A small-scale, off-the-grid water system doesn’t have to be expensive; in fact, you can build your own without too much trouble.

Rainwater is a fairly obvious approach; you can even build your own cistern using concrete blocks or bricks. If you’re not that much of a do-it-yourself person you can purchase a concrete cistern from the local septic tank installer. The cheapest option is probably buying a large plastic holding tank from the farm supply store.

If you are going to use this water for anything other than watering your garden it will need filtering. A cheap filter is sufficient for most operations. Getting the water to the desired area is another thing to consider. If your cistern is elevated then the water can probably be easily gravity fed, but if not, electric pumps or, if you’re completely off-the-grid, battery-powered pumps will most like do the trick.

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Many countries are experiencing water shortages, and, according to the UN, even more are expected to by 2025. So, with that in mind, is it really worth catching the rain? Those facing the shortages would certainly say so! The average American individual uses 100 gallons of water or more every day. Take that and compare it to the average African family that uses only 5 gallons a day!

Yet there is still another aspect that would be worth looking into: there is always the same amount of water in the world. So, the water just circulates and lands in different areas, causing some to have too little and some to have too much. When the time comes for your area to experience too little, it sure would be nice to have some sort of system in place to catch what little rain comes your way.

Time to tie in the cisterns again. They are an excellent way to hold excess rainwater. Though historically they have been kept underground in order to keep the water at a more constant temperature, with modern technology there is absolutely no reason why you couldn’t have an above-ground cistern almost as easily as you can have an above-ground swimming pool! Cisterns keep every pollutant out of the water except the contaminants that are already in the water itself, so that water is actually probably cleaner than normal fluoridated city-water. The water that is caught can be filtered, cleaning it even more, and used for small-load places such as hunting lodges and weekend getaways that are only used every now and then.

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Cisterns are storage tanks that collect rainwater from roofs or other catchment areas. The water is non-potable, or not for human consumption. Cisterns are usually located underground, but they can be at ground level or even elevated. They should be made from non-reactive materials such as: reinforced concrete, galvanized steel, plastic, etc. Concrete blocks or wood, but these can be difficult to keep watertight. They should have a smooth interior surface and an enclosed lid.

Some places have incentives for installing cisterns and rainwater catching systems. Some places even have laws requiring water catching systems to be installed on every new construction. Greenhouses often have cisterns that supply all its water needs.

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