RAIN, glorious RAIN!

[Bermy]

FINALLY, some decent rain today, after months of drought, 14" behind normal, I woke up to that lovely sound of rain on the roof and it splashing and gurgling into the tank!

I kept going out to watch the level rise in the tank, its up a good 5', 2-3,000 gallons at least.

All the bushes and trees out here had been wilting, my grass had turned to straw, I've been putting off some tree jobs because of the drought...now we need this like for a week...

 

[stig]

Nice to hear that somebody is enjoying the rain.
It looked like a fine crop on my 20 cherry trees, but we've had rain the whole last week, so now all the berries are split and rotting on the trees.

Interesting to see how some sorts will split with almost no rain at all, while others can take much more.

Don't get a "Boambe" if you live in a rainy climate!

Don't you have any groundwater on Bermuda, Fiona?
Or is it just your house that doesn't have a well.

 

[woodworkingboy]

Same question to you, Stig. I believe that if you have water to irrigate and keep a certain level of moisture up, splitting would be lessened. That is how it works with tomatoes, so the book says.

 

[forestryworks]

We could sure use some rain...

 

[Dave Shepard]

They've got me listed as "Very Moist", but it's pretty darn parched around here right now.

 

[sotc]

Ours should be unusually moist rather than very moist. Peel the asphalt off my carport last week and now its raining...

 

[Bermy]

Stig the only groundwater we have is a 'lens' of freshwater the 'floats' on top of the salt water table that permeates the whole island of Bermuda. Our bedrock is only solidified sand dunes of calcium carbonate of varying hardness and so is a proverbial sponge. We have no rivers or streams. (plenty of fabulous decorated caves though!)

You can only get well water if you live in one of the three areas where there is a decent lens to drill into, otherwise all you get is salt water! The Governement monitors the lens very closely to make sure it is not overdrawn and destroyed by salt water incursion.

My house doesn't have a well because it's on an island! Some of my neighbours are installing reverse osmosis plants to deal with the issue, but on average a house has 18-20,000 gallons of tank under it so a normal annual rainfall is fine to keep things going.

Now we have tropical storm Brett moving our way, so looks like more rain coming, it's going to be a paperwork week, I can foretell!

 

[jefflovstrom@sb]

Is the storm Bret affecting you?

 

[Paul B]

been raining here since early fall. Its really getting on my nerves. I have resorted to purchasing more waterproof gear, goretex etc. To be able to work then camp in the weather its sort of a necessity this year.

 

[top_notch]

Bermy, does the tank need chlorine or some other kind of chemical to sanitize it for drinking? Do people water their lawns there? We have two seven gallon tanks that set above the sink for dishes and washing, and numerous three liter bottles that I take with me to work every day to fill for drinking and cooking. Its been nice and wet here this season, and the river is still high from the snow melting.

 

[Bermy]

Yes, TS Brett is throwing rain bands our way, combined with a cold front it's giving us more rain...got to keep an eye on it for later in the week.

As for the tank water, if you don't use it continually or its not getting topped up with rain, sometimes it might need a bit of chlorine, otherwise its good to drink right from the sky! Our roofs, which are the collection system, are painted white with a lime based paint, so there is a certain amount of purification right there, and the splashing from the downpipes into the tank keeps it aerated, and sweet.

Mind you, we put guppies in the tank to eat mosquito larvae if they manage to get past the ventilation screen.

Watering of lawns is very rare, water conservation is a way of life here, can't waste it on the lawn!
My washing machine is plumbed to drain outside into a soakaway, and we can put a hose on the outlet and direct it around the garden if needs be!

 

[vharrison]

Bermy, glad you are getting the rain without the pain of storm damage from Brett!

 

[Al Smith]

It was about the monsoons here during spring planting .It finally slacked off so they could get it in the ground but since has been dry as a popcorn fart .

I live under the canopies of big oaks so my lawn around the house is still green but some are brown like sand .

 

[stig]

Must be nice to wash in rainwater. Soap works so much better when there is no calcium in the water.

I'd never heard of a "lens" of sweetwater before, like a nonmoving aquifer.
Your world is just so different from mine, Bermy.

 

[MasterBlaster]

we put guppies in the tank to eat mosquito larvae.

Groovy beans!

 

[Al Smith]

Once ,late 60's on a 4 day booze run from Norfolk we had 4 nuke subs making water for the navy base in Bermuda because of supply problems .Each could make 10,000 gallons per day each .

 

[Paul B]

Must be nice to wash in rainwater. Soap works so much better when there is no calcium in the water.

I'd never heard of a "lens" of sweetwater before, like a nonmoving aquifer.
Your world is just so different from mine, Bermy.

No calcium in our water source. A mountain lake reservoir system is our source, one of the bonuses of living in the pacific northwet, no lack of rainwater here most of the year. After a brief read, it looks like they actually add a small amount of lime or soda ash to counteract the very soft water. Something about corrosion control in the system pipes etc.

 

[Bermy]

Once ,late 60's on a 4 day booze run from Norfolk we had 4 nuke subs making water for the navy base in Bermuda because of supply problems .Each could make 10,000 gallons per day each .

Haha, I remember the Bacardi ship coming in with water in the 80's, the joke was they told 'em not to rinse it TOO well before they filled it with water...but not the nukes, mind you that was a long time ago, I was a tiddler in the 60's!

Hey Stig, our water must be about neutral, the roofs have lime in the paint and the tanks are cement sealed stone (aka pure CaCO3) or concrete block, so that probably plays off against the ever so slightly acidic rain...either way, there is never any problem with bubbles!