GB2268962A

GB2268962A - Device for conserving rainwater

Info

Publication number: GB2268962A
Application number: GB9315014A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Timothy Paul Jeffrey
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1992-07-24
Filing date: 1993-07-20
Publication date: 1994-01-26
Anticipated expiration: 2013-07-20
Also published as: GB2268962B; GB9315014D0

Abstract

A device for conserving rain water, includes a container 1 for the rain water having an inlet pipe 3 adapted to be connected to a source of rain water and a coaxial outlet pipe 4, the outlet pipe 4 extending into the interior of the container 1 and incorporating means to determine automatically the level of water in the container. Preferably the inlet and outlet pipes are connected by a pipe section 9 including a deflector means 14, the deflector means closing the pipe section intermediate its length inside the container, an upper opening 7 being formed above the deflector means for the inflow of water into the container and a lower opening 13a below the deflector means forming an outflow into the outlet pipe, the lower opening determining the water level in the container 1. <IMAGE>

Description

WATER RESERVOIR The invention relates to a water reservoir which is particularly but not exclusively intended for use in houses for saving rain water.

Traditionally, rain water has been collected in water butts which are connected to the rain water guttering and drainage system of the house for subsequent use for watering purposes in the garden. Traditional water butts have the disadvantage that they are large and unsightly and have no means for controlling the overflow of water during heavy rain. Thus, traditional water butts are a source of unwanted damp and accumulate mould and other waste matter around them. Because of the weight of the water such water butts are large and stand on the ground, the overflow typically just spilling on to the ground in the area around the butt. It is known to provide such water butts with piping to pipe the overflow to external drains but again this is extremely unsightly.For these reasons, water butts are not popular even though most people appreciate their advantages and would like to conserve rain water, particularly under dry or drought conditions.

The present invention seeks to provide a reservoir for rain water in a neat installation which incorporates means for automatically regulating the maximum water level in the reservoir without the provision of an external overflow.

According to the present invention there is provided a water reservoir for conserving rain water, including a reservoir container for the rain water having an inlet passage adapted to be connected to a source of rain water and an outlet passage, the outlet passage extending into the interior of the reservoir container, the reservoir incorporating means to determine automatically the level of water in the container.

Preferably, the passages each comprise a pipe, which may be of circular or square cross-section.

In a preferred embodiment, the inlet and outlet pipes are co-axial. In this case, the inlet and outlet pipes may be connected by a pipe section including a deflector means, the deflector means closing the pipe section intermediate its length inside the container, an upper opening being formed above the deflector means for the inflow of water into the container and a lower opening below the deflector means forming an outflow into the outlet pipe, the lower opening determining the water level in the reservoir container.

In a further preferred embodiment, the reservoir container is adapted to be mounted on the wall of a house, the inlet and outlet pipes replacing a section of a conventional downpipe of a rain water drainage system. To this end, the inlet pipe, which may comprise the said pipe section, preferably has a socket end for locating over the lower end of a downpipe and the outflow pipe has a spigot end adapted to be inserted in an opening at the top of a lower part of the downpipe.

A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figures 1A, 1B, 1C and 1D show respectively front, side and plan views of a wall mounted rain water reservoir, Figure 2A and 2B show a scrap view of a pipe section showing inflow and outflow openings, Figure 3 shows a part-sectional side view of the reservoir of Figure 1, and Figure 4 shows an alternative embodiment.

Referring now to Figure 1A to 1D there is shown a rain water reservoir 1 which is adapted to be secured to the side of a house by means of screw mounting points. The reservoir 1 has an inlet pipe 3 and an outlet pipe 4 coaxial with the inlet pipe. The pipes are described in greater detail with reference to Figures 2 and 3 hereinafter. The water reservoir is -formed of a moulded plastics material and incorporates, adjacent its top edge 2, two inspection hatches 5 and, adjacent its lower edge on both side walls, a connector for a tap 6 by means of which rain water can be drawn off from the container, for a connecting pipe to an adjacent reservoir.

The reservoir is adapted to replace part of a conventional downpipe 8 of a rain water gutter and drainage system which downpipe 8 is connected to the main drainage.

To this end, the inlet pipe 3 which comprise the downpipe 8 is connected to a separate pipe section 9 which has at its upper end a socket 7 adapted to be located on the exterior of the lower open end of the inlet pipe 3 while the outlet pipe 4 has a spigot end adapted to fit inside an upwardly open end of the lower part of the downpipe 8.

Referring now to Figure 2, the inlet pipe 3 and outlet pipe 4 are connected by a pipe section 9 which is located in the top of the reservoir passes through the water reservoir 1, being sealed by known means at the entry point 10 in the top of the reservoir 1. The outlet pipe 4 is sealed relative to the interior of the container, at the exit point 11 at the bottom of the reservoir. Inside the reservoir, the inlet pipe 3 includes an opening 12 formed by cutting out part of the wall of the pipe section 9 by means of a radial cut 12A and a second cut 12B inclined at an angle to the radial plane of the pipe. Adjacent the inclined cut 12B, the pipe section 9 is closed by a blanking deflector plate 14 which closes the cross-section of the pipe section 9 and provides an inclined surface to guide water coming down the inlet pipe 3 into the interior of the reservoir.

