Capture rainwater and store it in a wooden tank.
A wooden rainwater tank can catch and hold hundreds of gallons for household use. Using rainwater for watering your lawn, washing cars and other applications that don't need drinking water is an excellent way to reduce household water bills. By constructing a wooden frame and installing a pool or pond liner, you can make a tank that will hold 450 or more gallons of water. Build a wooden water tank to dimensions that best suit your needs. So, pull out your hammer and saw, and start building. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Cut four pieces of 2 by 4 to 54 inches, and four pieces to 51 inches. Construct two rectangular frames by laying two 51-inch pieces between two 54-inch pieces. The 54-inch pieces should come "flush" (even) with the sides of the 51-inch pieces. Nail or screw the rectangular frame together, and repeat the process to build an identical frame with the other four pieces of 2 by 4.
2. Cut 16 pieces of 2 by 4 to 51 1/2 inches. Fasten two upright at each inside corner of one rectangular frame, and center the other two upright between each corner, also on the inside edge of the frame. Each vertical 2 by 4 should be even with the bottom edge of the frame, and positioned with its "flat" side against the frame.
3. Slide the other large rectangular frame over the top of the vertical 2 by 4s so that it is even with the top of each vertical 2 by 4. Fasten it in place.
4. Cut and place cross-members in the bottom frame. You will need two cut to 48 inches, with square cuts at each end. These will fit inside two opposite ends of the bottom frame between the upright 2 by 4s, parallel to the one side of the bottom frame. They will butt up to the upright 2 by 4s at each end. Fasten them in place. Cut six more to 51 inches, and fasten them parallel to the cross-members you just installed, but between the edges of the rectangular frame, not the upright 2 by 4s. You will end up with all eight cross-members parallel to each other, crossing between two sides of the bottom frame in the same direction.
5. Cut "floor" pieces out of the 1 by 8s. You will need 21 pieces cut to 48 inches. Lay seven of them perpendicular over the cross-members and fasten them in place. Do not notch the pieces to fit around the vertical 2 by 4s -- you want to end up with a "floor" that is exactly a 4-foot square. You will have to "rip" (cut lengthwise) one piece on the table saw to fit across the bottom. Fasten the other pieces up two opposite sides of the frame, on the inside edge, working from the bottom of the frame up the sides. You will have to rip the last piece so that it fits even with the top of the vertical 2 by 4s.
6. Cut 14 pieces of 1 by 8 to 46 1/2 inches. Fasten them on the remaining open interior sides of the frame, again working from the bottom up.
7. Place the liner in the tank, folding it so it overlaps each edge. Hold the liner in place by clamping it at multiple points around the top frame, and fill the tank with water. The frame will carry the weight of the water -- filling the tank will ensure that water pressure in the tank will not pull the liner free of its fasteners later. Fasten it to the outside edges of the top frame by screwing down scrap pieces of 1 by 8 over it (measure down at least 2 inches from the top edge), and trim off the excess liner material.
8. Construct a lid for the tank. Build a 2 by 4 rectangle, but with a 54-inch inner diameter. Add 3 inches to each measurement from the frames you previously built. Fasten 2 by 2s even with the top edge of the frame around the entire outside edge. Cut the remaining 2 by 2s to 51 inches and fasten them at even distances between the 2 by 2s around the edge of the frame. Cut the remaining 1 by 8s to 58 inches. Lay one 1 by 8 loose at the edge of the frame, and mark its edges where it crosses the frame. Starting at the marks, lay the other 1 by 8s in place and fasten them in place. Fasten the hinges along the edge of the first, loose 1 by 8 at equal distances between the ends, and then fasten the hinges either to the frame or the 1 by 8s on the top of the lid. When completed, this lid will slide over the top of the tank.
Tags: bottom frame, edge frame, even with, pieces inches, rectangular frame, four pieces