Water is natures most effective solvent, and as such, along with wind and air, is the main transporter of the worlds pollutants; StormTreat System is a way for us to offset that transportation of pollutants ourselves through stewardship that makes sense.

Pollutants are effectively removed from stormwater runoffs above and beyond the call of duty with this system, the following pollutant removal data was collected over a two-year period by clients and confirmed in state-certified labs:

• Fecal Coliform 97%

• Total Suspended Solids 98%

• Chemical Oxygen Demand 82%

• Total Dissolved Nitrogen 77%

• Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon 90%

• Lead 77%

• Chromium 98%

• Phosphorus 90%

• Zinc 90%

StormTreat System has been awarded the EPA Envirotechnology Innovator Award as well as being the first stormwater treatment system to be recognized by the Massachusetts Strategic Environmental Partnership or STEP program.

STS is low maintenance, easily accessible with standard equipment and recommended for Residential Subdivisions, Lake Shores, Commercial Developments, Marinas and Landings, Industrial Sites, Parking Lots, Roads and Highways, Transportation Terminals, Reconstructions, Maintenance Facilities and Habitat Restorations.

Being a compact underground bioretention stormwater treatment system, StormTreat System uses LID (low impact development) technology, avoiding the unsightly and creating an environmentally friendly solution that is pleasing to the eye as well as the heart.

Step 1. Construction of the Rain Barrels Base

Because we had some summer storms coming, I constructed a temporary base for the barrels made of concrete blocks and 2×4 studs. Everything was leveled and the barrels were put in their final position so that connecting tube lengths could be estimated.

Step 2. Positioning the Diverter

A proper height of the diverter was selected so that the mounting flanges of the diverter could be screwed just above the lower edge of the metal siding of the house. At this point the rain downspout was marked to be cut.

Step 3. Cutting the Downspout

The rain downspout was removed and cut on a chop saw for a clean, straight cut. I cut out a section of the downspout that was equivalent to the length needed by the diverter so that all existing mounting straps at the bottom of the downspout would still be usable. This resulted in a clean installation.

Step 4. Mounting the Downspout and Diverter

The upper section of the downspout was reconnected to the rain gutter. I used an awl to align one of the existing holes while I re-inserted the other screws. I then positioned the diverter in place and screwed it to the metal siding of the house. Finally, I positioned the bottom section of the downspout and re-attached it to the house.

Step 5. Connecting the Barrels to Each Other

I measured and cut lengths of the tubing to connect the barrels in their proper position. To make it easier to slide the tubing over the connectors, I placed the tubes in hot tap water for 30 seconds. This softened the tube and it easily slid onto the connectors. Because there would be no high water pressure, I did not use hose clamps here.

Step 6. Connecting the Diverter to the Barrels

The last step was to connect the tubes between the diverter and the rain barrels. I originally used the two white tubes provided, but then decided to use one clear tube so any observers could see the water running through the tube. Before attaching the end of the tube to the connectors, I again placed the tube end in hot tap water to soften the tube. Then the tubes were attached. I used hose-clamps to secure the upper end of the tube at the diverter, so that the tube did not come off. Finally, I used one zip-tie to hold the tubes to the downspout so they didn’t move in the wind. The installation was complete and took about 2 hours, not counting time to the hardware store to buy extra tubing and hose clamps.

We’ve had three storms since the installation and all three barrels are 3/4 full. -Thanks

People already want the ecologically correct solutions and studies show how we can make those solutions actually the more financially viable alternative to mechanical and chemical filtration that traditionally has had a devastating effect on our environment, and the cost is driving the world into an emergency situation.

Thinking globally, but acting locally, in accordance to the laws that mother nature has put down, understanding and observing the way the planet deals with wastewater and reproducing those conditions in our planning and projects so as to return the energy supplied in collective blackwater management systems back into nature safely and wisely in stewardship of the planet.

As engineers, we now need to think progress in terms of the planet as a whole, where every last rock and tree is just as much a part of the civilization we are planning to develop as the people living in it.

