Replies

1. 
   IMERC | Nov 15, 2003 03:15am | #1

   Underground. As much slope as you can muster. Big pipe.

   Can you move the cistern a might closer and put it a tad deeper.

    

   Who ever invented work didn't know how to fish....

1. 
   dIrishInMe | Nov 15, 2003 03:38am | #2

   Sorry don't have any direct experience with this, but do have a question or 2, just out of curiosity...  What will be used as the cistern?  What is it for... irrigation?

   Matt

1. 
   seeyou | Nov 15, 2003 02:01pm | #5

   The cistern is for domestic water. City h2o is not available. A whole house filtration system will be installed.

2. 
   DavidThomas | Nov 15, 2003 03:38am | #3

   "Suggetions? Ideas?"  Water is not the only thing coming off the roof.  I'm thinking about granules from composition shingles, dust, bird poop, etc.  An underground line will have a low point in it, right?  Maybe a santitary tee at that point to a deeper dead leg would provide some capacity to hold the chunks.  In a heavy rain, you'll have high flows that self-clean the run, but do you want to count on that?

   Up here, an inch of foam is considered like a foot of dirt (within limits) .  So my water service line went in at 11 feet except under the road (plowed of snow) where we added 2 inches of blue foam (for the trench width of 24").  Giving the equilivant of a 13-foot depth.  Which is enough for a bad winter IF you maintain occupany and therefore water use.

   Plastic underground:  Not as cheap, but PEX is pretty tolerant of freezing.  Much more so that PVC (and ABS?).  Can also be rolled out instead of gluing joints.

   The trees cut both ways.  Less sun to warm the ground, but less radiant cooling on clear winter nights.  Plowed streets freeze the deepest - no snow cover, no bushes, no trees.  The added winter sunlight doesn't make up the difference.  If the underground pipeline path can be left unplowed the winter, the frost depth will be greatly reduced.

   David Thomas   Overlooking Cook Inlet in Kenai, Alaska
3. 
   CapnMac | Nov 15, 2003 04:45am | #4

   One thing to look into, it to go down to the pool shop and look at a simple skimmer filter.  This is basically, a bucket with a filter basket, and pipe fittings.  The larger diameter slows the velocity down, so particulates fall out.  The filter then strains the leaves & floating stuff out.  It also has a clean out built in.

   Another way is to to some similar things, only with just PVC.  Let's say your line in is 4".  Put a 4 to 8" adapter in, then hang a sanitary T from that (pointing down).  You want a short piece of pipe & a cap to make a sump.  Neat part, is you can pitch this down to any convenient depth.  Now, up from the T, bring the pipe up where you need to be in depth and add another T (does have to be lower than the start of the pipe).  Extend the last T up to grade and install a clean out.  Another reducer, and your line is back on its way--just pitch it down to the cistern. 

   Why all the bother?  Well, the goal is to create a sump for debris, and an air space for floating debris.  Also, a space with a velocity brake and a cleanout.  It also holds some water as a heat sink against freezing, and provides a way to get the pipe elevation up where you want it to get to the cistern.

   This presumes that you are saving the water for some reason (like irrigation).  If all you need is to collect run off, like for a dry well, then skip all that, and lay the pipe under dirt as deep as you can until it hits the dry well.  PVC will d just find in soil contact--but deeper is better.  Exposed downspout piping on the exterior of the house is vulnerable to all sorts of problems (not the least of which are esthetic).  One big hassle will be:  Into what do we anchor the hangers for all of that horizontal downspout? (it'll miss where it ought to be just like it had a will to)

   Occupational hazard of my occupation not being around (sorry Bubba)
1. 
   seeyou | Nov 15, 2003 02:05pm | #6

   Thanks to you and David. That's what I'm after.

4. 
   IronHelix | Nov 15, 2003 02:56pm | #7

   I'm currently working on an 8000 gal cistern for a local organic farm.  It is for a new timberframe house and domestic water supply.  The annual roof run-off will be about 60,000 gal....which allows for about 5000 gal a month consumption .

   Undergound is the only way.

   Add macro filter at the drop for each down.

   This cistern set-up is composed of 4 each 2000 gal cast concrete cistern tanks from a local supplier of cast tanks and septic systems.   The first tank is a sedimentation tank and then the other three are hooked in as a storage.

   Watch the set-up on accessible clean-outs for sediments, drains and overflows, and pump intake positioning.

   Try a google on "Cistern"......lots of info on prefilters, post filters, uv purifiers etc.

   ..................Iron Helix