Preparing for El Nino: Why a Backup Water System is Your Lifeline
With meteorologists and climatologists warning South Africa to expect the El Nino phenomenon in the coming months, it is more imperative than ever to consider a backup water system. El Nino is associated with record-high temperatures and drought in a lot of areas, even with seasonal rainfall still occurring. Windy Willows would like you to be prepared for extreme weather changes and offer a variety of backup water solutions, ensuring that you have an ample supply of water.
Importance of Alternate Water Solutions
As water supply is already scarce in many areas and with the possibility of harsher restrictions due to temperature fluctuations, having a backup water system to serve as grey water, for irrigation and if needs be, as drinking water is more crucial than ever to keep your household sustained.
As an established wholesale growing nursery, Windy Willows understands how vital this natural resource is and would like to take this opportunity to emphasize how a full water management strategy through us will assist in managing and conserving this finite resource.
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Filling from mains supply
Connecting a water tank to the municipal supply and your household plumbing system is an affordable means of storing water. The tank automatically fills from the mains and once full a valve closes off the supply to the tank. This won’t affect your municipal supply. Should there be a problem with mains water, water will automatically be sourced from the tank and once municipal supply is restored it will go back to it. If your budget doesn’t extend to adjusting piping or plumbing systems, you can simply fill up one of our storage tanks from the hose and connect a tap where you can decant the water into a bucket for watering or for the home.
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Rainwater harvesting
Collecting and storing water for future use through rainwater harvesting is a natural long-term storage solution and the ideal backup water system. Rainwater harvesting is a relatively cost-effective solution that relies on surface rainfall to collect and fill water storage tanks. Instead of letting rain run through the gutters and pool on the ground, rainwater harvesting catches the rain from a roof’s surface by placing water tanks underneath the gutter downpipes into a 1000L or 2500L storage tank. A pressure pump is normally installed at the base of the tank to feed water through a piping system to water outlets where the water can be used for irrigation or as grey water at a force of 50L per minute.
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Conservative irrigation practices
Garden and lawn irrigation can continue through times of drought and water restrictions as long as it is done conservatively. If you are still in the process of planning what you want to plant after winter, we would suggest that you choose plants according to their water needs and if possible, select water-wise flowering plants and shrubbery. Automated sprinkler systems and micro misters will assist you in keeping your lawn and garden beds watered at regular intervals and for limited periods, eliminating the need for using hosepipes and water wastage. Water storage tanks allow you to keep your garden flourishing throughout the year without having to rely on municipal supply.
At Windy Willows we have a water storage solution for any budget and all inclement weather patterns. We won’t leave you unprepared with El Nino looming. As passionate as we are about plants, we are just as vehement about water storage solutions.
Keeping You in Bloom No Matter What the Weather
Windy Willows is ideally situated in Honeydew, a mere 10 minutes from Northgate Shopping Centre. We are a growing nursery that has over 300 varieties of trees, shrubs, perennials, groundcover and selected herbs perfect for any garden space. Stocking both indigenous and exotic plants allows you to create the garden of your dreams at wholesale prices. Contact us or visit our farm, our expert team is on hand to assist you in selecting the right backup water system for your requirements.
Read next article: Nursery | Creating a Vibrant Garden | Plants