Systems… It’s all about systems… Working with nature as part of our whole system, not separate from it, and using her qualities to delve deeper into the heart of our most essential needs.

Natural Wastewater Treatment Systems is an excellent place to find all the most up to date and current information on ecologically correct and financially more desirable solutions that transform blackwater into greywater, the way nature intended through more than 30 examples, 178 scientific tables and over 30 years of research that is now considered common knowledge.

This 576-page hardcover academic text for civil and environmental engineering courses, written by Ronald W. Crites, E. Joe Middlebrooks and Sherwood C. Reed, published by CRC in August of 2005, measures 8.9 x 5.9 x 1.5 and ships at 2 pounds.

Effectively incorporating the theories and processes of several of the most recent core engineering disciplines into a single text, this book is at the same time the perfect reference text for undergrad courses and professionals already working in the area, providing up to date, serious information, on Natural Wastewater Treatment Systems.

See case studies on what wasn’t working, what was proposed, what was met with speculation and what actually worked with the ongoing involvement of the general public in waterworks issues, especially involving black water produced by municipalities and industries that were threatening the biodiversity of California’s forests.

With sewage and dumping becoming a major concern among Californians, measures were taken to work with the situation in favor of both people and the environment, reusing greywater and reclaiming blackwater safely above and beyond EPA standards.

Californians desired the reclamation of water resources, it was done, and this is the document that their efforts has left all of humanity, in the hopes of a more sustainable and self-reliant future that works in stewardship of the Earth, thinking globally, while acting locally and taking action, immediately.

This 1528-page hardcover, edited by Takashi Asano, published by CRC in June of 1998, measures 9.5 x 6.1 x 3.6 and ships at five pounds.

Studies and analysis with the EPA, in San Diego and Orange County around the topic of secondary effluent turbidity and the beneficial uses of reclaimed water systems from treated municipal and industrial wastewater, prompted by the increasing pressure on public health issues, infrastructure, process reliability, siting, and facility planning with complete economic and financial analysis and water utility management.

A major rational for reason to use common sense is simple. In a water shortage, the animals are going to get drinking water after people. People need nutrients from animals flesh as a food source, and the animals also cannot grow without water. Since the majority of people are carnivores (people who need meat to survive) common sense with regard to water supply distribution that includes livestock applies.

To meet the demand for water for both humans and various animals living with them as food source livestock, large rainwater catchment areas need to be constructed. In some places in the world large catchments are many in smooth rock areas. Rocks like granite are used as giant basins to hold the rainwater. Which in some way is a man made lake or pool. There is no dirt in the catchment so these granite catchments fit the pool model better.

In some regions of the world, rainwater harvesting for livestock and people was practiced for hundreds if not thousands of years. With last century modernization many of these practices were abandoned; only to find out now that these practices are essential to a regions autonomous survival.

So in order to not be negative burden on the governances of these regions it has been found that returning to older rainwater reclamation practices is the ideal best course of action. Or as some would put it: this return to traditional time honored water collection fits the model of best practices for these regions. And trump modern designs on commercial irrigation, for practical supply cannot meet demand reasons.

This model, (way of thinking about meeting the need), is in contrast to commercial interests in generating profit, (making an easy lazy buck), from having people and livestock resource dependant on the commercial enterprises dead lock with government backing to monopolize the supply of clean water.

But commercial water works have failed in these areas were these corporations are simply too small, and powerless to meet the demand. And Mother Nature is out bidding these corporations for the business of large populations of people, and their livestock, for whom well water has run dry do to (in part) corporate greed depleting the ground water supply.

This is exactly a case where one corporate hand does not know what the other is doing. If one company is in charge of well water, and the other company is in charge of development and building. One could tell the other all day long that water needs to be replenished via permeable ground. But if various laws around the world overly protect shareholders rights above what is best for the environment; then there is a system set in place that cannot show profitability long term for the shareholders because the company did not follow common sense.

