The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1878-12-12
Rain.Water Cisterns.

PURE, wholesome water is a natural
beverage for man and animals, and is
essential to health. The question often
recurs how one can secure supply of
pure water, or how best save and pre-
serve rain water, as it is very difficult
to provide supply from other sources
in many localities. Rain water is gen.
orally the purest form in which We can
obtain water, but it often becomes con-
taminated with impurities when col
lected from the roofs of buildings, and
needs filtering before using for domestic
purposes. Well, river, lake, or pond
water is very apt to be impregnated
with organic matter, deleteriOus to
health, therefore it would seem most
economical, where wells are least prac-
ticable, from difficulty of construction
or impurity of water when obtained, to
construct cisterns for retaining the
water which may fall upon the roofs.
BY this means constant supply of
good water may be had at all times
provided the cisterns are properly
cOnstructed) at a comparatively small
cost, and will be found one of the best
investments in farm improvements.
The most convenient and durable
mode of constructing a cistern is to
make it of circular form, under ground,
with the sides and bottom lined with
stone or brick, and arched over the top,
leaving a man-hole for convenience of
cleaning, and all carefully plastered
with cement. Where the ground is
sufficiently firm, the cement may be
plastered directly on the earth, below
the reach OF frost, but tho arch will
necessarily have to be of stone or
brick. All such cisterns should be COW
cred with earth at least three feet deep,
to prevent freezing, and for keeping the
water fresh and good. 1t is always adj
visable to have two compartments in
the cistern-one for the water to enter
and the other for drawing from. The
division may be of soft brick, through
which the water will filter. The &C.
ment to be employed in construction
should be of first quality, properly
worked, and applied with the utmost
nicely, to prevent leaks.
The question may arise, How large
cistern will be needed to secure an am
pie SUPPLY This question is an inn
portant one, and cannot be answered
definitely without knowing the amount
of annual rainfall and the area of roof
ing from which the water is to be col
lected. suppose that it is safe to take
as a main average for the different Sec
tons of the Northern and Western
States a rainfall of three feet in depth.
Allowing such to be the fact, we next
must ascertain how many square feet
of roofing we have. Each square foot
receives three cubic feet of water. To
find the number of gallons of water in
three cubic feet, reduce the three feet
to inches by multiplying by 1,728, and
divide by 231, the number of inches in
a wine gallon. Multiply the square
feet of area covered by roofing by this
number of gallons, and you have the
number of gallons of rainfall received
by the roofing. AS all the water does
not fall at once, but is distributed in
showers through the year, it is not
necessary to make cisterns of sufficient
capacity to hold the whole at one time,
but such proportion as may fall at any
particular time or season, allowing for
reduction by usage.
Having these points to start on, you
may now determine the size of the
cistern, to do which the following table
will be found of assistance-the right
hand figures denote the contents of one
foot in depth; left hand figures, size of
cistern in feet: Ill,