CATCH THE RAIN BEFORE YOU GO LOOKING FOR MORE WATER
The Earthfood® Water Independence and Drought Resilience Guide
Presented by Bronwyn Holm, Founder of Earthfood® on @yourearthfood YT Channel.
Water independence begins long before the next drought.
Most properties already have opportunities to collect more water, store it more intelligently and make better use of the moisture entering their soil.
A house roof, shed, workshop, greenhouse or animal shelter is a potential water collection surface. A well-designed system can provide water for gardens, livestock and households, while separate storage and backup systems offer greater resilience when electricity or mains water is unavailable.
But there is another part of water security that is frequently overlooked: the living biological structure of the soil itself.
Use this guide to assess your property and identify practical improvements.
1. WORK OUT HOW MUCH RAIN YOU COULD COLLECT
Every millimetre of rain falling on one square metre of roof represents approximately one litre of water.
Your calculation:
Roof catchment area (m²) × rainfall (mm) × 0.8 = approximate litres collected.
The 0.8 factor is a planning allowance for losses through gutters, first-flush diversion, overflow and other inefficiencies. Actual collection varies.
| Roof area | 10 mm rain | 25 mm rain | 50 mm rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 m² | 400 L | 1,000 L | 2,000 L |
| 100 m² | 800 L | 2,000 L | 4,000 L |
| 200 m² | 1,600 L | 4,000 L | 8,000 L |
| 400 m² | 3,200 L | 8,000 L | 16,000 L |
YOUR PROPERTY
House roof: __________ m²
Shed roof: __________ m²
Workshop roof: __________ m²
Greenhouse or shelter: __________ m²
Total usable roof area: __________ m²
Average annual rainfall: __________ mm
Potential annual collection: __________ litres
Use rainfall records from the Bureau of Meteorology for your district. Consider the timing of rainfall, not just the annual total.
2. WALK AROUND YOUR PROPERTY
Check each item and identify what you already have.
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House gutters connected to water storage
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Shed and workshop gutters connected
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Greenhouse or shelter roof collection investigated
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Gutters clear of leaves and debris
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Leaf screens fitted where useful
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First-flush diverters installed and maintained
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Tank inlets and overflows screened against insects
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Tanks protected from contamination and excess sunlight
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Overflow directed somewhere useful and safe
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Unused downpipes identified for future collection
Tip: A second tank beside a shed can sometimes be more useful than increasing the size of the main house tank.
3. DON'T DEPEND ON ONE TANK
One enormous tank is not necessarily a resilient water system.
If its outlet fails, the water becomes contaminated or a pipe breaks, your entire supply may be affected.
Think about distributing storage around the property.
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Main household water tank
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Garden or food-growing tank
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Livestock water storage where required
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Header tank for gravity-fed supply
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Emergency drinking-water reserve
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Firefighting water supply appropriate to local requirements
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Backup source such as a permitted bore, dam or second tank
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Valves to isolate damaged tanks or pipes
Separate tanks can also reduce the distance water must travel.
Where practical, use overflow from an upper storage point to feed another tank, swale, rain garden or suitable infiltration area.
Ensure overflow cannot undermine buildings, flood neighbouring properties or cause erosion.
4. PLAN YOUR WATER RESERVES
Drinking water: Use protected storage and appropriate testing or treatment to ensure the water is safe.
Garden water: Capture roof runoff and direct it towards productive growing areas.
Livestock water: Calculate daily animal requirements, including hotter weather and emergencies.
Firefighting water: Identify the water supply, access and fittings needed under your local fire authority's guidance. Keep any required reserve available.
Emergency water: Store accessible water for essential needs if your normal system fails.
A useful planning calculation is:
Daily water use × number of days without reliable replenishment = required usable storage.
For example, a garden requiring 200 litres daily needs 2,800 litres for 14 days without rain, before allowance for losses or other uses.
5. CAN YOU GET WATER WITHOUT ELECTRICITY?
This is one of the most important preparedness questions.
Imagine tomorrow morning there is no electricity.
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Can you open a tap and obtain water?
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Does any tank have a gravity-fed outlet?
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Could a properly installed elevated header tank supply essential water?
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Is an independent backup pumping method available?
