Assignment: Building Services

ASSIGNMENT
BUILDING
SERVICES
SUBMITTED BY,
HADIA ARIF
B.ARCH 4TH YEAR (DAY)
9990018477
[email protected]
What is rain water harvesting? Write in brief about the various benefits of
rain water harvesting. Also write in brief about the various types of rain
water harvesting.
Rainwater Harvesting
Rainwater harvesting is the process of collection
of rainwater from surfaces on which rain falls,
filtering it and storing it for multiple uses.
Rainwater harvesting puts the supply of water
back to normal levels. It is the collection and
storage of water from surfaces that rain has
fallen upon.
Rainwater harvesting is an innovative technique

utilized to harvest rainwater from roofs and other
above surfaces to be stored for later use. Rain
harvested water can be used for garden and crop
irrigation, watering livestock, laundry, and
flushing toilets. However, you cannot use
harvested rainwater for showering, bathroom sink or kitchen use because it’s not really fit
for consumption.
In a normal scenario the rainwater is collected from roof buildings and then stored inside of
a special tank. Rainwater harvesting systems are designed after assessing site conditions
that include rainfall pattern, incident rainfall, subsurface strata and their storage
characteristics. Rainwater harvesting is popular all across the world, although in countries
that are very dry, such as Australia, it is even more popular.
Components of Rainwater Harvesting
A rainwater harvesting system comprises

components of various stages - transporting
rainwater through pipes or drains, filtration, and
storage in tanks for reuse or recharge. The
common components of a rainwater harvesting
system involved in these stages are illustrated
here.
 Catchments: The catchment of a water harvesting system is the surface which

directly receives the rainfall and provides water to the system. It can be a paved area
like a terrace or courtyard of a building, or an unpaved area like a lawn or open
ground. A roof made of reinforced cement concrete (RCC), galvanised iron or
corrugated sheets can also be used for water harvesting.
 Coarse mesh: At the roof to prevent the
passage of debris
 Gutters: Channels all around the edge of a

sloping roof to collect and transport
rainwater to the storage tank. Gutters can
be semi-circular or rectangular
 Conduits: Conduits are pipelines or drains

that carry rainwater from the catchment or rooftop area to the harvesting system.
Conduits can be of any material like polyvinyl chloride (PVC) or galvanized iron (GI),
materials that are commonly available.
 First-flushing: A first flush device is a valve that

ensures that runoff from the first spell of rain is
flushed out and does not enter the system. This
needs to be done since the first spell of rain carries
a relatively larger amount of pollutants from the air
and catchment surface.
 Filter: The filter is used to remove suspended

pollutants from rainwater collected over roof. A filter
unit is a chamber filled with filtering media such as
fibre, coarse sand and gravel layers to remove debris
and dirt from water before it enters the storage tank
or recharge structure. Charcoal can be added for
additional filtration.
Benefits Of Rain Water Harvesting

The collection of rainwater and harvesting it for everyday use has an ample number of
benefits.
 Provides backup source of water
There are many uncertainties in water supply systems. Droughts may lead to shortage of
water. Destruction of water supply systems may occur at specific locations. Major repairs
and maintenance in water companies happen sporadically. All these variables lead to
unavailability of water in your home. So, installing rainwater harvesting system is the best
course of action to continue enjoying water supply in case any of the above variables occur.
The collected rainwater can be used for many different purposes around the home. This
includes laundry, washing dishes and more. This would prevent groundwater
depletion and augment ground water table.
 Ecological benefit
The ecological benefits of rainwater harvesting are immense. An activity like flushing the
toilet, for instance, attributes to about 35% of home water usage. Add up the amount of
water used to irrigate the lawn, do laundry, wash cars and the total amount water used is
simply astronomical. For businesses, more so hospitality establishments that accommodate
a big number of guests in a single location, require a lot of water to satisfy customers.
Rainwater harvesting will simply help to fill this gap.
The ecological benefit rainwater harvesting systems bring is that there will be a significant
reduction in the amount of water used from the mains. This, ideally, means that water
companies will not have to artificially pump in water from rivers and lakes. This will help
minimize the possibility of rivers drying up. Another great ecological benefit of rainwater
harvesting systems is that they help reduced the load placed upon drainage systems,
minimizing the impacts of flooding by funneling the runoff water into large tanks
for recycling.
 Easy to maintain
Rainwater harvesting systems are considerably easy to maintain since they are not utilized
for drinking, cooking or other sensitive uses. This means that they will not need installation
of purification systems, which are usually expensive.
Rainwater harvesting systems are cost effective, provide high quality water, reduce
dependence on wells. The surplus rainwater can also be used to recharge ground water
aquifer through artificial recharge techniques.
 Reduces erosion and flooding around buildings
Most buildings that utilize rainwater harvesting systems have a built-in catchment area on
top of the roof, which is capable of collecting vast amounts of water in case of rain storms. It
helps to reduce soil erosion as by capturing rainwater, the flow of storm water is reduced
which can also prevent urban flooding. If the water were not collected efficiently, it could
have resulted in serious soil erosion and flooding around the house.
 Requires low upfront capital investment
Installation of rainwater harvesting system is not that expensive, plus it’s a one-time
installation, and that’s it. The only routine maintenance required is cleaning out the tank.
You will probably hire an expert technician to install the system for you. The technician
won’t quote a high price, plus he will offer free advice on the best rainwater system to buy.
He will also help out when buying the system to ensure you get the best quality rainwater
harvesting system. When you sum up the overall cost of installing the system, you’ll find
that it’s actually manageable.
Types Of Rain Water Harvesting

Broadly there are two ways harvesting rainwater.
 Surface Runoff Harvesting.
 Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting.
Surface Runoff Harvesting

Surface runoff rainwater harvesting is a method of collecting rainwater flowing along
the ground during the rains that will be collected to a tank below the surface of the ground
for irrigation and other purposes. In the urban area, rainwater flows away as surface runoff.
This runoff could be caught and used for recharging aquifers by adopting appropriate
methods.
During the storage of rainwater, it is important to incorporate efficient and effective water
conservation methods i.e. by reducing evaporation. It is very easy to adopt technology and
very profitable if used accordingly. The main objective of the surface runoff rainwater
harvesting method is to meet the ever-increasing demand of water, to reduce water
pollution, soil erosion , and flooding of roads.
Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting

Rooftop rainwater harvesting is a method of collecting rainwater where it falls and in which
rainwater is captured from the roof catchments of domestic houses or commercial buildings
and stored in the tanks. Harvested rainwater can either be stored in a tank or diverted to an
artificial recharge system to meet the household/commercial needs through storage in
tanks. This method is simple, eco-friendly, less expensive, and truly effective. Roof-top
rainwater harvesting method (RRH) involves diverting and recharging (or) storing rainwater
that falls on the roof of a house/building. The main objective of rooftop rainwater
harvesting is to make water available for future use, to improve the quality of groundwater,
etc.

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ASSIGNMENT

Rainwater harvesting is an innovative technique

Components of Rainwater Harvesting

A rainwater harvesting system comprises

 Catchments: The catchment of a water harvesting system is the surface which

 Gutters: Channels all around the edge of a

 Conduits: Conduits are pipelines or drains

 First-flushing: A first flush device is a valve that

 Filter: The filter is used to remove suspended

Benefits Of Rain Water Harvesting

Types Of Rain Water Harvesting

Surface Runoff Harvesting

Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting

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