Simply put: trading the not so distant long term benefit of everyone, (including financial shareholders); for short term, (measured in decades or a century) profit of just the shareholder who are unaware that they have mortgaged their descendants water supply.

So in an effort to protect the stock value for the share holder, (which is a noble idea in and of itself), the practice lacked the vision to see the needs of the market base long term, and as a secondary result misses the bench mark necessary to diversify in ways that actually benefit the shareholder from benefiting the shareholder (stakeholder) too.

The difference in these models is simple returning to a practical technology based on the idea that the members of the community are the actual shareholders in the profit they can gain from a better life. Water was/ and now is collected with the benefit of these people in mind. This is done either individually of as a community to harvest rainwater for themselves and their livestock.

Techincal publication for those interested in understanding safe drinking water practices for their livestock:
Rainwater Harvesting for Livestock – Texas Water Resources Institute of Texas Cooperative Extension

Contributed by David Allison

This type of home gardening was developed by C-SAFE to help African residences conserve rainwater runoff resources while gardening. This new style of gardening started in Mapoteng, Lenkoane, Malumeng, Taung, Kota, Makanametsung, and Sekameng.

Make a Keyhole Garden like the children of Lesotho:

These places are in a dry climate. If you live in a dry climate this maybe ideal for you.

This new style focuses on land reclamation, water retention, homestead gardening, conservation farming, and in some cases small dam construction.

This style keeps in mind that many members of these homesteads are disabled and abled alike. This is not unlike the rest of the planet.

To create one you will need ash, weeds, aloe, and manure to start off.

Find or level off an area of ground six and a half feet in diameter. Be sure its near some home water run off source.

Mark the perimeter of the center water catch basket with four sticks. The diameter of the center basket will be sixteen inches wide and about five feet tall. That measurement can change based on your situation.

Tie the four sticks together with string, or tall grass. Line the basket with a permeable lining. The lining doesnt need to be secured to anything but the top of the four sticks. The sides will raise as refuse compost and dirt is piled against it in the next few steps.

At the outer perimeter there will eventually be a wall of flat stones around six by three by two iches (thats the X, Y, & Z of the stones themselves). These stones will gradually be built up to be four and half feet high.

Dont forget to leave space for the keyhole inlet to one side of the inner basket. This keyhole will one point five feet wide.

The entrance to the basket, via the keyhole, has to be six point five feet wide. That measurement is flexible. The general standard is six point five in most gardens.

The keyhole entrance funnels to the one point five foot bottleneck abruptly, or gradually. That depends on your personal taste.

For the actual garden section, between the inner water run off basket and the outer:

• The floor of the garden, has kitchen scraps
• The first flat stones described above are piled randomly around the scraps to aerate the recycled meat and other organic material.
• Then first layer of compost described at the beginning of this article are poured about
• Sticks, twigs and dry leaves can be used for the next level.
• Less volatile compostable organic material can be added, or another level of the ash, aloe, and manure. Which ever is fine.
• More flat stones randomly placed.
• And now the stones on the outside perimeter can start to be secured tightly, leaning a bit inward as the garden inside it gets higher.
• The layers of the rock wall can reach into the variant levels of the garden being interspersed with the organic material. Some of the organic material can show mildly for effect. Level with the outer rock wall.

At the end of the building process; the outer rock wall should stand a little over four feet high.

If the garden is going to stay in line with the established form it can be divided mentally into four sections. You should feel free to step outside the conventional at this point if you like. In a lot of cases stepping out of this convention is more practical.

The four sections are leafy crops, root crops, vine crops, bulb crops. It should be noted that corn, artichokes and quite a few other crops fit outside these regional choices. However they would grow great in a keyhole garden.

Trial and error has proven that in dry areas the section of onion crop works a good insect repellent.

With the four-crop system rotation is key after each crop. Adding mulch is also a good recommendation.

