Carmel Highlands- 10,000 Gallon Installation
GSL installed a 10,000 gallon system at a Carmel Highlands home overlooking the Pacific ocean. The home has a water supply collected for local homeowners from the Mal Paso Creek. Due to the drought, conservation measures have been put in place as the creek subsided and stopped running during 2014. To help maintain their landscape the homeowner decided to install a rainwater system to provide additional water for their gardens. The site was challenging with poor access and steep slopes. A 50 foot long chute with a 39 degree angle was installed from the pad to the street to remove excess yards of dirt. The water will be used to irrigate landscape on the property. A concrete pad was designed to hold four 2,500 gallon tanks, a pump and pressure tank, and a small shed to protect those items. The pad has a retaining wall built along the back and sides to match the slope of the hillside. A GRAF Optimax filter was installed up-hill from the tank farm intercepting an existing drainage system connected to the roof of the home and french drains around the home. The filtered water is piped down to the tank farm where it first fills a first flush and then rises and flows into the inlet tank. A "quieting inlet" was installed in the inlet tank to keep any settled dust from getting disturbed. The overflow outlet was installed with a GRAF Overflow Siphon with Rodent Guard to keep vermin out. The tanks are connected with flexible PVC hose with Banjo ball valves and quick release hardware to isolate a tank if necessary. A GRAF Stainless Steel Floating Extractor is installed in the "pump" tank. The pump is connected to the suction hose of the Floating Extractor and sucks in water approximately 6" below the surface where the water is free of debris. The pump is a 3/4 HP centrifugal surface pump with automatic controller. A 13 gallon pressure tank was installed to reduce pump cycling and extend the life of the pump. The pump will push water up hill approximately 40 feet to irrigation valves using approximately 6 gallons per minute to drip irrigate landscape plants. The tanks were lifted onto the pad via small crane with 75 foot reach. Below the slideshow is a video of the last tank being lifted from the driveway to the pad. A pump shed was installed to protect the equipment. The collection area is approximately 3,500 square feet of roof and patio's and french drains. It is expected the 10,000 gallons of storage will be filled with 4-5 inches of rainfall.