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Can you access water if your electronic controller fails?
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Do you know which valves control each water source?
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Could you isolate a broken pipe without losing all your water?
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Have you tested the system with the electricity switched off safely?
A tank full of water is not the same as having accessible water.
Gravity-fed arrangements can provide limited pressure without electricity, but tank height, plumbing and outlet requirements determine what they can supply.
6. SAVE WATER IN THE SOIL, NOT JUST IN THE TANK
Your soil is part of your water infrastructure.
When rainfall reaches compacted or poorly structured ground, it may run off instead of entering the root zone.
Soil biology contributes to aggregation, pore formation, nutrient cycling and the development of functioning root systems.
Earthfood® is a certified organic living soil microbial system designed to support these biological processes.
Consider the following:
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Is rainfall soaking into the soil or running across its surface?
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Is there surface crusting after rain?
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Does water puddle for long periods?
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Is the soil compacted beneath the surface?
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Are roots growing deeply or remaining shallow?
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Is the soil protected with mulch, plants or living ground cover?
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Are irrigation applications matched to infiltration?
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Are organic matter and soil biological activity being supported?
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Have you compared water use and plant performance between treated and untreated areas?
Soil aggregation helps create a balance of pore spaces for water infiltration, drainage and storage.
Flocculation is particularly important in the behaviour of clay particles. Microbial activity, roots and organic substances also help form and stabilise aggregates.
Better soil structure can improve how effectively rainfall and irrigation are used.
Earthfood's historical US sugar cane field trials in Louisiana, believed to date from approximately 2001, are associated with reported water savings of up to 70%. The original trial documents will establish the precise results and conditions.
7. UNDERSTAND HOT DAYS, COOL NIGHTS AND CONDENSATION
When temperatures fall at night, water vapour in the atmosphere may condense onto surfaces as dew.
This is part of the natural water cycle and can provide additional moisture to plants and soil surfaces under suitable conditions.
Observe your own property:
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Where does dew form most heavily?
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Which areas stay cooler and shaded?
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Where is the soil exposed to full sun?
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Where does mulch help protect soil from drying?
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Does ground cover reduce surface temperature?
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Which garden areas stay moist longest after rain?
Dew is a supplementary source of moisture, not a dependable replacement for irrigation. Nevertheless, understanding microclimates, evaporation and the movement of moisture can help you manage your property more intelligently.
8. MAINTAIN THE SYSTEM YOU ALREADY HAVE
Every few months, inspect:
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Gutters and downpipes
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First-flush diverters
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Tank lids, seals and insect screens
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Tank sediment accumulation
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Pipework, taps and leaks
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Filters and treatment equipment
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Overflow outlets
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Backup water access
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Water quality where necessary
Keep records of tank levels during dry periods. These tell you more about your real water security than tank capacity alone.
9. CREATE YOUR WATER INDEPENDENCE PLAN
My three highest-priority improvements:
Rainwater I could potentially collect each year:
________________________ litres
Current usable storage:
________________________ litres
Daily essential water requirement:
________________________ litres
Days of supply without further rain:
________________________ days
My backup if electricity fails:
My next water-system improvement:
THE EARTHFOOD MESSAGE
Water preparedness is not about collecting as many tanks as possible.
It is about understanding the movement of water across your property, keeping supplies accessible and rebuilding the natural soil processes that help every drop work harder.
Collect water from above.
Protect it in storage.
Make it accessible without depending entirely on electricity.*
And build living soil capable of making better use of the water it receives.
And don't overlook the ground on the farm. Earthfood's work with living soil biology is part of a much bigger conversation about water conservation, drought resilience and restoring naturally functioning soils.
Saving up to 70% water through stable functional living soil microbes as in the trials done in Louisiana, USA, on a sugarcane farm, trialled and tested in 2001.
Read the checklist, print it for your property assessment and share this episode with another grower.
CATCH THE RAIN. STORE IT WISELY. BUILD LIVING SOIL.
Earthfood® | Certified Organic Living Soil Microbial System
*Graeme Manietta from Oz Electric Vehicles has projects of recycled solar panels with connectors for electrical tools and pumps to be run from the sun. Back-Up for any farm life.