Hi all, this is our first posting on this forum which looks great so far.
We are planning to buy and old church for conversion to a house, but there are no services at the mo. Water is the main problem in that the nearest public main is 3 miles away, so we'll have to provide our own. There are no natural springs or wells within reach, but there is plenty of water close to the surface, as the water table is usually 1 to 2 metres below the ground.
I am aware of the problems of surface water supplies however in this case apert from birds and rabbits there are no major risks of contamination - no farms or other pollution sources. The surface is peat, and it appears that peat does not give its moisture up easily, it would take a learge area of collectio drains e.g. perforated pipes to provide the 1000 litres a day that we can survive on. We would have to treat the water of course e.g. with UV, to kill any bugs, and possibly correct pH which will be acidic.
My specific question are: 1. how feasible is the above system and are planning likely to accept it? 2. What is the typical cost of a borehole installation? 3. How feasible is a dual system whereby we collect roof water for non-drinking purposes and use treated surface water for potable?
Does anyone have any examples to illustrate the above applications or comments on these ideas. Are there any other options I haven't thought of?
Originally posted by davidlois: Hi all, this is our first posting on this forum which looks great so far.
We are planning to buy and old church for conversion to a house, but there are no services at the mo. Water is the main problem in that the nearest public main is 3 miles away, so we'll have to provide our own. There are no natural springs or wells within reach, but there is plenty of water close to the surface, as the water table is usually 1 to 2 metres below the ground.
I am aware of the problems of surface water supplies however in this case apert from birds and rabbits there are no major risks of contamination - no farms or other pollution sources. The surface is peat, and it appears that peat does not give its moisture up easily, it would take a learge area of collectio drains e.g. perforated pipes to provide the 1000 litres a day that we can survive on. We would have to treat the water of course e.g. with UV, to kill any bugs, and possibly correct pH which will be acidic.
My specific question are: 1. how feasible is the above system and are planning likely to accept it? 2. What is the typical cost of a borehole installation? 3. How feasible is a dual system whereby we collect roof water for non-drinking purposes and use treated surface water for potable?
Does anyone have any examples to illustrate the above applications or comments on these ideas. Are there any other options I haven't thought of?
There are systems available for reclaiming rainwater and greywater and using that for washing, flushing etc.
Don't see why you couldn't collect rainwater in an above ground resovoir and filter it...got to be as good or better than the waterboards offerings.
I think a well would be £3k That Yankee program 'This old house' is always putting in trick plumbing for cases like this, google it!
I have a private water system. I have my own spring, with a borehole which pumps uphill to underground tanks holding 2,000 gal. This is then fed downhill to my property and feeds via filters and UV to header tanks.
OK, I am on a hill which helps. I have a lot of water in my spring (too much ATM!) as I live on a hill.
My worry in your case would be during a long hot summer you just would not have any water at all. My spring slowed a lot during the summer but is the head of a major stream and so would not (I hope!) never stop.
I feel your water supply could dry up totally for three/four months of the year - and then during three/four months of winter be very muddy.
Where do your neigbours find thier water? Maybe you could come to an agreement with them to use their boreholes/springs.....?
I don't think the peat source will dry up - I know the water table never falls much even in a dry spell. The difficulty is collecting water from the peat - one doesn't want the surface water flow because of likely contamination - and so it would be neccessary to go lowewr, possibly a metre below the surface. Peat tends to hold onto water at these depths so a goodly length of perforated pipe would be required, not sure how much yet.
However I am now thinking of harvesting roof water to supplement the supply. There's some 250 m2 roof area so could theoretically collect 250 m3 per year, albeit at varying intervals. I reckon with a 6000 litre underground tank supplied with roof water, topped up with peat groundwater automaticallyas required, serving a dual distribution system. 95% of this water would be treated to a basic standard for secondary use, whilst the other 5% would be UV'd etc. for drinking. Only some 5 litres a day is needed per person for the latter purpose. I need to do some more work yet, but in general terms it looks feasible.
I would still worry about hot summers. Last year I remember a period when it did not rain for more than six weeks (South Devon).
quote:
Originally posted by davidlois: a 6000 litre underground tank
This would give you a week's (or so) water supply.
I am not an expert but have had two private water supplies in my time (and my folks have had one) and even on a hill with a healthy spring/stream, the water supply really does become an issue during a hot summer.
If I was in your shoes, I would get a professional company in to see what they would suggest....
we're light users, only the 2 of us, so at 150 litres (max) a day that would give us 20 days. We're in North of Scotland, about 1m rain pa. I know it can go for maybe 6 weeks without rain some years, so need to recalc on that basis. I know the peatlands very well, is partly my work, so I know there is no more than 1m difference in g/w levels year on year. The trick is to fit the peat collection system low as poss - I will have to experiment to find out what the yield per m2 will be, a bit of work to do yet I know. You're right being concerned about the reliability of supply, acc to env health, who will need to approve the plans, that's the main q. One can always treat at reasonable cost. I am also going to price a borehole but I reckon over £10K?
Originally posted by davidlois: I am also going to price a borehole but I reckon over £10K?
I don't know - I have never put one in.
Good luck with it all. Of course, one major benifit of a private water supply is NO WATER BILLS no matter how much you use! (Mind you, you have to look after your system at your own cost....)
You have to watch after the summer too when the water level rises - I can't remember all the details but its something to do with the bacteria that the rising water drags up with it.
I dont think its a problem you just have to get it tested to make sure its OK.
We are planning to buy and old church for conversion to a house
Hi, i am looking into buying a church and was wondering how you managed to get residential planning permission?
It breaks my heart that churches are so hard to turn into homes, as a student living between 4 houses i have no real home but always feel at home in any church.
I'd go along with the idea of a borehole, it's going to be the most reliable system. The correct filters should give you a good supply of potable water.
I would contact a company that drills these, to get their advice, and to see if it would be suitable for your location.
........................................................................ Support the PAS Go with the FLO
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