I've noticed that there is a small but constant flow of water from the water diverter. Initially, I just had it emptying into a 50L bucket. When the rain started, the bucket overflowed. So I emptied it and it refilled quite quickly (maybe an hour?). So I attached a hose to it to direct the water to the front (which doesn't need any more water because the rain hitting the ground gets drained along there anyway). The diverter isn't stopping the rainwater from the roof from flowing into the tank--I've seen it from above, and it's definitely flowing into the tank. But I wonder if it's failing to shut itself off and/or releasing the water too quicky or in too large a volume, so that less water ends up in the tank.

Any ideas? Does anyone else have one and how does it work?

Have a look at the link below..

Send it down Huey...

generally most downpipes are covering 50 to 100 sq/mtrs of roof so i would have expected you to have at least 2.5k litres of water in the tank by now. neighbour over the road ahs one of those 5k/lt tanks he has app' 100 sq/mts of roof feeding it so i would expect his tank to be full by now, he's been sitting on an empty tank for the past couple of months though.

not sure which water diverter you are using but sounds like it could be set up better, we are using 2 of those floating ball cock type systems that are just a bit of downpipe in our case 1 meter long that holds app' 7 litres of water from the first flsuh of rain, we have so we drain them manually.

after the first capture and with continual rain there is no need for continual first flushing to occur, we have 2 for our 25k/lt tank to cover the app' 100 sq/mt roof we get water from and this is heaps of first flush capacity. and with rain like this i won't empty those flushers until the tank is full. up in rural we never had first flush units as we needed every drop that fell.

the water that comes out of ours is always crystal clear very little solid flotsum in it and gets used to wash clothes or water the garden.

if you tap on the side of the tank with your knuckle you can here the difference in sound tells you how much water you have, but with your tank probably just as easy to have a look through the top.

got pic's of our set up on our site.

len

Len, mine is also a 90mm/7L diverter. Funny thing is that it occurred to me only this morning (literally a few hours ago) that I could simply plug the diverter (well, the end of the hose attached to it) to stop it flushing until the rain clears. Any debris will have been well and truly flushed off by now! ... I just have to remember to open it again when the rain ends.

My system isn't plumbed into the house. I had the diverter installed on the chance that I might eventually (with the use of a filter) use it for drinking water when they start adding recycled sewerage to the water. (But that's a thread for another time.)

Many thanks for your help.

sounds same diverter as us, mine is continually blocked currently, i intend to fit a tap so i can empty it easier, they waste too much water otherwise (just emptied ours this morning and using it in the washing machine a bit of flotsom we strained that out, the next empty will be even cleaner water).

why filter perfectly good water, even now it tastes a whole lot more healthier than what they supply. we have a dual cartridge carbon impreganted filter (un-installed) as i read that if the carbon filters aren't cleaned exactly right they can add harmfulls, anyhow up in rural we drank that water for around 8 years (as do nearly all rural folk and they don't filter or divert, grew up on it when i was a kid) and still drink rainwater.

another 63mm here this morning the tanks full now, that's 120mm for the period now good stuff.

len

I've plugged the diverter and stopped all that precious water running off, so I'm very pleased :-)

a great resource rainwater free and uncontaminated with man made interferrances. all those rural folk can't be wrong hey?

enjoy

len

Rainwater is Free... Tanks are not...

There is no way I will drink tank water...Unless it has been treated..
I had giardia twice in Townsville from water, and its not nice

An article in the Sunday Mail today:

Warning people not to drink water from their tanks because of bird droppings gee what about the fruit bats and the possums with so many tall gums trees around our house the pigeons used to sit on the TV antenna and there were heaps of droppings on the roofs till hubby scraped it all off and tied old cd's disc on it that now keep them away..

Then there is the drop out from the the leaded petrol in the air. Rural roofs dont have this problem..

YUK YUK !!!!!!

Most animals eat and drink anything ...My dogs and chooks do..