This is most awesome.
It’s nice to see that not all 15 yr olds are spending their time beating up on old people.
I hope somebody with $$$$ helps him get his idea to market.
Not if the state decides that water belongs to them and taxes him out of existence. Like Colorado. They say rain water belongs to them and if you store it you’re stealing (well they tax the cistern you collect it in).
This has applications everywhere there are water problems — especially places where it rains hard in short spurts.
This kid is brilliant!
Too bad the kid is white, as that means his idea is racist somehow.
So about 10.5 inches of rain would be needed to attain the full 13,000 gallon capacity. Minus the water that is used between rainstorms.
Would be interesting to see how effective this system is in parched areas of the country.
First you need rain to collect...
Although I applaud this kid for thinking, the idea of collecting rain water from gutters is nothing new. My Keter brand shed does the same thing. Storing in a fence might be novel, but I think the applications limited.
Ironic...
considering the name of the paper is The Press Democrat
Not when the EPA hears about it.
I think we needs some cost analysis yet....................
I like the concept. I am considering knocking it off with modifications. This is gr8!!
Just freeze dry it....
Just a few thoughts.
The water alone will be about 112 pounds per square foot. That means you are going to have to put this tank on some kind of foundation.
This kid has made his model fence out of Plexiglas. So I calculated what the price of Plexiglas to build a fence around a typical 100X50 foot residential lot would be. This is calculated using ½ Plexiglas sheets. It comes to just under $200,000. That does not include end caps or top cover. And as before you will need foundation, side supports and labor for installation. So you might as well double that price and then some.
Sure Plexiglas is not the cheapest building material but whatever the material I doubt this kid is going to get many customers for his product. Whatever the price of his fence it is going to cost at least as much as adding a new room on the dwelling and his fence will not add near as much to the value of a house as a new room.
A few prepers may go for the idea but if they do they will build the thing themselves and he won’t see a dime. And most prepers will just buy a poly water tank and bury it in the yard.
Homeowners in Oregon were prosecuted for storing rainwater runoff from their house roof in a barrel so they could use it for their garden.
I am not kidding.
I doubt that it would be build-able in a form that doesn’t leak. Six feet tall would mean about 3 psi at the bottom. 432 pounds per sf. An eight foot span would have tens of thousands of pounds of force between the two sides pushing them apart.
Why not just have a cistern? Much cheaper and reliable.
Dehydrate it so it won’t spoil?
WOW - that’s a great idea....
Based on rain barrel laws, this device is probably illegal in at least 3 states.
I like the idea . . . but it seems to me the wall would have to be reinforced like a battleship to hold the weight of all that water. Also, here where we live (I’m just up the road from this kid’s hometown) there is NO rain from about June to October most years. So the captured rain will only last so long. Lastly, if the wall is tall and solid and in your front yard, that’s going to be like living in a fortress. Maybe not something everyone would want.
a clear fence in a dry/drought area could start fires by acting as a magnifying glass on dry scrub grasses or trees. water in the fence itself may potentially wind up magnifying the effect.