Rain Tax?

Believe it or not a battle to stop a " rain tax " is going on just past the Orange Curtain to our direct North. A plan to charge as much as one dollar per gallon of storm water run off is being proposed by the county of Los Angeles. A parking lot of a Walmart exceeds 100,000 square feet, which yields 62,400 gallons per inch of rain. If they were not regulating their rainwater runoff to official guidelines that parking lot would generate $624,000.00 a year in fines based on an average rain year in Southern California.
It's as crazy as North Korea announcing recently that they were going to nuke us.
Apparently governments act by threatening as much force as you could imagine, say a nuke, or a dollar per gallon rain tax. Can education stop this aquaclypse?
Instead of threatening business killing taxes to penalize what is essentially poor civic engineering, why not spend money promoting changes in landscape designs that funnel the storm water back into the ground, instead of along to our oceans, full of cigarette butts, garbage and a toxic tea of urban runoff?
Educating landscape architects to work in coordination with civic engineers to totally rethink rainwater and storm water management combined with common sense funding would both spur an economic boom and help solve the problem of urban runoff and ground water depletion. By having construction companies cut bio-swales into streets and curbs in existing infrastructure, million of gallons of water will revert back where it belongs, which is in the ground. Making education about the benefits and capabilities of rainwater harvesting part of government spending will help make rain and grey water use widespread. I believe it should be even mandated in new construction.
If Los Angeles is able to pass any type of a rain tax other cities will follow their lead.
Any new tax, fine or operating cost placed on businesses will be passed on to consumers, or the businesses will cease to exist because they cannot pay the increased demands of the state. The government is saying, " now you got this nice company here, we gotta tax you for the water tax runs down our street when it rains. "
I mean, shouldn't they just follow Arizona's lead and get serious about rainwater harvesting?
Rainwater harvesting isn't just about rain barrels, its about the way cities manage storm water. The civic engineers created urban environments where water is not allowed to soak into the ground. The government agencies signed off on it and now they want to tax us for what is essentially ignorance about the way rainwater should be managed.
The system we have depletes the aquifers, which allows salt water from our nearby ocean to seep in, which makes the plants not grow, which makes food more expensive.  
If only I could get people to watch this video. It would help to end The Cycle Of Insanity, and perhaps lead people to consider having a Rainwater System on their home.


The Cycle of Insanity: The Real Story of Water from Surfrider Foundation on Vimeo.

Supporting links;
http://www.altadenablog.com/2013/03/superviso.html
 http://www.lacountycleanwater.org/

The Home Of The Future

The ideal home of the future, especially in Southern California will be a micro-infrastructure.

The electricity will be provided for by the Sun, and the roof and home will yield enough water to provide for all the exterior water usage. The land not occupied by our homes will either not consume, or it will provide food for our families and neighborhoods. 

Native vegetation is drought resistant and attracts wildlife like hummingbirds and butterflies.

The time for the ideal of the future is now.

Southern California just got hit by a water balloon, and it burst upon impact. The water supply for FOUR MILLION PEOPLE for a year just evaporated. “In the span of 92 days, we lost out on water that could have been used to supply more than four million people for an entire year. That’s a huge amount of water,” said State Water Contractors General Manager Terry Erlewine.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE ABOUT THE ANNOUNCED WATER SUPPLY CUTS 

The ideal home of the future would be built on a raised foundation, such as in this example; 

 All the homes downspouts would lead into a cistern, that was built into the foundation of the home. The entire footprint of the home would be a cistern and the grey water from the home would be filtered before feeding into the storage. Post cistern filtration would be used to render the water potable for use in showers or for cooking and a city water feed would top off the cistern between rains. Solar panels would array the roof producing most of the homes electricity needs and the majority of the landscaping would be edible food gardens or xeriscaped or artificial grass.

In an ideal situation there would be an informal organization in each neighborhood where people discussed what edibles would be grown and how to share the food because as we all know when there is a garden, even a small one, it usually provides more food that can be eaten by one family, so having a co-op of sorts would build up the communities by getting people talking and working together. Such a neighborhood would pay little to nothing for produce, it would help to decentralize food production and the citizens would have fun!

Part of the impact in the story about the water cuts is that it will have a big impact on new home construction in Southern California because if there is no water, there can be no new building. With no construction, the economy can never fully recover. It is socially responsible to not let the water from your roof go to waste. Rain water harvesting is not just a fad or trend; it is a requirement for growth.
Wide spread use of rain water harvesting systems in San Diego and other parts of California will free up potentially billions of gallons of water per year, allowing for economic recovery and growth.

