Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Nov 26, 2009 10:38 am Hi all We are building a Standford 24 with PD. We have installed a raintank that plumbs the 2 toilets and is meant to have mains back up. Can anyone actually tell me how the mains back up works? There is only one green pipe going to each toilet and out the wall near the tank, how does this allow for being plumbed to the mains as well? Thanks heaps! Re: Water tank plumbed to toilets ?mains back up? 3Nov 26, 2009 10:43 am Someone can correct me if im wrong but I think the pump has a meter on it, and when it senses your tank is below a certain level, the mains will kick in and fill your tank back up to that level.... Re: Water tank plumbed to toilets ?mains back up? 5Nov 26, 2009 12:21 pm I believe there are two kinds - one will fill your tank up from the mains when it drops below a certain level, and the other kind will actually switch across to mains water usage directly, without refilling the tank- maybe check with your builder as to the manufacturer of your pump/switch and hop on their website. Re: Water tank plumbed to toilets ?mains back up? 6Nov 26, 2009 4:38 pm The system PD uses definitely doesn't fill the tank from mains water at any point. When your tank runs low, the pump switches off and won't power up again until the water level rises past a certain point. Then you're on mains until you get enough rain for the pump to kick in again. It works, don't worry..... Re: Water tank plumbed to toilets ?mains back up? 7Nov 26, 2009 4:44 pm You do need to make sure though that the pump does the cutover thingy when the tank water is low. I plan to get a Davey Rainbank one when I get around to setting it up 'A bottle of wine contains more philosophy than all the books in the world.' Louis Pasteur Vegie garden: viewtopic.php?f=19&t=27637&start=0 My Backyard Adventure Re: Water tank plumbed to toilets ?mains back up? 8Dec 08, 2009 11:25 am So Im now having a massive argument with PD who wants to use a system that sences the raintank is low and tops up the tank with mains. That means we cannot use our raintank to water our garden with out restriction. Does anyone have any details about systems that wont fill our tank. And whats the system PD installed for you kek? Re: Water tank plumbed to toilets ?mains back up? 9Dec 08, 2009 12:44 pm kateypink So Im now having a massive argument with PD who wants to use a system that sences the raintank is low and tops up the tank with mains. Yeah, we have the same problem with the tanks installed by Simonds. We now have 5000L of mostly useless water, considering it's only used by two toilets. Eventually we hope to remove the current top-up system with a new pump that automatically switches between tank/mains water (as described above). At the moment, the tanks are full of rainwater, so it's not too much of a problem. Also, we don't have any spare cash either! Re: Water tank plumbed to toilets ?mains back up? 11Dec 08, 2009 1:33 pm borg Hey guys. The tank will only fill up a little bit enough for the pump to work. It doesnt fill it right up. Yes, but it keeps filling as you use water: So, if you start washing your car, it'll keep running mains water until you're done. There is no way to tell if you're using mains or rainwater. Thus, it's pointless (IMO). Re: Water tank plumbed to toilets ?mains back up? 12Dec 08, 2009 1:46 pm kateypink So Im now having a massive argument with PD who wants to use a system that sences the raintank is low and tops up the tank with mains. That means we cannot use our raintank to water our garden with out restriction. Does anyone have any details about systems that wont fill our tank. And whats the system PD installed for you kek? Uh....no idea. I can't find our contract at the moment to look it up, and it's pouring out there, so I'm not about to go check. I just know that the pump cuts out when the water gets low and it stays off till we get enough rain. Based on what Borg is saying, the end result will be the same with either system as far as water usage goes. Here's something to think about: if you use the water from your tank (which doesn't have a tap fitted, by the way) to water your garden, then even if you have the same cut-off system we have, you're going to be flushing mostly mains water anyway. Is that honestly the best option? Both ecologically and economically, it doesn't seem to make a lot of sense to me. I'd sooner flush rainwater when it's available, and get by with grey water, rainfall and the minimum of mains water for the garden. If you plant wisely, your garden ought to survive on that. I'm trying to figure out an easy way to install a grey water diverter on the laundry sink, which isn't against an external wall (bad planning on my part ). I'm also looking at small tanks or other storage devices to collect extra rainwater for the garden so I can cut out the use of mains water almost entirely. We don't have much space, but if we did, I'd just put in an extra big tank especially for the garden. Maybe a second tank and/or a greywater diverter is the solution? Re: Water tank plumbed to toilets ?mains back up? 13Dec 10, 2009 8:16 am Guys, I have been researching this topic for quite some time now and have noticed some traps with both types of systems that others may like to consider when selecting pumps/controllers. With the system which uses mains water to top up the tank when the level is low obviously the pump is required to transfer water from the tank to the toilets under all situations. What happens when there is a blackout or the pump fails??? I don't see how the toilets will fill up until the power/pump problem is fixed. With the mains backup system, where once the tank is low it reverts back to mains to directly supply the toilets, most of these systems cannot be used for external/garden use because there is nowhere to connect the taps legally as at any point in the system after the pump there is the possibility that mains water may be in use and therefore cannot be used for the garden. You would either have to run a seperate pump for the garden or use one of the few "mains backup" controllers which provide a separate external/garden outlet. The only one I've come across that can do this is the H2DUO which enables people to use tank water for the garden and toilet but once the tank is empty it only allows mains backup to the toilets. Hopefully this helps a few people understand the complexities of trying to kill two birds with one stone and use one tank for internal and external duties. Best regards, Shozza if it's the look that you're not happy with, the easiest option would probably be to spray paint it all into the same color as the walls so it blends in. there might not… 3 4186 This is the current bathroom with a european laundry. Overall internal dimensions are 3.69 wide and 3.65m deep, including the footprint of the laundry. There is a toilet… 0 10343 18 90473 |