[video: Music plays. Title: The benefits of collecting rainwater for your household – A guide to choosing a rainwater tank. Auckland Council logo (pōhutukawa flower over water). Image of Andrew Chin, Head of Healthy Waters Strategy Auckland Council.]

Voice: Collecting rainwater from your roof in a water tank or barrel has many benefits, including increasing your household water resilience, saving money on your water bill and helping the environment.

[video: Montage of images of clouds, dry earth, rain running off a roof into a barrel.]

Voice: Climate change is affecting our weather patterns, creating longer dry periods and bursts of intense rainfall. Water restrictions are likely to become more common so collecting and storing rainwater for your home is very useful.

[video: Tanker delivering water.]

Voice: Whether you use rainwater for some or all of your water needs, any water that you capture will reduce the amount that you may need to buy – from either the piped water network or tanker deliveries if you’re a rural customer.

[video: Overview image of central Auckland and the sea. People crossing the road near an Auckland harbour.]

Voice: As Auckland’s urban growth continues, we are increasing sealed surfaces such as roads, roofs and pavements.

[video: Shots of a stormwater grill in the street, an overview shot of a flooded river and two people walking towards a rural beach.]

Voice: This creates more rain runoff which can overwhelm our stormwater networks as well as eroding stream banks and coastal areas.

[video: Shots of rain running off roof guttering, a jetty into the sea and an overview of a beach.]

Voice: By collecting some of this water in your tank, it reduces the amount running into the network and ultimately into our waterways and onto our beaches.

Voice: Now you know some of the many benefits of collecting rainwater, let’s look at what you can use it for.

[video: A pie chart showing the proportion of water use.]

Voice: Over 50 per cent of a household’s water use is non-potable, or non-drinkable and can be supplied from your rainwater tank. Non-potable water includes outdoor water uses like washing the car or watering the garden and indoor activities like flushing the toilet or using your washing machine.

Voice: With the correct filters and plumbing, you can even use rainwater to drink and shower like many rural Aucklanders do.

[video: Camera returns to Andrew Chin.]

Voice: If you live in an urban area and are connected to the mains water supply, it’s recommended that you stick to using this for drinking, as the piped water undergoes extensive treatment to ensure it meets high-quality drinking water standards.

[video: Shots of a girl drinking from a glass, a man showering, a toilet bowl flushing, a washing machine in action and an older and young man watering the garden.]

Voice: Knowing how you want to use your water will help you decide what type of collection system you need, how big your tank needs to be, as well as the costs to install and maintain it are. Check out our other videos to find out more.

[video: Music plays. Title: A guide to choosing a rainwater tank. Auckland Council logo (pōhutukawa flower over water). Image of Andrew Chin, Head of Healthy Waters Strategy Auckland Council.]

Voice: Let’s look at using a rainwater tank for outdoor use. This is the simplest and cheapest way to start collecting water.

[video: Image of a house with components labelled for a rainwater tank system.]

Voice: All you need is a water barrel or a small tank connected to a downpipe and a tap to collect the water.

[video: Camera returns to Andrew Chin.]

Voice: Water barrels and small tanks range from about 100 to 1000 litres and they can be purchased widely from garden centres and building yards, as well as directly from private manufacturers. A simple outdoor system can be around $200 to $300 to install with associated fittings and it doesn’t require a building consent or resource consent.

[video: Shots of three different rainwater barrels and a woman watering a garden.]

Voice:  A rainwater barrel is an ideal way to collect a small amount of water to keep your garden thriving through the dry summer months.

[video: Camera returns to Andrew Chin before moving to images of larger water tanks.]

Voice: If you’re looking for a larger system that will significantly help the environment and increase your household water resilience, then you might want to consider a larger tank that allows for indoor water use as well.

[video: Image of house with labelled components of a rainwater system.]

Voice: Whichever system you choose, always ensure that your rainwater tank has an overflow connection so that any excess water goes back into your existing drainage point.

[video: Image of an Auckland Council webpage for ‘Do I need a consent – Rainwater tank’.]

Voice: And remember, if you do require a building or resource consent and would like to understand more about the requirements or if you need help completing your application, information is available on the Auckland Council website aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/rainwatertanks or you can also contact a dedicated rainwater tank inbox hwrainwatertank@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

Voice: Check out our other videos for more tips and information on choosing a rainwater tank that suits you.