This type of garden is ideal for those who want to continue to garden, (for leisure or necessity), and cannot bend over to do so. The garden is raised up a bit above waste level. That makes bending over unnecessary.

House hold run off water, (in some cases wastewater), can be run through the center of the garden basket. This is great infiltration for the garden. In essence the whole key garden is a new style approach to an above ground easy access vegetable rain garden.

Even some of the most advanced dew harvesters used in Chile and Peru using harvesting nets, have not been able to collect as much water from the wind and fog as the prototypes Andrew Parker created based on the Stenocara with an efficiency several times superior.

By using biomimicry, technology advances millions of years in just a few years with studies of creatures that have done what we aspire to do, and the Stenocara is a perfect example of how we can learn from biomimicry for more sustainable tomorrow.

So what is so special about this beetle that harvests its own water in the most arid desert region on the face of the Earth? Bumps, wax and gutters.

That is really all there is to it. The Stenocaras shell is armor-like and covered with bumps that have smooth peaks much like glass that easily allows water to condense into droplets that then slide down the slops into troughs (both covered in a Teflon-like wax) and the water goes straight to the beetles neck and down, around to the mouth for consumption.

Theoretically, what we do know about condensation is that the surface where water intends to condense needs to remain cool enough for the stored heat energy in water vapor to become liquid, and thinner surfaces are best for this, which is why the beetle has glass like bumps that readily distribute the heat into the rest of the beetles body, keeping it a little warmer and well hydrated.

In an example like this, it only takes a little bit of thought on the part of the do-it-yourselfer to create strategies similar to those used by the Namibian Stenocara.

Some people have already jumped the initiative on this, with dented metal roofs built on cardboard with pipes that run cold geothermal water underneath the surface mimicking the beetles shell and blood stream to do almost the same job, but on a far larger scale how about producing enough water to take a bath or supply ample drinking water for 5 people per day, even in the aridest of deserts?

Water harvesting through biomimicry is about being sustainable in a tomorrow that could be as bleak as Mad Max or as beautiful as Thomas Moores Utopia; it all depends on how we deal with the knowledge we already have, right now to build the self-sufficient America our forefathers envisioned.

Biomimicry Institute
Beetle’s Shell Offers Clues to Harvesting Water in the Desert – Bijal P. Trivedi
for National Geographic Today November 1, 2001
Stenocara Beetle Images – Google Image Search

Dew harvesting has been practiced by humanity as far back as ancient times, in areas where rainfall and groundwater resources are scarce. Technically, the process of dew harvesting can be understood by simply analyzing how the water cycle occurs (any fourth grade drawing will do).

When there is any humidity at all in the air and there is a surface that is cool enough to provoke condensation, dew will condense on that surface until the humidity is gone or the surface has absorbed so much heat from the water molecules that the surface is then no longer cool enough to provide the condensing action.

Surface water will evaporate into the atmosphere as soon as enough sunlight heats the molecules enough for them to take gaseous form and these molecules will eventually collect in the atmosphere to create humidity, which will later condense on cold surfaces as dew and thus returning the lost thermal energy to the planet surface.

The water cycle is how our planet keeps its water clean. Warm and humid air with large amounts of humidity take cloud form, and when they hit a cold front from the proper angle, are forced to condense into rain droplets.

This same principle follows for all forms of dew harvesting, to create a cold enough surface that water particles in gaseous form will condense enough to form dew droplets at an angle for collection.

Vegetation in desert regions have developed modifications that allow them to collect their own humidity from the air for example, and through efforts of reforestation in desert regions this technology has advanced abundantly around the world.

Do-it-yourselfers looking to create zero energy homes are the most trendy examples of dew harvesters to date, with their golf-ball like cardboard and metal roofs that use geothermally cooled water pumped through them at night to bring the roof temperature down enough to harvest dew through their traditional rooftop rainwater harvesting systems.

The biggest advantage to the metal roof technique for dew harvesting is that it simultaneously serves as a passive water heater during sunlight hours as well as a rainwater catchment system and dew harvesting system.

