Lots of considerations there, but off the top of my head I would look into simply burying a tank outside the house. The liner would need to be very sturdy, you would be sacrificing a fair bit of basement space, you would need a very good "lid" on the tank, plumbing in and out, and then at some point you will have to think about the temperature you want that water to be and the temperature you want your basement to be. Direct burial tanks are off the shelf, with no surprises down the road. I have not priced them recently but my favorite direct burial, NSF approved for drinking water tank is the "octank" from Darco Inc. These are heavy walled polyethylene and nearly indestructible. Last time I purchased some they were about $1.25/gal. of capacity. They come in 2000 gallon modules which can be connected easily to one another for just about any capacity. Whenever I set up a drinking water tank like that as an alternative to a well I go for about 6,000 gallons because they are usually fillled by tank truck and the truck holds 4,000 gallons. With 6,000 you have some reserve capacity when it's time to refill. Of course you can do rainwater catch and all that, but that depends on your situation. I would look at the numbers a bit, but, roughly >>>>> 12,000 gallons is just over 5,000 cubic feet, so if the tank is 8 feet deep that is about 650 sq. ft. of your basement. Can you build that much basement, with a liner and a lid for $15,000? PM me if you like. I have set up many drinking water cisterns. |