DRINKING RAIN WATER FOR OFF GRID LIVING

[@warrenmaker798]

WOW... So many filters. Lived off strait UN-filtered tank water for 40 years with ought a problem. had a 'First Flush' system installed about 20 years ago, just to make sure

[@willwade1101]

What a friend of mine did was place a larger PVC pipe over his foam insulated pipes to protect the foam insulation. Since you already have yours install you would need to slit the pipe lengthwise and zip tie it over your foam insulated pipe.

[@Draboh]

That secret log store door is awesome

[@algae248]

Great video. We have water collecting in ico tanks for our veggie/polytunnel but filling it up in watering cans. We’ve no electric or water on the field. We need to think about erring some solar panels on a barn at some stage!

[@benjamincox7521]

Love your channel, have you ever thought about doing workshops to teach people how to live off grid? Just a thought, you allready have one customer

[@The_OffGridFamily]

Thank you 😊 Glad you’re enjoying the videos and thanks for taking the time to watch them. It’s not something we’ve considered what with working and having two little ones. Maybe in the future. Watch this space ☺️

[@algae248]

I’d sign up as well 🙂

[@kjeldschouten-lebbing6260]

You can get spin-down filters up to 1000mesh/15micron Easier and cheaper to clean and you can easily do 50-25-15 micron stack to get much crap out before the 1 micron throw-away filter :)

[@glidercoach]

Nice system! The ceramic filter is reusable / washable? Which model is it? I live in southern Italy and local water filter availability is wound cotton only. I live in the country and internet purchases must be delivered to a friend, so I try to not buy online. A reusable / washable ceramic filter paired with locally sourced filters is my best option. For now I'm having water trucked in, 6000 liters at a time. Rain water would be great.

[@dubemccready7438]

Congratulations and very well done. Cheers

[@russellscott1151]

What an awsome wood pile :)

[@The_OffGridFamily]

Thank you 😁

[@Ner0sys7]

That secret pump room caught me by surprise. Definitely using that, sorry for copying you lol

[@rickharold7884]

This is awesome. Thx!

[@The_OffGridFamily]

Glad you enjoyed it 😊👍

[@Dannylewis27]

You are quite litterally doing what I'm building up to do. Keep figuring it all out so I can copy😂. Love the vids 👍

[@The_OffGridFamily]

Thank you 😊👍 Will do 😂

[@kroozer5215]

what do you do for hot water ? i cant find a video of yours where you explain how you get hot water - if you have done a video on this subject could you point it out to me please - Regards

[@damondamon7108]

Hi there, I'm loving your youtube video. I know nothing about living off grid as may soon become apparent lol but couldn't you just get a giant water distiller to filter the water? I'm guessing that the solar power consumption and the time it takes to distil water would probably be a big issue?

[@stevesamoffgridsmallholdin5378]

Excellent useful video👍

[@annbeirne9583]

Do you test your water now and again to make sure nothing nasty could sneak through

[@Tek69]

Any reason why you use IBC pods instead of dedicated poly rainwater tanks?

[@The_OffGridFamily]

We bought the tanks for £40 each at a time when we didn’t have the money to shell out much more. When we upgrade this summer we’re going to switch over to a proper tank 😊

[@stonegolemstudios]

That hidden room... ftw

[@lnostdal]

Some old cheap rockwool material might be better insulation - since mice don't like it too much. They might burrow through it if they really really go for it, but in my experience they like it less than other insulation.

[@TimCamilleri]

Have you come across Quantum Water Disinfection instead of UV? There are places in UK that are advertising it.

[@The_OffGridFamily]

No we haven’t come across this but will have a look 😊

[@bootangy]

is quantum better than uv?

[@russellscott1151]

What does a system like that roughly cost? And ongoing costs like filters per year? I’m not off grid but with ever increasing bills. It also frustrates me how much water we must waste just running the hot water tap while we wait for the HW to arrive. Interesting vids thanks.

[@The_OffGridFamily]

The system cost about £2k and filters wise its about £100-£150 a year. You are very right about wasting water whilst waiting for hot water to kick in. We have become so aware of this, especially when our tanks are running low! 😱

[@showme360]

You loose more just flushing the loo, we installed a rain water harvesting system using 4 x IBC (4,000L plus water 4 x water butts) and a water pump, some basic filters at the water butt, end to the the tanks. We save around £80 a years in our water bill. The system cost less than £500, so its about a 6 year pay back. However the cold spell in Dec 2022 froze the pump and split the manifold, need to make improvements to the insulation already fitted. Even the water in the IBC froze at the top, because we have a float level indicator on one that the pump drains and it was fixed solid. All the water butts had frozen at the top down about 100mm, and that was in just a week, if the weather stayed like this for a month or two the system as a whole would freeze solid I am guessing. I hope to repair it, or replace it with a stronger pump, and just drain the system the next time it a cold snap comes.