Earlier historical examples include small-scale drinking pools of condensation at the base of plant stems to large-scale natural irrigation practices in areas without rain (like the Namib desert).

Some of the most famous human-made dew harvesting sites include; the stone piles in the Ukraine, dew ponds from southern England and even volcanic stone in the fields of Lanzarote. Collecting dew in a passive manner is an old practice.

Rediscovery of human influence over natural condensation occurred throughout history, from ancient times to medieval to the 20^thcentury since which time it has been studied with some interest until recently with renewed interest in sustainability.

Metal roofs, tile roofs with geothermal water-cooling for example can collect enough water to take a bath in most cases. Solar-powered air-moisture harvesting and wind-powered air-moisture harvesting can complement dew harvesting and are currently being tested in Australia.

The International Organization for Dew Utilization uses foil-based condensers for regions where rain or fog cannot are not efficient enough. The secret to dew harvesting in general seems to be the thickness of materials, the thinner materials are, the harder it is for them to retain heat, so thatas soon as the dew has passed down to the collector, most of the leftover heat is dispersed allowing for more dew to condense more rapidly.

The method that will work best might just be a plastic tarp suspended over a barrel with a clothes line for some people, while for others, a fancy first-class metal roof with technological advancements that make all other roofs look old-fashion is the thing.

But dew harvesting is simply the collection of water condensation from cold surfaces either artificially cooled or naturally occurring, and is ideal for conditions where rainfall and groundwater sources are scarce.

Greywater is simply used wash water from the bath, shower, sink or even rooftop rainwater harvesting; this is slightly polluted, very different from either potable (freshwater) or non-useable sewage water (blackwater).

Clean water is water with nothing but H2O, greywater has been used once for non-toxic cleansing, but blackwater carries pathogens that are too strong and unsafe for either animal or plant consumption.

But why is greywater important to us? The main reason is sustainability. The closer and closer our nation comes to becoming self-reliant and independent of foreign oil, the closer we come to understanding what energy efficiency is all about.

Making use of our nation’s abundant greywater production could potentially solve our water conservation issues, and bring us just that much closer to self-reliance and a more sustainable and healthier future for the children of our children.

What determines the main differences between blackwater and greywater are nitrogen and pathogen content as well as decomposition time.

Basically, once polluted with human fecal material the pathogens find a place to thrive and reproduce in any body of water, therefore, the best solution is simply NOT throw human fecal material in water in the first place, but our society is essentially Roman, with Roman practices.

Plumbing or “lead working” is part of ancient megalithic architecture and the word itself is of Latin origin, coming from plumbum related to the Greek “molybdos” (probably of an extinct Mediterranean language such as Iberian perhaps).

However wonderfully advanced they were to have invented such uses for “lead” as piping freshwater from the mountains into public bath houses and developing the very first spas on earth; such wonders have a price on ecology…

A price that haunts us even now…

In most bathhouses of those times; private “water closets” were also readily available for those bathing, but where did the water go from the water closet? Was the destination the same as the bath water?

The Romans and eventually the English would readily sacrifice a nearby river for ALL the wastewater used in the bathhouses (including that from the water closets).

An ecologically unsound and unsustainable practice that we still have to this very day

With modern methods of plumbing, this is no longer necessary, but our society continues to throw such radically different substances into the same shaft; polluting greywater, both due to force of habit as well as lack of knowledge

But that needs to change, and the solution is separating our greywater from our blackwater, NOW, not tomorrow when it’s too late.

The amount of nitrogen and human fecal materials found in blackwater is absurdly difficult to remove sustainably if not incredibly impossible at the moment.

Nine tenths of the nitrogen found in our nations combined wastewater is contaminated by blackwater, and most of that water was originally greywater before entering the city’s sewer system.