The part of the pipe 9 below the deflector plate 14 the outlet pipe 4 and has an opening 13 disposed immediately below the deflector plate 14. The outflow opening 13 is formed by removing a section of the pipe by means of a radial cut 13A and an inclined cut 13B which is parallel to the angle of inclination of the cut 12B of the inlet opening.

In operation, rain water from the gutters pf the house is guided into the inlet pipe 3 through the downpipe 8 to enter the interior of the container 1 through the inlet opening 12, after striking the inclined blanking plate 14.

If the water rises above the edge 13A of the outflow opening 13, the excess water passes into the outlet pipe 4 and to the drain to which the pipe 8 is connected.

Referring now to Figure 3 in particular, it can be seen that the reservoir of the present invention has the advantage that the level of water in the reservoir 1 is maintained at a maximum level by means of the outflow opening 13 without any valves and without any need for the user of the system to take any action. Any overflow water does not spill on to the ground as with the known water butts but is automatically ducted into the outlet pipe 4 to pass to the normal waste outlet of the house main water drainage system. The reservoir is particularly neat in appearance and when installed does not project very far from the wall of the house to which it is secured. In a typical example, the reservoir projects about 20 cm, is about 50 cm wide and about 75-80 cm high.It is therefore suitable for incorporating on the walls of houses when there is only a relatively narrow path between the house and the adjacent property. Although it would be easy to incorporate the reservoir on a new building during construction, it is also readily incorporated into a existing property since it is necessary merely to cut out a section of the existing rain water drainage downpipe and insert the water reservoir in its place. It is possible that the inlet pipe 3 may not be sealingly engaged at its entry point 10 to the main body 1 of the container since if this part of the pipe is able to move relative to the water reservoir it makes it much easier to fit the reservoir to an existing downpipe. In this case, it is envisaged that the reservoir will incorporate means, in the form of a collar 5 to enable the socket 7 to be held securely against the open end of the pipe 8. It is also envisaged that a supplementary reservoir could be provided for mounting alongside the reservoir of the invention and connected thereto by a short pipe between connectors adjacent the bottom of the two reservoirs. This arrangement of two reservoirs with a relatively small projecting width would be suitable for mounting on the wall of a house, adjacent a path, for example.

Figure 4 shows an alternative embodiment in which the diverter is located outside the reservoir. The reservoir has a vertical recess in its rear wall 18 to enable the reservoir to be located over the downpipe 8. A spigot 19 projects from the rear wall 18 at a slightly downwardly inclined angle to enable water to flow down the spigot 19.

A branch pipe 20 leads from the down pipe 8 and has a socket 21 adapted to fit over the end of the spigot 19, a seal 21 sealing the gap between to socket and the spigot 19. The branch pipe is coaxial with the spigot so as to form a good close fit to enable the seal 22 to provide a permanent seal against water leaks.

The pipe 8 is divided into an inlet pipe 3 and an outlet pipe 4 separated by the diverter plate 14. The internal cross section of the pipe is closed by the diverter plate 14 which deflects water coming down the pipe into the branch pipe 20 where it is guided by a plate 14a into the interior of the reservoir 1. The plate 14a divides the branch pipe 20 and spigot 19 into two passages, an upper passage 23 forming an inlet passage and a lower passage 24 forming an outlet passage from the reservoir.

In this embodiment, the water level of the reservoir is determined by the lower lip 25 of the spigot 19, any extra water flowing down the passage 24. Since the joint between the spigot and the socket 21 is on an inclined surface so that the excess water drains past the seal 22 to reduce the risk of leaks at this seal to a minimum.

Claims

1. A water reservoir for conserving rain water, including a reservoir container for the rain water having an inlet passage adapted to be connected to a source of rain water and an outlet passage, the outlet passage extending into the interior of the reservoir container, the reservoir incorporating means to determine automatically the level of water in the container.

2. A reservoir according to claim 1 wherein the passages each comprise a pipe.

3. A reservoir according to claim 2 wherein the pipe or pipes is of circular or square cross-section.

4. A reservoir according to claim 3 in which the inlet and outlet pipes are co-axial.

5. A reservoir according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the inlet and outlet pipes may be connected by a pipe section including a deflector means, the deflector means closing the pipe section intermediate its length inside the container, an upper opening being formed above the deflector means for the inflow of water into the container and a lower opening below the deflector means forming an outflow into the outlet pipe, the lower opening determining the water level in the reservoir container.

6. A reservoir according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the reservoir container is adapted to be mounted on the wall of a house, the inlet and outlet pipes replacing a section of a conventional downpipe of a rain water drainage system.

7. A reservoir according to claim 6, wherein the inlet pipe section has a- socket end for locating over the lower end of a downpipe and the outflow pipe has a spigot end adapted to be inserted in an opening at the top of a lower part of the downpipe.

8. A reservoir according to claim 1, wherein the reservoir container has an outwardly projecting spigot adapted to be connected to the down pipe, means in the downpipe to deflect water flowing down the pipe into the spigot for transfer into the container, the lower part of the spigot comprising an outlet passage from the container which allows water to overflow into the outlet pipe.

9. A water reservoir substantially as described herein with reference to, and as illustrated in, the accompanying drawings.