Water provision

[selfheal]

Hi,

I was just wondering what different sorts of water provision different allotments have?

There is some discussion about the water provision planned for my allotments- they have bought 4 cattle troughs for people to dip watering cans into instead of taps which could be left on.

If you do have water provision on your allotment, how is it provided? tap, push button, trough etc?

[Snadger]

We have one tap for every four plots! We try and encourage plotholders to aquire rain barrels or 100Ltr water containers to keep costs down as the water is metered!

I personally only use the tapwater for filling my kettle! All my water needs come from a 1000 Ltr container and a dozen water barrels situated around my plot and filled from greenhouse/hut and chicken coop roofs.
My chooks have never tasted tap water and because there water barrel is inside there run (fed from the chookhouse roof) and covered at all times the water is sweet and clear.

I think rainwater is better than tapwater for plants and chooks anyway!

[selfheal]

i hope to use as little water/tap as possible, but it seems like most sites provide water in some form and id like to know how they do that.

over time i'd like to set up rain water collection but it will have to be an ongoing project- i only have a half plot which is already due to be packed to the brim! but the biggest complication is we arn't allowed structures over 76cm/30" tall, which means sunken containers and setting up low level water collection as i have nothing to collect water from guttering wise- then theres the high winds and lack of vehicle access to get the required parts to the plot, to add into the mix too. :lol: It will take a while to figuire out my best options - regardless of that, they are putting in water to the site and it'd be interesting to see how other sites run things!

[Peter]

Troughs, simple really our sites are metered, water not charged seperately.
One site had some illicit taps put in and its bill was several times the SUM of all the other sites that year.

The taps were removed.

Taps can be left on unattended, a bonus for soaking a real problem for the bill payer, troughs you have to labour with and if you use more than the next bloke then you've also worked harder than him.
Except in a real drought troughs should be enough as with over supply of water your plants won't develop a deep root system looking for groundwater.
Has to be said though that spuds can get phenomonal yield increases with irrigation at the right times.

[jackie j]

We have lots of troughs around our site most have lids ( some have been pinched ) they refill automaticly when you take water out ( bit like the loo ) have to dip watering can in to get it. It is turned off during the winter.

[Snadger]

We have lots of troughs around our site most have lids ( some have been pinched ) they refill automaticly when you take water out ( bit like the loo ) have to dip watering can in to get it. It is turned off during the winter.

That sounds an excellent idea Jackie..........it would also stop people attaching hosepipes which can gobble up water at a ridiculous rate!

[Plot17B]

Hi,
Bit like Jackie, we have troughs halfway down the plots, one trough per 2 full plots/4 halfplots. They are galvinised tanks with lids and plastic pipework all the way, using ballcocks to fill only as needed. We pay �5 for the facility on top of our �15 annual 1/2plot rent. Off in winter, on 24/7 early springtime.

Bizarrely, some of the old timers objected to the water being installed and refused to pay the fiver! But each year more and more relent and pay up. Surely you could lose more than �5 of seed and �'s of time & effort midsummer?

cheers
P17B

[Alison]

We have as much water as we want so long as we collect it as it falls out the sky. There is talk about them installing a standpipe but to be honest none of the plot holders I've spoken to are remotely fussed and are pretty happy with things the way they are.

[selfheal]

wow... 1 trough per 2 full plots :O

they have got us 4 troughs for 28 full plots :O (!!!) all running off one pipe... meaning the people at the top will get the dregs of the water if other troughs are refilling. The discussion is wether this is adequate at busy periods, with lots of people wanting to dip thier cans at the same time. we are paying �4 a year for this.

i like the sound of the lids... presumeably to stop freezing/evaporation?! are they heavy to life on and off though? im thinking where we are, if they weren't heavy they would fly away... makes it difficult.

our only means of getting large amounts of equiptment onsite is through fields and a privately owned bridleway/track. we have permission to use it if needs be, but the bad weather has collapsed the culvert over a stream dividing the field our plots are in and the next one on, towards the track..... mass man power on saturday to fill it in with rubble as a temporary fix so the fencing contractor, manure and water troughs etc can all get onsite in the next few weeks gonna be like a builders site for a while me thinks!

[snakeshack]

we have a tap for every 4 plots and pay �10.00 per year but it is easier to dip it out of the river at the bottom end.

[Hans Mum]

we have taps every 6 plots and like everyone else encourage the use of barrels, one problem we did have was the taps get getting knicked, (brass outdoor taps) we've just replaced them again but this time we've used those washing machine taps and its turned off at the mains until as late as possible

[Stacey Steve]

Our site has over 250 plots and 4 standpipes.

Although we are allowed to connect a hose to fill water butts, as you can imagine in the summer, you would not be to popular if you are filling a but and other people need to get to a tap.

I have two large butts collecting water from my shed roof and I keep filling 4 pint milk containers from these all through the wet times, which I lay out in watering stations around the plots.

OH finds it easier to use the milk containers,when she goes down there to water during the week while I'm at work.

Have just put up another freebie greenhouse and this one has guttering, so will be adding another butt for this soon just got to figure out how to get the water from the guttering to the butt.

[jackie j]

That sounds an excellent idea Jackie..........it would also stop people attaching hosepipes which can gobble up water at a ridiculous rate!

Not allowed hose pipes you get chucked off site if you do.

Hi,
Bit like Jackie, we have troughs halfway down the plots, one trough per 2 full plots/4 halfplots. They are galvinised tanks with lids and plastic pipework all the way, using ballcocks to fill only as needed. We pay �5 for the facility on top of our �15 annual 1/2plot rent. Off in winter, on 24/7 early springtime.

cheers
P17B

i like the sound of the lids... presumeably to stop freezing/evaporation?! are they heavy to life on and off though? im thinking where we are, if they weren't heavy they would fly away... makes it difficult.

The lids slide very easily to one side, and the water cost is included in the rent unless we have a very dry summer and the extra bit we pay doesnt cover the cost of the water bill then we would have to pay a bit extra, but as I only pay �18 a year for a half plot it wouldnrt a lot extra.

[Eyren]

We have the ballcock water troughs as well - only two that I know of on a 2-acre site, though there might be others in the far corners where I don't venture. TBH I've hardly used any in the last two years (water butt at home has long been idle as well!), but since our plot is too small for a shed, we wouldn't be able to collect much of our own rainwater so I'm glad we have an external supply.

[Tori]

what do people use for their water butts? How much and where from?