Call us today to schedule a FREE consultation. 

Rain Water System Package Deal

This 1,320 gallon tank kit with rainhead debris filter, first flush device, level gage,  pump and fittings is only $2,200.00 with shipping, anywhere in California. A solar version of the pump is available for an extra $40.00.

You will save time and money buy purchasing this complete set up. The tank size can be scaled up or down from 205 through 2,850 gallons. Over the course of hundreds of installations of rainwater harvesting systems we have gotten our custom first flush devices down and replicable. The accessories of these kits can be shipped inside of the tanks and would freight from the Bushman factory in Temecula California.

1,100 gallon  tank package, $2,000.00

Our First Flush Devices can be placed at each downspout or next to the tanks when they are placed away from the house. They are designed to help prevent sediment from reaching the tanks. They feature a cleanout and a fully adjustable drain that is ready to have a garden hose attached to drain the first flush water away from the foundation or to be used to water plants.

The accessories kit has everything you need to use the tank right away and to be ready to daisychain additional tanks. The number one complaint I hear of folks purchasing tanks from other companies is that they then have to spend hours and days chasing down the misc. fittings.

I can match any wholesalers price on tanks that are f.o.b ( picked up by the customer ) in Temecula.

Rainwater Harvesting, Wet Systems

 

 

Large rain tanks and cisterns need not be placed next to the house.

Follow us 

 

It is more economical to place the tanks next to the house, but that is not the only way.

 

 

     Called a wet system; the downpipes from the gutters lead underground to the cisterns that are placed in a far corner of the property. This works in the same way ancient Roman fountains work; as water always seeks its own level gravity will feed raintanks where ever they are located as long as there is at least eighteen inches of clearance between the bottom of the gutter and the top of the tank. 

This method allows for more aesthetically pleasing rainwater harvesting systems. The pipes must be glued and water tight. I have taken to favoring placing first flush devices next to the tanks, instead of on the house. Here are two case studies.

This is what the client had before contacting me.

The client had simple recycled barrels she was using to collect rain. They were open topped and teeming with life. Open top rain barrels are a drowning hazard for children and bug factories. These cheap barrels also leech toxic plastic in to the water.

She had prepared compressed soil beds for the three 1,110 gallon tanks and dug her own trenches to save money.

People in San Diego in particular pay a lot for water and they tend to be aware of how much rain they have coming off their roofs.

Rain gage in Alpine, Ca in tank area before placement. Below; one of two 1,110 gallon tanks.

Rolling the large tank in; you can see a pipe trench leading across the driveway to the tank beds.

Trade secret; lever large tanks over fences with an extension ladder;

Completed set up in Alpine

Detail of custom first flush device ( placed next to tanks.

I will detail my versions of wet systems sediment traps and other debris management in a future post. Keeping muck out of your tanks and under ground feed pipes is a huge part of keeping these Rain Water Systems working.

This amazing desert garden is in Vista California and has one of the most beautiful rainwater harvest systems yet. The red pipes are the feeder pipes for this wet system. The white is the overflow.

Remember; a small 1,000 square foot home yields 624 gallons of water per inch of rain.

Read more.

Contact me.

The Anatomy of a Weather Vane

Please visit and like us on Facebook

A weather vane is a instrument that is designed to show the direction, and sometimes speed of the wind. In the proper hands they can become objects de art. A weather vane typically goes on the highest part of the building. 

The Directionals are fixed with a compass as a guide to the correct geographic orientation.

 

Directions are the North, East, West and South pointers. Did you know that this is where the term " news " came from?

At Rain Water Systems, we know customers can buy cheap imports for a lot less than the hand crafted pieces we offer. We are not about warehousing sweatshop made junk and blowing it out for a fraction of a profit on the internet; we are into making one of a kind pieces to last generations in the tradition of European and East Coast artisans. 

The Orb is a key feature on many weather vanes. These are usually large copper balls. I usually use a six or eight inch copper ball that is made in a spinning process in halves and soldered together.

Six inch copper ball

The Finial or Base is a feature I like to use to give stature and size to my weather vanes. Typically these might be 24 inches in height and have six sides;

Six sided finial/base for large weather vane

The Spindle; I like to call the base of the weather vane itself a " spindle ". There is no good reason for this. That is just what they are to me and I have no good explanation. I usually craft my spindles from heavy solid cast bronze. This piece is ten inches tall and weighs about twenty pounds; I carve the pattern from oak and then have it sand cast at a foundry. This shows the 3/4" threaded brass rod that makes up part of the guts of my weather vanes;

Weather vane spindle; placed near the bottom and very heavy cast bronze.