Engineers argue in most scenarios that wastewater, including greywater, if left untreated, will soon become anaerobic and foul, taking on the same characteristics as blackwater, which is why greywater must be treated quickly and in-house if not possible in-community.

The secret to really defeating the pollutants in greywater are oxygen breathing organisms like algae that thrive off of nitrogen and carbon. Problems occur however when the greywater is left to become anaerobic, then, yes, it is as unsafe as blackwater.

An excellent study done in Stockholm with a separated greywater/blackwater plumbing system in a multi-apartment complex (made by Lars Karlgren, Victor Tullander, Torsten Ahl and Eskil Olson) collected data for 12 weeks and discovered the following results.

Their article entitled “Residential Waste Water” reported that this small community could divide its greywater production into 30 gallons a day laundry wastewater, 20 gallons a day kitchen wastewater, 60 gallons a day bath wastewater and 10 gallons per day miscellaneous wastewater, coming to something like 56% of the total combined wastewater consumption of any given household per day.

The other 44% or so of wastewater was all blackwater from either the garbage disposal unit or simple toilet flushing; coming to a grand total of 80 gallons per day of blackwater!

Statistically that means that only 44% of the water being treated at the sewage facility was originally blackwater, the majority then was originally greywater? Why pollute that much greywater? Because our traditional combined wastewater system is too old, too Roman.

According to this study, on the average, if separated we would find that 56% of all our world’s sewage water is originally greywater and greywater uses far less energy to be properly treated than blackwater, meaning we are spending at least 56% more energy to treat our combined sewage than necessary with today’s modern technology!!

So, how can greywater be properly treated at home and harvested for reuse, irrigation or the safe replenishing of the aquifer?

A simple method for greywater harvesting is simple pre-treatment that dumps directly into a soil-box planter, which then produces useful irrigation water.

A more advanced greywater treatment system on the other hand, for those with more space could contain a septic tank, a sand filter, a pump and of course a planter bed, to then revert the treated water into field irrigation or even reused in the house as desired.

Depending on how much mechanical and biological filtration is done will depend on how potable greywater can be in final stages.

Chemical cleansing of greywater is at the very least undesirable, as greywater in most cases is already very close to drinkable before any filtration, but chemical filtration if done would be the final stage, usually in the form of chlorine treatment (not a completely sustainable alternative due to the chemical manufacturing process).

Aside from irrigation, and returning filtered greywater back to the ground reservoir cashes, a more immediate and sustainable use for already filtered greywater is returning it to the household tap from whence it first originated.

In this manner, while some greywater can’t be recovered, an average of 56% of the total household use is saved daily. Just imagine, 56% water savings per day, on laundry, bath and the kitchen sink alone!

Investing in a greywater harvesting system means a little remodeling, extra plumbing and finding garden space enough for the mechanical and biological filters, but once properly treated, greywater can be harvested by refueling one or two water boxes used only for the greywater system; preferably the bathrooms (even the toilets) and laundry room.

Unless you can be sure that the water is drinkable, the kitchen is not recommended as a redirect tap, but the bathroom toilet, bath and sink are all recommended, as well as the laundry room, as even the simplest methods of filtration should be enough for these uses in most households.

As with any controlled system of waste separation, each thing has its place, so if a system such as the above is of particular interest to you, don’t do anything like drink from the bathroom sink (as the water is still recycled greywater) or pour spoiled vegetable soup down the kitchen sink drain unless its in the garbage disposal organic matter mixed with water becomes blackwater immediately.

All in all, greywater harvesting is definitely a suggestion for a more sustainable tomorrow, as the water is treatable at home, and need not be combined with blackwater.

Greywater is reusable and one more of our earth’s precious resources, to be used wisely with economy and ingenuity for the needs of the now, predicting the needs of the future in one single detail, sustainability.

Pragya.org is a development organization registered both in India as well as the UK as non-profit, working to develop vulnerable communities and sensitive ecosystems of the world in an appropriate way.

