Rain Water

[jerson]

I thought i'd do the right thing & install a rain water tank to flush the motor & wash down the boat with the blaster.It's an attractive offer with the BCC rebate. Then i was told u can't connect a hose to the tank when level 3 water bans are on, u must bucket the water from the tank.
Is there anyone out there who can explain the reasoning behind this, I must not be the sharpest chisel in the box.

[blaze]

think outside the square

PUT 2 HANDLES ON IT AND CALL IT A BUCKET WITH AN EXTENDED OUTLET

so easy
cheers
blaze

[StevenM]

Your a cracker blaze, lol

[Camo]

Jerson, mate as long as you don't fill or top up your tank with BCC water, you can use a hose attached your tank. The rule is you can only hose with rain water.

Camo

[snapattack]

Aggre with Camo I do.

You can use the collected rain water for whatever purpose you want. That includes attaching a hose to the tank unless the tank is also connected to the main water supply.

Snap

[bungie]

To get the rebate you need to have the rain tank attached to your cold washing machine tap, one toilet, and trickle fed from the council mains.

:-/

Rainwater tanks
(17) The rainwater tank must be plumbed, by a licensed plumber, to at least
one toilet and the laundry cold water tap for connection to a clothes
washing machine. For houses with swimming pools provision must be
made for topping up the pools from the rainwater tanks.
(18) The rebate is also available to residential households that connect an
existing rainwater tank. The rainwater tank must be plumbed, by a
licensed plumber, to at least one toilet and the laundry cold water tap for
connection to a clothes washing machine. For houses with swimming
pools provision must be made for topping up the pools from the rainwater
tanks.
(19) If reticulated mains water supply is available at the dwelling then the
rainwater tanks must be connected to that supply to enable trickle top-up.
Trickle top-up must be in accordance with relevant local government
regulations. If no relevant local government regulations exist the trickle
top-up must be configured to maintain one day of supply (for example one
quarter of the tank’s capacity) for the connected appliances.
(20) The applicant must provide a plumbing approval certificate (available from
the relevant local government) that demonstrates that the tank has been
plumbed in accordance with these terms and conditions.
(21) The rebate is limited to a maximum of one rainwater tank installation per
household over the lifetime of the program.
(22) The rebate is available once the rainwater tank is installed and operational.
(23) A minimum rainwater tank volume of 3,000 litres is required for units (class
2 building) and a minimum rainwater tank volume of 5,000 litres for houses
(class 1 building) is required. Minimum rainwater tank volume can be
achieved by the use of more than one interconnected tank per installation.
(24) The original tax invoice or receipt, stating the date of purchase, the size of
the rainwater tank(s) and showing payment in full, must be provided with
the completed application form.
(25) Applicants must provide evidence that the rainwater tank was installed by
a licensed plumber.

[bungie]

But you are permited under the Brisbane City Council to flush your outboard using muffs

[ShaneJ]

To get the rebate you need to have the rain tank attached to your cold washing machine tap, one toilet, and trickle fed from the council mains.

:-/

Rainwater tanks
(17) The rainwater tank must be plumbed, by a licensed plumber, to at least
one toilet and the laundry cold water tap for connection to a clothes
washing machine. For houses with swimming pools provision must be
made for topping up the pools from the rainwater tanks.
(18) The rebate is also available to residential households that connect an
existing rainwater tank. The rainwater tank must be plumbed, by a
licensed plumber, to at least one toilet and the laundry cold water tap for
connection to a clothes washing machine. For houses with swimming
pools provision must be made for topping up the pools from the rainwater
tanks.
(19) If reticulated mains water supply is available at the dwelling then the
rainwater tanks must be connected to that supply to enable trickle top-up.
Trickle top-up must be in accordance with relevant local government
regulations. If no relevant local government regulations exist the trickle
top-up must be configured to maintain one day of supply (for example one
quarter of the tank’s capacity) for the connected appliances.
(20) The applicant must provide a plumbing approval certificate (available from
the relevant local government) that demonstrates that the tank has been
plumbed in accordance with these terms and conditions.
(21) The rebate is limited to a maximum of one rainwater tank installation per
household over the lifetime of the program.
(22) The rebate is available once the rainwater tank is installed and operational.
(23) A minimum rainwater tank volume of 3,000 litres is required for units (class
2 building) and a minimum rainwater tank volume of 5,000 litres for houses
(class 1 building) is required. Minimum rainwater tank volume can be
achieved by the use of more than one interconnected tank per installation.
(24) The original tax invoice or receipt, stating the date of purchase, the size of
the rainwater tank(s) and showing payment in full, must be provided with
the completed application form.
(25) Applicants must provide evidence that the rainwater tank was installed by
a licensed plumber.