The Anemometer; these give an indication of wind speed. I like to think of them as " the living " part of these weather vanes. They are little copper cups with a sealed bearing and they are the only part of my vanes that are purchased;

Wind Speed Indicator, aka a Anemometer.

 The Arrow; These are designed with a " sail " on the end to catch the wind. The idea is that the sail will direct the arrow to the direction the wind is blowing. I have five different arrows that cannot be found anywhere else. The sail may be out of exotic materials like gold or thin decorative stone. This example is hammered copper and is typically what I use. I confess that on my first weather vane, installed on the Long Beach City College , I didn't ' get ' how weather vanes worked and fixed the arrow so it would not turn. I was pleased to overhear people say that they thought my new creation was a original historical piece.

Bronze weather vane arrow with hammered copper " sail ".

 The Rod;

This is a 3/4" brass rod that goes through the finial and into the roof. There are different ways to attach the weather vane to the structure. Ideally it is bolted into the beams with a rod.

3/4 inch solid brass rod

The Guardians; I like to put these little gargoyles on the four points of the compass. They overlook the home and stand vigilant.

mini-gargoyles 

The Spike: I am found of using turned, European style spikes as a main feature. Many weather vane artists use roosters and themed elements such as boats or golfers. I wanted to do something original;

Turned style bronze Spike

Themed Element;  many weather vanes feature typical decorative or themed elements. I called this one " Boy on the Moon ". I also have a Celtic horse and am I open to commissions.

Boy on the Moon, weather vane element.

I hope to have the chance to do more of these as the economy recovers. If you are looking for something extraordinary please give me a call. These are generally made at my shop and assembled at your home or job site.

Large finial and five foot spike weather vane.

To see more picture and some of my other roof ornaments please visit; the Rain Water Systems gallery.

How to Install Gutterglove with Copper Rain Gutters

6" Lily gutter brackets, Cubic Leaderheads with Mission Panels, mitered ends.

 Visit and Like us on Facebook

Copper gutters are not only beautiful, they last  longer than any other type of material when installed properly. With the proper care Gutterglove can be compatible with ornate copper gutter systems even though the metals are dissimilar.


Rain Water Systems makes and sells the most extreme copper gutter parts you can imagine as well as being zealous about water conservation. Extreme gutters call for the very finest in leaf protection and in our opinion the top shelf product is Gutterglove.

One of a kind leaderhead at a graveyard in Hollywood California

Gutterglove is on the higher end in terms of cost, but the fact is that it will be subject to accelerated deterioration if the metals are not separated in some fashion. A internet search with the term " IS ANODIZED ALUMINUM SAFE WITH COPPER? " will yield a lot of results but the consensus is NO.

Fortunately, this is a mild problem if you have a good plan and the best gutters can have the best gutter protection. Here is how;

5" seamless half round copper gutters with external fascia brackets and Gutterglove Ultra

The first thing you need to do is remember that even if anodization creates a thin barrier between the metals you have to pierce the aluminum with screws or rivets, so no matter what you do the metals will have a contact. The key is to keep it to a minimum.
The larger amount of metal wins; a large aluminum gutter system draining onto a small copper roof will have some effect on the copper but the aluminum will not be affected much even if they are in contact. A large copper gutter system in contact directly with aluminum, such as gutter screen will corrode the aluminum much quicker than otherwise. The point is your clients expensive copper gutter systems will not be damaged by the aluminum Gutterglove, but the Gutterglove may deteriorate and that may cause warranty issues or client unhappiness. Expansion and contraction of the copper ( 1'8" per 40' in a twenty degree temperature span ) will quickly rub the anodization off the screen, no matter how thick and awesome it is.

The Gutterglove is laid on its back on our saw table.

We use 3M Temflex Corrosion barrier tape.

Pre-place the barrier on the Gutterglove and trim it clean with a razor knife.

Have an assistant pull the tape tight and press it into the corner where the Gutterglove will contact the copper gutters.

 I use an oversized drill bit ( compared to the #42 rivets ) and attach the Gutterglove to the copper gutters with a stainless steel rivet. The stainless is compatible with the copper, the 3M tape wraps tightly around the mandrel of the rivet and the oversized hole reduces contact between the steel rivet and the aluminum screen.

