Rain usually gets a bad reputation for being wet, cold and generally miserable. And when you compare it to the sun it’s always going to be fighting a losing battle. However, we want to explain why we love the rain and the important role it plays in our everyday lives. Here we offer up a defence for rain and give you some examples of what you can do to make the most of it the next time the heavens open.
Why is rain important
Rain is a vital component of our eco-system and is needed by the world for a number of reasons, such as:
It helps sustain life
Plants and animals need water to survive, and without it we would see thousands of species become extinct. Rain provides the energy plants need to have photosynthesise (the process that involves them making their food). Many animals also eat plants, and without the rain there would be not plants around for them to eat. Animals also need be hydrated and would suffer without the water provided by rain.
Agriculture and the environment
Rain provides a lifeline for the growth of crops around the world, offering a natural alternative to the man-made irrigation processes used by farmers. It helps to sustain the world’s food supply, ensuring many of the basics relied on by billions of people can be accessed.
It creates new landscapes
Rainfall sculpts and alters the landscape over time, causing soil erosion and creating and sculpting a variety of natural landforms. This includes everything from hills to mountains, as rain softens large areas of land that leads to the creation of unique rock formations over time. Everywhere you look in nature you can see the effects of rain and the many ways it carves out the world around us.
What can you use rain for?
The process of collecting rainwater offers a variety of benefits, helping you make the most of this precious resource, while saving money and contributing to improving the environment. For example, if you harvest rainwater, you can use it for:
Watering plants
Plants and flowers love rainwater and the many nutrients and vitamins it provides. The soil needs it too, offering an organic way of helping your garden to thrive.
Flushing toilets
The flushing of toilets account for a large percentage of water usage in your home. Simply pouring rainwater into the toilet bowl offers a great way to naturally cleanse the toilet and save money.
Washing cars and equipment
Using a hose connected to the house mains can use up quite a bit of water. Harvesting and reusing rainwater means you can clean your car, garden tools and driveway without ever having to turn on the tap.
Outdoor ponds and water features
Use rainwater in outdoor ponds and water features or filter it for use in water fountains or other features with pumps that tend to become clogged.
Composting
Composting offers a great way to make use of household wastage. Water plays a key role in the composting process, and it can be used to help the pile decompose quickly and naturally.
Can you drink rainwater?
The short answer is you should avoid drinking rainwater that is being stored in a harvesting system. Almost all rainfall contains some form of pollution and drinking it could make you sick as you will be consuming harmful bacteria, viruses and parasites. If you want to go to the effort of boiling, filtering and chemically treating rainwater it may be possible to drink it safely, but this requires expert knowledge and a lot of time and effort and is generally not something most non-water professionals can do. Our advice would be to drink water from the tap or in bottles bought from supermarkets and to use harvested rainwater for chores and tasks around the home.
Why we love rain
At Graf, our water management systems are designed to work with, rather than against, the environment, providing landowners with efficient and cost-effective solutions. Whether it’s storm management, wastewater treatment or rainwater harvesting, everything we do takes rainfall into account to ensure it is safely disbursed, collected and reused where appropriate.
We love rain because of the many benefits it brings to the world and your home. It’s a valuable resource that is often taken for granted, and instead of letting it pass through your guttering system it can be put to a wide variety of uses.
Why you should love rain
There are lots of reasons for you to love the rain, even though it may not look like the most inspiring weather in the world, rain can add a lot of value to your home. As we mentioned above, there is a long list of benefits that come with harvesting rain as you can use it for a wide range of tasks around the home.
We’re not expecting you to become a full-time pluviophile (a person that loves the rain) but by appreciating the rain a little more, you can do your bit for the environment while making small, but important, changes that will all add up over time.
