Property developers and homeowners are increasingly installing water tanks on rooftops of their houses because of tap-pressure as justified by the science of gravity.
While rooftop tanks guarantee enough water pressure on taps and showers among others, there are various disadvantageous people disregard in the process of installation.
Some of the disadvantages have proven to be costly as some pose health hazards to tenants. Here are five reasons why you should reconsider your preference for rooftop water tanks;
Contamination
Rooftop and elevated water tanks may not be prone to contamination from various ground elements such as soil and animals. However, unknown to many, rooftop tanks are prone to contamination through air pollution.
In most cases, the water gets contaminated especially when it is windy as dust easily settles on the water tanks. In instances when the dust gets to the water, it poses a health hazard to the residents of the building who can easily get sick.
Some of the illnesses that come with drinking or using contaminated water include diarrhoea, dysentery, and typhoid among many more.
Consequently, house owners with rooftop tanks are advised to purify their water on a regular basis to avoid such scenarios.
Neglect
Rooftop water tanks are meant to be cost-effective as the systems often work on their own beside the water pump. This, in turn, makes people pay little attention to the tanks.
In the long run, people tend to ignore defaults within the system. For instance, if the lid of the tank gets blown off during strong winds, the discovery of the same can be made in weeks or months.
Lids being blown off
During harsh weather conditions, such as strong winds, the lid of water tanks often gets blown off, further exposing the water to contamination.
Being that they are also neglected for a long time without being checked, contamination of the water can take place for a long duration of time.
Therefore, people are often advised to tighten the lids with a padlock or wires to secure the lids in such events.
Damages to the roof
Just as witnessed on ground-level water tanks, there tends to be an overflow when water is pumped in. The water then tends to stagnate in particular areas around the tank.
If not dried up, these could lead to damage to the roofing. In cases where the roof is of concrete, some of the damages include cracks and holes that appear on the slab with time.
When the tanks are installed between the ceiling board and the roof, the ceiling can also get ruined and cave in with time.
To avoid such, people often install a stopper as in the case of a flushable toilet to prevent an overflow.
Costly
Though it is considered cost-effective, the underlying cost involved can prove to be expensive. For example, installing it requires manpower or the involvement of machines and this is costly.
Additionally, in cases when there are damages to the roof, the repairs also require one to dig deeper into the pocket.
Water pumps are also required to pump water upstream. This means that one has to have electricity.
Advantages
Nonetheless, the advantages include, sufficient water pressure in taps given that the system works with Isaac Newton's law of gravitation.