Gutterglove is an elite product. I spare no step in doing it right.

If you have done it right the clients will have a virtually maintainence free product that you can be proud of. As always, feel free to email me or call me with questions or comments. If you are in San Diego or Orange Counties and need expert gutter beyond the average, we want to talk to you today.

See it on the News and Consumer Reports:

Synchronicity

"Synchronicity is the experience of two or more events that are apparently causally unrelated or unlikely to occur together by chance, yet are experienced as occurring together in a meaningful manner."----websters dictionary.
**This post has a Pagan Blues Sound track.

Hugh Everett is famous as the discoverer of the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, which is a fascinating — although speculative — idea about how the Universe fundamentally works. Synchronicity for the individual might be that the universe expends as much energy trying to figure out how a single person reacts to their environment as a person looking up at the sky and wondering, " Who am I. Why am I here? "

A curious synchronicity for the church and the scientific community is that they both tend to work against each other, and yet validate each other other in frustrating ways. Scientist and atheist always carry insurance on their property that cover or reject acts of God. Religious scholars hurry to find allowance for both evolution and God as the Bible  defines it. For an example, new discoveries of vast underground fresh water deposits are described in Gen 7:11 So, which validates which?  Does the science behind the great flood prove it happened or did the Bible explain with science how it happened in the Book of Genisis?

Many of my scientific minded friends have a curious attitude about religion.  In my experience, those that are sure there is no God tend to be very opinionated about it and react to people who do believe as idiots.  They rely on science. If a majority of scientists are said to be for or against something, then that must be good, or bad from a logical and scientific point of view.

I admit, my turning point from one of a staunch scientific logical background to one of a believer came after I lived in a haunted* apartment. I didn't turn in to a believer in a specific religion as to one who believes in beliefs.

http://scienceblogs.com/startswithabang/2009/06/01/a-tale-of-two-slits/

* I lived in a tiny studio apartment in Santa Ana. 
From the get-go, the landlady was strange. She was elderly, but acted like she had a crush on me. It was a very Hispanic area, so a lot of the locals would act like I was an interloper. They'd yell things at my car, thinking I was in the hood to buy drugs or something. Time went on and I settled in. It was a cheap room with a large yard for my dog Amra. But, there was this weird vibe, like I wasn't welcome there. I used to dream that somebody was sitting on my back as I slept. I woke up with horrible back aches. I could almost see faces peering through the curtains at night but was confident no one was there because my dog was a great watch dog. Nobody was ever there when I'd burst open the doors to the yard.
Time went on. I didn't have any believe in the supernatural so, the idea of a ghost never really entered my mind until...one day I was alone with my dog, cleaning the kitchen. They say the way to a mans heart is through his stomach? Well, it works both ways. I got a lot of attention from women by being a good cook. I was preparing for a guest and I hear my key jangle. I had this little tray where I always put my wallet and stuff and my keys where there. Then, they were across the room. Amra looked at me like, " What the...? "
So, I dismissed it. Then, some time latter I was watching television and my whole entertainment center came down rather abruptly, like it had been pushed. Time went on and eventually my friend Scotti Mars claims to have seen the shape of a man near the door. He was in to spiritualism so we smudged the place and did a brief banishment ceremony. Then, the landlady showed up one night, all done up in grotesque make up. She confessed a love from afar and like a woman possessed by some hideous spirit continued to talk nonsense. I got her to leave. The next day I put in my notice and essentially fled. About two months later the landlady was almost fatally assaulted by her daughter in that room.

What did that prove?
It proved to me that there was some sort of afterlife. Whatever was in that apartment was real, it was pissed and up to no good.

Time went on and as I read more about physics it was becoming clear that, if a man believed in something, that made it real on a quantum level. Further, there seemed to be a measurable energy.

So, essentially, according to science, if you believe in God and heaven then God and heaven is real. Just as if you believe you wink out like a flame in a breeze or will burn in hell for eternity, that will be your reality. Science has become comfortable with the notion that other universes exist and that within those universes are realities created by the people who are observing them, meaning you and me.

All of which proves, from a purely high tech state of the art quantum mechanics point of view that God is real.

People wonder about me; how does that rock and roll guy with a previous staunchly agnostic point of view come to be a missionary?
The answer is, according to science, when I decided to believe in God, despite all the flaws of man and misinterpretations of the Bible and abuses of politics, God became real and all of the things people promised came true.

There are multiple state of the art experiments that prove this to be true.

The album we recorded during this era was called " The Breaking " by Pagan Blues