Douw G. Gerber Posted June 27, 2023 Share Posted June 27, 2023 Hi all I am in the process of installing a JoJo tank for water backup in the case of municpal outages. Just wanted to check though - under normal circumstances where there is muicipal supply, does a person run the house water from the tank all the time - ie. as you use water the tank refills itself via the float valve. Or is it a situation where you switch the water supply to the tank when the municipal feed is not there? Ie use it for backup ONLY? I see JoJo reckons you should wash the car or fill the pool everytwo weeks or so with the water in the tank in order to refill with clean water again. I assume this is for where it is used as backup only, as in my first scenario above you would be refilling it continiously. I am installing an under counter water purification system in the kitchen. I also havea fridge connected to water supply with a filter. So enough to sort out the odd glass of water. We never drink out of the taps in the bathrooms. Specs: 5000L tank with a 0.75w pump. Cheers Douw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andre Kruger Posted June 27, 2023 Share Posted June 27, 2023 i have mine running from the tank all the time, which fills up as i use the water and then the float valve closes when full Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverNodashi Posted June 27, 2023 Share Posted June 27, 2023 You can put a ball valve at the top of the JoJo tank, to automatically top it it up from Municipality, and then run your house directly from the tank. If the water pressure is a bit low, install a 3bar pressure pump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andre Kruger Posted June 27, 2023 Share Posted June 27, 2023 30 minutes ago, SilverNodashi said: You can put a ball valve at the top of the JoJo tank, to automatically top it it up from Municipality, and then run your house directly from the tank. If the water pressure is a bit low, install a 3bar pressure pump Exactly what i have, and it works just fine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Douw G. Gerber Posted June 27, 2023 Author Share Posted June 27, 2023 Thanks for the replies all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenFields Posted June 27, 2023 Share Posted June 27, 2023 Check if there are municipal by-laws that restrict you from filling tanks from municipal water, or from connecting tanks to household piping. My area does, for reasons of drought/scarcity, and water quality/safety. Personally I keep my toilets semi-permanently on rainwater, to keep the system in regular use and at least not stagnant, but only sanitise and switch the tank to supply to the rest of the house in case of emergencies. Douw G. Gerber 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Proff72 Posted June 28, 2023 Share Posted June 28, 2023 Here is an easy design that switches automatically to tank water when there is no municipal water. I've been using it for almost 20 years. If you want to use tank water even when municipal water is available just close the valve at the bottom next to the 1-way valve. Pumba and Jacques Ester 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacques Ester Posted June 28, 2023 Share Posted June 28, 2023 12 minutes ago, Proff72 said: Here is an easy design that switches automatically to tank water when there is no municipal water. I've been using it for almost 20 years. If you want to use tank water even when municipal water is available just close the valve at the bottom next to the 1-way valve. My system is also connected like this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Douw G. Gerber Posted June 28, 2023 Author Share Posted June 28, 2023 1 hour ago, Proff72 said: Here is an easy design that switches automatically to tank water when there is no municipal water. I've been using it for almost 20 years. If you want to use tank water even when municipal water is available just close the valve at the bottom next to the 1-way valve. So I am very uninformed when it comes to plumbing LOL in the auto scenario - how does the water consumption end only use the mains supply when it is there - how does the water not flow from the tank automatically? Sorry if the question is unclear - not sure how to explain what I am asking Is it a function of the pumpthat detects it needs to pump when the mains supply is down? I understand the second scenario Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Proff72 Posted June 29, 2023 Share Posted June 29, 2023 Municipal water pressure is higher than what the pressure pump produces. So municipal water flows through the bottom 1-way valve but is stopped by the top 1-way valve. This keeps the pressure pump off and forces the water to the consumption end. When the munipal water pressure drops enough the top 1-way valve opens and the pump switches on, sucking water from the tank. This water cannot flow through the bottom 1-way valve and is forced to the consumption end. When munipal water pressure is restored it flows again through the bottom 1-way valve and closes the top 1-way valve, switching the pump off. Jacques Ester and Douw G. Gerber 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Furlongs Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 (edited) I am not sure if I am answering the or it's a question, I have the same issue, but little bit different. I have installed 0.37kw jojo pump getting water from the tank when no municipal water supply, and when municipal water is supplies, I get it from the main source(municipal) When there's municipal water, it works OK, but when the municipal water is not available, the pump will switch on/off regularly, I checked the leaks but got nothing, no leaks so far I am not sure how to remedy this, need assistance Thanks Edited March 27 by Furlongs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobster. Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 On 2023/06/27 at 7:22 PM, Douw G. Gerber said: I see JoJo reckons you should wash the car or fill the pool everytwo weeks or so with the water in the tank in order to refill with clean water again. I assume this is for where it is used as backup only, as in my first scenario above you would be refilling it continiously. This implies that you can by pass all the other valves and wotchamacallits to extra water directly from the JoJo. Also that if left in there long enough the water will go manky. This worries me because I will lose a bet with the wife. CobusK 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Proff72 Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 4 hours ago, Furlongs said: I am not sure if I am answering the or it's a question, I have the same issue, but little bit different. I have installed 0.37kw jojo pump getting water from the tank when no municipal water supply, and when municipal water is supplies, I get it from the main source(municipal) When there's municipal water, it works OK, but when the municipal water is not available, the pump will switch on/off regularly, I checked the leaks but got nothing, no leaks so far I am not sure how to remedy this, need assistance Thanks I used to have the same issue with my old Peroni pump that had a mechanical pressure sensor - pump will switch on randomly for a few seconds. Since installing a new pump with an electronic sensor the pump is not switching on except when I open a tap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenFields Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 4 hours ago, Furlongs said: I am not sure if I am answering the or it's a question, I have the same issue, but little bit different. I have installed 0.37kw jojo pump getting water from the tank when no municipal water supply, and when municipal water is supplies, I get it from the main source(municipal) When there's municipal water, it works OK, but when the municipal water is not available, the pump will switch on/off regularly, I checked the leaks but got nothing, no leaks so far I am not sure how to remedy this, need assistance Thanks Toilet float valves? You could be unlucky and have an underground leak? Main valve closed off properly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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