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What does having cistern water or delivered water have to do with running water? Many of the holding tanks are situated so that the water gravity feeds into the house or is pumped in. What does not having running water in the home have to do with sanitary conditions? I have known people who had to carry their water from the spring or well in buckets and some of them kept their homes a lot cleaner than some people who had running hot and cold water. Just because you have running water does not mean you are clean. Yes, having a well is so much easier, but with a little work and planning you can make do with what is at hand.
If, as you say, a teacher is obligated to call DHHS, I would hope it would be because the child is being abused or showing up dirty, not whether or not that child has running water or the family has their water delivered.
It can happen in Michigan. Lack of sanitary conditions is a health code violation. Yes, running water. I have talked to social workers many times with a time line of when a well would be complete.
Having a cistern and a well can basically be the same thing. Cisterns that are filled with city water (chlorinated - by bonded trucks) can be pumped into a house with the same 1 1/4" line that would be used with a well. The pump is different in a cistern (shallow well pump) vs. ones that are used in wells (deep well). However, both systems need the pump in the basement to 'pull' the water in and most need a pressure bladder to 'hold' the pressure longer between pump cycles.
That said, when city water was finally installed and a meter was put in, it took two people less than 6 hours to fully convert from a cistern to city water. This included filling back in all the dirt! The pipe going into the house was unchanged and the line was simply cut near the cistern and attached to the pipe that was connected to the city water line. Inside the house, the pump and bladder were removed and the water line connected straight into the whole-house water filter.
Note - I prefer wells - hands down. We never drank the cistern water - even being delivered by bonded trucks with city water. You never know the quality from truck to truck. However, would never call a cistern water system as unsanitary. The cistern we had was an underground, 3,000 gallon cement 'cavern' with a heavy cover that was lined with a pool liner.
Those that use above ground storage systems that are filled with rain water from their gutters = different story.
Around here we caught Rain water into a Cistern,if it got dry we could have someone haul water in.Didn't have running water into the house but nothing wrong with Hand Pump and Bucket.
How is having a cistern and having city water hauled to it considered to be a lack of sanitary conditions? If the holding tank is placed above the home the water can be gravity fed into the plumbing system. If the tank is underground, the water can be pumped into the home the same way well water is.
Yes, I agree that having a well is a lot easier, as I don't have to plan my water usage and conserve as much, but I do not understand why it would be considered to be unsanitary to have cistern water, especially if it is piped into the plumbing system.
Basically, sanitation is not so much a matter of the type of water system you have, but more a question of if you are willing to keep your home and family clean. Some people aren't, even with a good water system.
A somewhat old post. But the information is still highly relevant. Some of the information here is completely ridiculous. And I know for a fact that you find people everywhere who's minds are influenced by politics and media driven ideas. But I prefer to think that generally, people have their own brains...AND THEY WORK!!
City water is chlorinated. But its still FILTHY. Not even worth drinking. That's for sure. You can get cleaner water from rain. That is, if you know how to implement the rain catch and maintain it. It's highly possible. I know people with cisterns that were filthy only because they did not keep them clean. And they assumed that simply letting rain run off the roof into a cistern was all that mattered. NOT. There is indeed more to it. But most people today drink bottled water and just use city water for showers and washing. So, nobody should see any problems from that. As far as drilling a well goes. Most people cannot afford it. It isn't a good investment. Because its a premium price that you are paying just for convenience and an excuse to waste water. And only a FOOL would think a well will last forever. It's impossible. They run dry. The water is a pocket in the Earth. It WILL run dry. Especially if you are sharing it with neighbors. But still. A ridiculous cost if someone else drills it. If you can use your own tools to get it going, then more power to ya. But its far simpler to just set up a tank, paint it black, set up a closed rain water system, and filter the water. Pump it into the house (or rv) and live like usual. If thats too much work, then have it hauled in. 2000 gallons last us two months. And we have three kids. That might change if we wash clothes at home or use water for gardening. But life is full of limitations. Not a tragedy. There is virtue in this. I think when I hear someone say they had to carry bucket up hills for years, and that they don't want to do that to their kids. It's a tragedy. Because kids today SHOULD be carrying buckets. Struggle and hard work for less is how we find virtue. And virtue leads to wisdom. Soft spoiled children today are proof that the modern traditional life is no life at all. Just a selfish existence.
A somewhat old post. But the information is still highly relevant. Some of the information here is completely ridiculous. And I know for a fact that you find people everywhere who's minds are influenced by politics and media driven ideas. But I prefer to think that generally, people have their own brains...AND THEY WORK!!
City water is chlorinated. But its still FILTHY. Not even worth drinking. That's for sure. You can get cleaner water from rain. That is, if you know how to implement the rain catch and maintain it. It's highly possible. I know people with cisterns that were filthy only because they did not keep them clean. And they assumed that simply letting rain run off the roof into a cistern was all that mattered. NOT. There is indeed more to it. But most people today drink bottled water and just use city water for showers and washing. So, nobody should see any problems from that. As far as drilling a well goes. Most people cannot afford it. It isn't a good investment. Because its a premium price that you are paying just for convenience and an excuse to waste water. And only a FOOL would think a well will last forever. It's impossible. They run dry. The water is a pocket in the Earth. It WILL run dry. Especially if you are sharing it with neighbors. But still. A ridiculous cost if someone else drills it. If you can use your own tools to get it going, then more power to ya. But its far simpler to just set up a tank, paint it black, set up a closed rain water system, and filter the water. Pump it into the house (or rv) and live like usual. If thats too much work, then have it hauled in. 2000 gallons last us two months. And we have three kids. That might change if we wash clothes at home or use water for gardening. But life is full of limitations. Not a tragedy. There is virtue in this. I think when I hear someone say they had to carry bucket up hills for years, and that they don't want to do that to their kids. It's a tragedy. Because kids today SHOULD be carrying buckets. Struggle and hard work for less is how we find virtue. And virtue leads to wisdom. Soft spoiled children today are proof that the modern traditional life is no life at all. Just a selfish existence.