Go back to where you copied the above from and read the information that was probably before it.
You get a $500 rebate for installing a water tank of 1000l or more and $700? for 3000l or more. But if you get a plumber to plumb the tank to your toilet or washing maching you get a larger rebate.

[foggy]

I'm with shanej on this one. The council told me and pointed it out in the details that you can install a tank of a minimum 3000L and it does not have to be attached to anything and you will still get a $700 rebate. But that offer runs out on Friday this week(end of the month). They also told me that as long as the receipt is dated before Friday and its not installed you can still get the rebate.

Bungie,

Yes you can flush your outboard with the main water supply and muffs but you have to disconnect the hose and store it after your done.

I also approached the council with regards to washing the trailer with a bucket.(what a joke) #There response was to treat the trailer with lanolin spray or similar to prevent rust. However when I pointed out damage caused by rusting springs and brake components would become a safety issue, they put me on hold for 20mins and then came back to me saying that they would investigate further and call me back. They rang me back today and said either

1. Install a water tank and use the water from that to clean the boat and trailer
or
2. Go to carlovers or a simliar place on the way home
or
3. Install some sort of rust protection.

This brings me to my next query. Would one of those electronic rust prevention systems work on a trailer?

Has anyone had any experiences with one of these devices?

From the council website-

Water restrictions for rainwater tanks
Water restrictions are currently in place under the SEQ Regional Drought Strategy. These restrictions limit when and how you can use water in your home or business. #

If your rainwater tank is topped up using mains water supply, water restrictions apply on your rainwater tank use.

Water restrictions do not apply for rainwater tanks that are not topped up using mains water supply. #


$750 rainwater tank rebate
To be eligible for the $750 rebate, you’ll need to meet these conditions:

the new rainwater tank is for domestic use only
the installation address is in the Brisbane City Council area
you are already connected to the Council's reticulated water supply
you are the property owner and all receipts are in your name
the volume of the new rainwater tank is equal to or more than 3,000 litres
If you are connecting your rainwater tank to internal fixtures, you may also be eligible for the $100 internal connection rebate.

Sorry for rambling on but I got bored waiting for the soccer to start. Aussie Aussie Aussie

[bungie]

http://www.nrm.qld.gov.au/

http://www.nrm.qld.gov.au/water/pdf/hwss_terms.pdf #<-----

[bungie]

?

[Dignity]

Foggy - there is a thread in Boating about this - which council are you with. Also found talking to them is no good but better off emailing them and getting a written response.

try this one
http://www.ausfish.com.au/forum/YaBB.cgi?num=1151365120/0

sam

[thesimmos]

Might be worthwhile having 2 Water Tanks.. 1 for each purpose...

