webber

An Ordinary Australian Man Who Has A Green Epiphany Whilst Watching A Documentary, Gets a Hybrid Car, Plants A Large Organic Vegetable Garden, Goes Totally Solar, Lowers Consumption, Feeds Composts Bins and Worms, Harvests Rainwater, Raises Chickens, Makes Cheese and Soap, and Eats Locally. All In The Effort To Reduce Our Family's Carbon Footprint So We Can Start Making A Difference For Our Children & Future Generations To Come.

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