[@wendydee3007]

I'm hoping to buy some woodland this year, and set up an artist workshop. I want to be off grid but I'm a 'mature' lady with no DIY skills. How would I go about finding people to build a wooden cabin and set up the water and solar energy systems for for me? Thanks :o)

[@The_OffGridFamily]

We think you'll probably need different people for each of those jobs. The Off Grid FB groups can be a really good place to find people skilled in these areas. Solar suppliers can also be helpful. We have heard Bimble are particularly obliging ☺️

[@wendydee3007]

@@The_OffGridFamily Thanks! :o)

[@waterboy8999]

Your videos are very interesting, just a thought, are your IBC's food grade plastic?

[@The_OffGridFamily]

Thank you, glad you are enjoying the videos 😊 Yes they are food grade 👍

[@waterboy8999]

@@The_OffGridFamily good stuff, thanks.

[@jakesale6087]

I cant find the pressure pup and control panel. Could you give me a link please.

[@The_OffGridFamily]

Sorry for the slow reply. Here you go www.anchorpumps.com/grundfos-sqe2-55-40m-constant-pressure-system ☺️

[@steveeggleton876]

Reconfigure to pre filters first, UV second, carbon third. Reason. Pre filters stop any particles building up on Quartz sleeve, bacteria loves carbon as a breeding ground, UV will kill bacteria before it gets to carbon. Also disinfect anything after the UV as bacteria will be already in there and can continue to grow in the pipes and fittings. Your original though in earlier videos of non uv to toilet etc and uv water to consumable water e.g. sinks, showers, cooking etc. saves a bit of life on the uv and carbon filter.

[@808music3]

I personally think off grid would be better outside Uk. Maybe Australia or new Zealand

[@The_OffGridFamily]

Yes you’re probably right, but we wouldn’t want to move away from our families 😩

[@evansmith9586]

Using Medium Density Polyethylene and worried about toxins.

[@The_OffGridFamily]

What would you recommend as an alternative? ☺️

[@MichaelPickles]

You could look at neoprene foam So far the mice have not eating mine

[@The_OffGridFamily]

Thank you 😊 not sure what ours is… We will look into neoprene foam 👍

[@MichaelPickles]

@@The_OffGridFamily it's the same thing as wetsuits. The thing is mice will pretty much eat anything.

[@madat167]

They'll still nibble and rip it apart. Wrap it in aluminium tape and they'll leave it alone

[@Melicoy]

use 5 gallon bucket to catch mice. yt shaw woods

[@clementeliffick4684]

???????

[@ianprice4460]

I've read that it is illegal in the UK to drink rainwater or to use it for bathing/dishwashers. Essentially rainwater is considered 'non-potable'. To quote: "Within a normal system, rainwater is classed as non-potable or non-drinking water by UK water regulations. This means it cannot be used for applications where there is human contact (such as drinking, bathing and cooking)." Clearly you haven't died/suffered yet. I can only find information that says it must not be connected to mains 'potable' water as it contaminates the water supply (there are documented cases) Do you know the full legal position?

[@The_OffGridFamily]

We've not come across this before and have heard of lots of people successfully filtering rainwater for many years. We have no access to mains water so no chance of contamination ☺️

[@pigswillbepigs]

You can’t or should I say is illegal to connect say a rainwater system to the mains in a real house as the water could be dragged into the mains system and contaminate. It’s called back flushing.

[@MP-mu1kw]

@@The_OffGridFamily As you rightly stated, you have been drinking the water that has been through the different filtration process for several years and you are not connected to any main water supply. I don't think there would be any regulatory issues. I have lived in the US/Canada and there are lots of people who live off-grid and utilize rainwater and they are perfectly healthy. I think the water you are drinking is more pure than what comes out of our taps. Just one thing I would like to mention is it might be worth getting a sample of your filtered water analyized for any airborne metal pollutants.

[@annapachaclarke2392]

Of course no one would suffer from filtering their own rainwater. It is government and authority control trying to dictate what people can and cannot do. I take no notice, as long as no harm is done. 👌

[@chiphill4856]

I got tired of listening while you pointed at a blank gray tarp. Bye -

[@InclusiveDriving]

If you lose interest that easily, perhaps off-grid living isn't for you.

[@chiphill4856]

I'm sure it's a fantastic system, just can't say until I actually see it.