Thomas Gunn

I painted the tank a dark green. It’s not in direct sunlight but after a couple days it had some smell to it again. I added an ounce or two of bleach. It’s normally between 100-200 gallons unless we get a heavy rain. Going to check if the bleach helped today. Wondering if a vent at the top would help at all. The water goes into it a foot and a half from the top and that’s the only air vent. Wonder if I can ad a small vent at the top of it to keep some of the heat out and help. 🤔

Matt McSpadden wrote:Hi Thomas,
Do you have what is known as a "first flush system"? This is just a way to get bits of shingle, leaves, bird poop, etc off to one side before starting to fill the tank. If you don't already have one, it might help keep organic materials out of the water. The more organic matter there is for bacteria to eat, the greater the growth.

On the other hand, since you are planning to use it "around the yard" I'm going to guess you are planning to water trees and gardens with it? If that is the case, I don't think it would be that big of a deal, other than the smell. If you were going to drink it then you would need to be more stringent.

I have something similar to this… https://www.amazon.com/Atlantic-Water-Gardens-Downspout-Harvesting/dp/B004SI1DHE?asc_source=01HFY6QAA19TPJKTPW1MKMF1KH&tag=snx87-20


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Thanks for the replies. To answer a few of the questions, the tank gets rainwater off an asphalt carport roof. It’s not in direct sunlight , it’s kinda blocked most of the time by tree shade. We are warm most of the time in Virginia. I can’t really access the tank to put anything in it except through the 3” pipe that the water can access. I doubt mosquitoes can get to it and no way I can get movement other than dumping. I’ll have to try the suggested painting dark and see if I can get a way to add charcoal here and there and see what happens. Thanks for the replies, I’ll keep checking back.

Not sure if this is the right place or right forum to ask, but only one I can find so far. I acquired a 275 gallon white poly tank and decided to use it for a rainwater catch to use around the yard. Problem is after a couple days the algae buildup or something stinks too much to use. Is there an easy fix? I was thinking because it is clear/white the bacteria is building and cause the smell. Can I simply paint it black or dark and stop this? Or is it futile and I should start w a different setup? I’ve tried adding a little chlorine to combat but if I add enough, then I can’t use it on the yard.