Its your water you got it.. do what u want with it.. You have my permission :)

[choppa]

simmo has touched a topic that i asked council re 2 or more tanks?????????

if i have 1 tank that is connected to mains,,(for whatever reason),, and then another or more that are isolated, and fed by guttering/rainfall,, can i hook up to the isolated tanks and use through a pump to hose???????

not unusual,,, most large pty owners fall into this catagory,, along with ""bore water"" users

council response,,,,,,,,and i quote,,,,,,

your question has not fallen on deaf ears, and we will respond as soon as we can to clarify this,, understand this leaves the onus on the levels of the isolated tanks not being topped up or refilled by the initial tank connected to mains water

ummmmmmm,, i have purposely stayed away from these posts re restrictions etc for this same reason,,, each council is or has a different opinion,, i think kingtin answers it better by stating its up to you and the inspector in the end in another post still current in this forum

[timddo]

hmmm, the government owns the water that comes down from the sky, flows across your land or in the ground. With hose,, there is a major safety issue here. Have you guys considered that if your house happens to be on fire, HOW THE HELL ARE YOU GOING TO TO PUT IT OUT.. i have purposely left my hose on the tap for safety reason, thats what the fire department said. With rain water tanks. so long as it's not connect to the mains, you can do whatever you like. if you don't want to wash your boat, just go on a rainy day.

[foggy]

Foggy - there is a thread in Boating about this - which council are you with. #Also found talking to them is no good but better off emailing them and getting a written response.

try this one
http://www.ausfish.com.au/forum/YaBB.cgi?num=1151365120/0

sam


Sam,

The italic writing is directly off the Brisbane city council website, not someones response. And I have clarified evrything on there with a supervisor.
In regards to your post re the response from SEQwater. I was told the same thing about the manufacturers recommendations. The catch is that you actually have to have it in writing from the trailer manufacturer. It still all comes down to the safety issue.


http://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/BCC:BRISWATER:1990669237:pc=PC_1460#restrictions

Foggy

[Feral]

If you apply for the rebate, Big Brother has you on file, along with exact details of what you have installed, so if you have a "topper up" system in the tank, (or a tank) when they are doing their patrols, they will come a knockin if they see you hosing sprinkling etc etc.

Now, I have a home sewage treatment plant, so theoretically when my plants need watering, I could legally just leave the taps running inside the house for as long as I like, allow it to flow into the treatment plant, and let it pump the water onto the garden. But I cant wash down the springs and hubs on my trailer? (And no I wont use recycled sewage to wash down the boat, anymore than I would drink it if the council stuck it back into the water system, I'd be getting rainwater tanks if that ever happens!)

[Ozwald]

I seem to be missing something here - if I install a rainwater tank and have the washing machine and a toilet plumbed into it it would seem that I no longer have a rainwater tank but a septic tank? It seems bizzare that if I want to collect clean water falling on my property I have to pollute it by adding dirty wash water and sewage to it?
Can somebody explain this to me?
regards
a confused Oz

[Glind]

I have been in touch with the Caboolture Shire Council and flushing outboards with a hose and muffs is okay, but the rest is via buckets.
I have hooked up a 12 volt pressure pump which I draw water from the buckets to was down the trailer and this is fine as long as the wash down nozzle from the pump is a trigger type. It is the long way around it, but it is street legal.
Tim

[snapattack]

Sorry double up

[snapattack]

I seem to be missing something here - if I install a rainwater tank and have the washing machine and a toilet plumbed into it it would seem that I no longer have a rainwater tank but a septic tank? It seems bizzare that if I want to collect clean water falling on my property I have to pollute it by adding dirty wash water and sewage to it?
Can somebody explain this to me?
regards
a confused Oz

;D
Oz,
It does not mean the water coming out of the toilet and washing machine. It refers to the filling of these things.

Snap ;)

[Fat Chilli]

I have a 33,000 litre tank (10,000 gal), why don't I get a rebate. #:'(

No mains water on Tamborine Mt, only bore or tank, it comes from the sky, we pay for the tanks, plumbing, pumps etc. then we still have to pay Beaudesert Shire Council an annual water usage fee to use the water we catch....great hey!
I have to pay an annual sewage plant license too, just for the enviromentally friendly clearwater sewage filtration system. Then there's the 4 inspections a year I have to pay for too.
So if I want to wash my boat with a garden hose I bloody well will. ;)
At the end of the day if I use it all up, it will cost me around $220 to get several truck loads of water to fill the tank up, so obviously it pays to be water wise.
Still wish I had mains water though.