Looking to develop without destruction and provide empowerment for enabling choices, Pragya has made a commitment to projects such as snow water harvesting through holistic, sustainable development with a focus on vulnerable and neglected communities and ecosystems.

One of their finest achievements has been the development of artificial glaciers in the Western Indian Himalayas, a cold desert region that suffers from severe water shortage for both drinking and crop irrigation.

From climatic to geographic to human-induced challenges, the hardships for livelihood and habitation in cold desert regions are one of the most acute on the planet; and part of the solution in harvesting snow water in a sensible way.

Pragya Project began by mapping the harvesting potential of the area, documenting the traditional knowledge and practices of water sharing in the community and then on to making the community itself aware of the best budgeting, accounting and management practices.

Designing and introducing more appropriate technologies for snow water management through artificial glacier construction as well as the use of hydrams, and pioneering a water management model for the whole region.

Cultural identity and heritage play big roles in the Pragya model, roles that help members of the community come together in a way they had almost forgotten, helping them help themselves with self-sustainability that uses cultural identity in a unique way for modern times.

Lahaul, Spiti (Himachal) and Ladakh (Jammu and Kashmir) are the places where Pragya.org is executing the first model projects, and more specifically in Spiti valley the first snow water harvesting artificial glacier has been built in the village of Poh around 10,500 feet above sea level.

Upstream, some 100 feet from the snow water harvester, Pragya ApTech team diverted the Nallah stream into a reservoir under the shadow of an enormous rockface, which begins freezing around December and thaws when irrigation is most dearly needed.

Around the rockface, the artificial glacier can store more than 625 kilos of snow and is completely free of rock or landslide risks. A concrete wall to one side and boulders against a metal-wire mesh the snow water harvester is a prototype for the region.

Harvesting snow water in cold desert regions is not merely a way to rehabilitate the land for crop growth, as it is also a way to bring cultural identity to a people in between the ancient times and the rapid pace of a global world.

Snow water harvesting can bring life to cold deserts and renew traditional heritage as an example of sustainability that all of us can learn from, globally.

You could purchase a barrel from one of the major big boxes or one of the specialty stores on the Internet. But dont we have another option? Why dont we build our own?

Ferrocement jars have literally been around for centuries; there are examples that are hundreds of year old. So what is a Ferrocement jar? Basically it is a water collection and storage container made of cement.

A Ferro cement jar consists of a base, a barrel section and a top. There are many different sizes but they all start out with a base of some size usually about twenty to thirty percent bigger than the barrel. This allows the barrel section to be built on the base. You can use boards or bricks to create a form for the cement base. It is best to let the cement cure for about a week before starting the barrel. You could use quick Crete or mix your own cement.

The barrel section is built around a frame that forms the shape of a barrel. Once you have your frame you can wrap the frame with sacking. It is a good idea to wire the sacking to the frame. Now you are basically going to paint a thin cement mixture onto the sacking. The mixture is one part cement and two parts sand. You will continue this process painting, letting it dry and painting again three times.

Now we can add our additional support. Wrap chicken wire around the now hardened barrel section. It is advisable to secure the chicken wire and make sure you secure from the inside out. This way you will be able to disconnect and take out your frame and sacking.

Now get some cement and fill in all the holes in the chicken wire. Visualize frosting a cake. You want the entire barrel covered and smooth. Let your first work dry and apply two more layers of icing to be sure of a strong barrel. You want the sidewalls to be at least 25 cm thick.

Once your barrel section has dried remove the framing and sacking and repeat the icing process two times on the inside.

Now we have our base and barrel sections we need to connect it to the base. Wrapping wire around the bottom of the tank and laying a section of the wire on the base will accomplish this. You them connect the two with cement. You will need two applications on the outside and two on the inside to assure a watertight seal.

The aboves are the basics of making a ferro cement jar if you can visualize, visit the links below for good examples.

Related:
Building a ferrocement rainwater jar

Ferro-cement Jar – Instructions for manufacture

Image Credit:
Peter Morgan