[video: Music plays. Title: Outdoor and non-drinking indoor use: A guide to choosing a rainwater tank. Auckland Council logo (pōhutukawa flower over water). Image of Andrew Chin, Head of Healthy Waters Strategy Auckland Council before changing to an image of a water tank outside.]

Voice: If you want to significantly increase your household’s water resilience and save money on your water bill, then consider a larger storage system and connecting your tank to your internal plumbing.

[video: Camera returns to Andrew Chin then to images of a slimline water tank and a tall cylindrical water tank.]

Voice: Depending on the size of your household and the space that you have available on your property, you might choose a slimline or a standard water tank.

[video: Image of a range of tanks with a man standing beside them for comparison.]

Voice: Tank sizes vary widely but a capacity from around 3000 to 20,000 litres would be the typical size range that you might consider.

[video: Camera returns to Andrew Chin before showing a link to aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/rainwatertankscalculator]

Voice: Check out our rainwater tank size calculator to get a better idea of the size of tank that’s suitable for you.

[video: Image of a house with components of a rainwater tank system labelled.]

Voice: Be aware that connecting your tank to internal plumbing will require a building consent and it needs to be installed by a registered plumber. This is to ensure that the mains water network is not compromised through untreated water from your tank backflowing into the main pipe system.

 [video: Camera returns to Andrew Chin.]

Voice: A resource consent may also be needed depending on where you want to position the tank on your property. This means that the whole system may cost between $3000 and $8000, depending on the complexity of what you choose to set up.

[video: Shots of a boy washing a car with a hose and a dog drinking water that is being sprayed from a hose.]

Voice: While this may be a significant investment, the benefits of connecting a water tank to your house for non-potable water uses will pay for itself over the years.

[video: Image of house with labelled components of a rainwater system.]

Voice: Whichever system you choose, always ensure that your rainwater tank has an overflow connection so that any excess water goes back into your existing drainage point.

[video: Image of an Auckland Council webpage for ‘Do I need a consent – Rainwater tank’.]

Voice: And remember, if you do require a building or resource consent and would like to understand more about the requirements or if you need help completing your application, information is available on the Auckland Council website aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/rainwatertanks or you can also contact a dedicated rainwater tank inbox hwrainwatertank@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

Voice: Check out our other videos for more tips and information on choosing a rainwater tank that suits you.

[video: Music plays. Title: Full water supply system: A guide to choosing a rainwater tank. Auckland Council logo (pōhutukawa flower over water). Image of Andrew Chin, Head of Healthy Waters Strategy Auckland Council.]

Voice: If you’re not connected to the mains water supply system, you will need a water collection system that provides you with enough water for all of your household needs.

[video: Shots of a girl drinking a glass of water, a shower head with water running and a hand putting dirty clothes into a washing machine. ]

Voice: This includes including drinking, showering and laundry.

[video: Images of a truck and crane lowering a tank into the ground and tanks below ground.]

Voice: Large tanks can be installed either above or below ground and come in sizes of around 20,000 to 35,000 litres.

[video: Shots of filling a glass with water from a tap, washing a carrot with tap water and a plumber fitting a filter.]

Voice: In order to make the water you collect safe for drinking and suitable to use around the home, you will need additional pumps and filters.

[video: Camera returns to Andrew Chin.]

Voice: You will also need a building consent and the system will need to be installed by a registered plumber.

[video: Image of two large water tanks.]

Voice: You may also need a resource consent depending on where your tank is positioned on your property.

[video: Image of a water tank to the side of a house.]

Voice: Have a look at our ‘Do I Need a Consent tool’ for more information.

[video: Link to aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/rainwatertankconsents before camera returns to Andrew Chin.]

Voice: The cost to install a full supply rainwater system could range from anywhere from $10,000 to $15,000. For greater water resilience you may want to think about installing additional tanks, especially if you have a large home, live in a remote area or don’t want to purchase water from tanker delivery services.

[video: Image of a house with labelled components of a rainwater tank system.]

Voice: Whichever system you choose, always ensure that your rainwater tank has an overflow connection so that any excess water goes back into your existing drainage point.

[video: Auckland Council’s Do I need a consent – Rainwater tank webpage.]

Voice: And remember, if you do require a building or resource consent and would like to understand more about the requirements, or if you need help completing your application, information is available on the Auckland Council website aucklandcouncil.govt/rainwatertanks. Or you can also contact our dedicated rainwater tank inbox hwrainwatertank@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

Voice: Check out our other videos for more tips and information on choosing a rainwater tank that suits you.