Popular choice: Installing water tanks under the deck

Building a brand-new home, updating an existing home, or, you’ve moved into a new home and want to add a rain water tank, wouldn’t it be great if you could have an in-ground water tank installed under your deck? Have the extra convenience of an in-ground water tank, but have it hidden away. If you hadn’t thought about it before, installing a rain water tank under your deck has become a hugely popular choice amongst home owners.

Under-deck water tanks generally sit between the standard stump widths of your deck and will remain hidden from site. Bladder style tanks come in a huge range of sizes to suit any available space under your home, or, under your deck.

These under deck style tanks work in the same way as your standard in-ground water tanks, but access to the top of the tank is restricted as the tank is a sealed unit without an inlet strainer. For this reason, it’s advisable to have a low maintenance leaf filter installed in an accessible part of your downpipe instead. This is to prevent anydebris from entering your tank, after all, clean water into your tank, means you get clean water out of your tank.

The overflow on an under-deck water tank, works in the same way as a standard tank, any surplus water is piped into your stormwater connection. If one tank isn’t enough, multiple under deck tanks can be linked together provided all overflow points are at the same level.

You should consider under deck water tanks if:

  • You want to hide your water tank
  • You want to use up an unutilised space
  • You either have good clear access, or they can be installed early during the building process
  • You want to match the colour of your under-deck tank to your home

Under deck water tanks are becoming the popular choice for those who want to store water in an out of sight location, these styles of tanks are like a slim line above ground water tank, only they have been turned on their side.

Reasons people are choosing this style of tank:

  • There may be more ways to connect downpipes to an under-deck water tank than to a traditional above ground water tank beside your home
  • You can link multiple tanks to increase capacity, and, they don’t even have to be side by side
  • The water tank is entirely enclosed under your deck, so you don’t have to be worried about mosquitoes or water quality
  • You get all the benefits of having a rain water tank in your yard, but it’s not taking up any extra space.
  • A Squat tank is perfect for rocky areas, with little excavation required

Read Also:

Is Summer Time A Good Time To Install A Water Tank?

Is an Inground Water Tank Safe?

Maintenance Tips for Your Water Tank

If you already have an in-ground water tank installed, you can’t always be sure you will always have a good supply of rainwater. The amount of water you have, will depend on where you live and the rainfall in your area.

In-ground rainwater tanks require very little maintenance and should give you many years of trouble free use. However, to keep your tank in tip-top shape there are some things you can do to get the best from your in-ground water tank year after year.

 

Check your gutters

Your gutters and downpipes are a key component when it comes to diverting water from your roof and into your tank, sadly they are often over-looked by many water tank owners. A gutter that is blocked is more likely to over-flow when it rains heavily, and an overflowing gutter won’t fill your tank as quickly as guttering that is free-flowing. It is important to prevent leaves and debris from falling into your gutters, but that isn’t always as simple as it seems. Some effective ways are to have gutter guards installed or downpipe screens. Alternatively, you should clean your gutters regularly. If you are cleaning them always take care when using ladders. If you own a two-story home call a professional gutter cleaning company to clean your gutters using a powerful vacuum cleaner, that is the easiest way.

 

Check your First Flush device

When it rains, the first flush device is used to prevent the first lot of water from your roof – where most of the dirt and debris will be, from entering your tank. This first dirty water goes into the first flush device until it is full, a plastic ball then floats to the top of the device and directs the cleaner water into your tank. Meanwhile, at the bottom, a flow restrictor slowly releases the dirty water to *reset* the device for the next rainfall. The only component that really needs attention is the flow restrictor as it can often become blocked with dirt and debris and will need to be cleaned after each heavy rainfall event. If you don’t clean the restrictor regularly, the device will remain full of dirty water which will become stagnant, and, with the device full it can’t catch the next *first flush* of dirty water.

 

How to clean your first flush device

  • Unscrew the bottom of the first flush device, but take care, you don’t want to get splashed by dirty water.
  • Rinse out the bottom cap that you unscrewed, along with it’s components with fresh water
  • Put everything back the way it was.

The first flush device is now ready for the next rainfall, and you will know that only the cleanest water is entering your tank.