Where to start????
City water is treated to an "acceptable level" of contamination......but, I still drink it when in restaurants.
Water wells.......it depends on where you live......my well will never go dry......neither will any I drilled.
I drill 5" PVC wells........they will last forever.
Wells are pricy......yes.
But from start to finish when I drill a water well and hook it up........I have used over a million dollars worth of equipment on the job........that is not counting labor.......adverting.....insurance......buildings to keep the equipment in.....office costs.
The human body is made up of 80% water, and with the way we are now accustomed to having water for clean up, sanitation and food preparation, I think it is in anyones interest in having a home to have access to a stable supply of water on the homestead.
Now I am not saying it has to come in the traditional role of an electric pump shoving it through copper pipes and and into sinks and toilets, oh no. We have a plethora of hand dug wells from the colonial days and they can be adequate, and Bison Pumps sells a great deep well hand pump that could get water to the surface in a variety of well configurations. Even if you use a privy, water for making meals, taking baths and other sanitation is just about a necessity. Even with conservation, hauling in water as you suggest would prohibitively expensive.
In my opinion, staking a homestead where there is no retrievable water is a recipe for disaster. If children are involved, DHS can legally remove the children from the home due to sanitation issues. In my opinion paying for a well or developing a water source is very cheap compared to having my children taken from me, and that is both in fiscal amounts and emotional distress. Heck before I even built my home I had the well water witched (doused) and then a well sunk. I used conventional well drilling equipment, but any well or permanent water source is better then hauling it in. It can come from one of those mini-well drillers, an old hand dug well like the settlers here in New England built, or of course a natural body of water.
Safe drinking water is ideal, but 90% of the water I use is for sanitation. I could easily buy the small amount of drinking water I drink, but there is no way I could afford to haul in the water I use for sanitation. Nor would I want to. I do not have water out in my sheep barn so I haul a fair amount of water from the house to my sheep barn in the winter, and I can tell you right now, hauling water is one of the most unpleasant tasks I have as a sheep farmer (and sheep don't require much!).
My suggestion to any homestead is thus...water is a huge aspect of life. If the proposed homestead site lacks water resources, find a different place to locate your homestead. I can almost guarantee that it will be a failure. Either from your contempt at having to haul and pay for water, or at the inconvenience of it from your spouse and children. This country is huge and land is available everywhere. Find a better place to stake your claim!
I totally agree. Your water source needs to be created just about first thing because you don't want to locate your septic too close to it and contaminated your drinking water. Proximity to the water source should be a factor in siting your home, too, since the further the house is from the water, the bigger pump you'll need to get the water to the house. Do you want to spend 10 minutes filling a pasta pot because of low water pressure?
You also need to be aware of water quality, including minerals in the water that affect taste and smell.
I think in some parts of the SW, it's apparently popular to rely on trucking in water to "homesteads", but that, to me, is absolutely senseless. If the company supplying water goes out of business and you cannot find another supplier, your property is worthless. If the cost of water goes up, which it likely will as more people crowd into the desert SW, then you will be forced to sell out.
A somewhat old post. But the information is still highly relevant. Some of the information here is completely ridiculous. And I know for a fact that you find people everywhere who's minds are influenced by politics and media driven ideas. But I prefer to think that generally, people have their own brains...AND THEY WORK!!
City water is chlorinated. But its still FILTHY. Not even worth drinking. That's for sure. You can get cleaner water from rain. That is, if you know how to implement the rain catch and maintain it. It's highly possible. I know people with cisterns that were filthy only because they did not keep them clean. And they assumed that simply letting rain run off the roof into a cistern was all that mattered. NOT. There is indeed more to it. But most people today drink bottled water and just use city water for showers and washing. So, nobody should see any problems from that. As far as drilling a well goes. Most people cannot afford it. It isn't a good investment. Because its a premium price that you are paying just for convenience and an excuse to waste water. And only a FOOL would think a well will last forever. It's impossible. They run dry. The water is a pocket in the Earth. It WILL run dry. Especially if you are sharing it with neighbors. But still. A ridiculous cost if someone else drills it. If you can use your own tools to get it going, then more power to ya. But its far simpler to just set up a tank, paint it black, set up a closed rain water system, and filter the water. Pump it into the house (or rv) and live like usual. If thats too much work, then have it hauled in. 2000 gallons last us two months. And we have three kids. That might change if we wash clothes at home or use water for gardening. But life is full of limitations. Not a tragedy. There is virtue in this. I think when I hear someone say they had to carry bucket up hills for years, and that they don't want to do that to their kids. It's a tragedy. Because kids today SHOULD be carrying buckets. Struggle and hard work for less is how we find virtue. And virtue leads to wisdom. Soft spoiled children today are proof that the modern traditional life is no life at all. Just a selfish existence.
Sooooo much manure being shoveled by a poster who apparently talks the talk but has never walked the walk.
Using 2000 gallons in 2 months equals about 33 gallons per day which is only 80% of what a household of 5 is estimated to need daily for just toilet, daily showers, washing dishes, and occasionally other water uses and totally excluding laundry and any outdoor uses. Send the wife to beat the clothes on rocks in the creek two miles away, do you? Wash the kids in the creek, too, right?
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drifting topic
