When my wife and I first told friends and family that we were about to put an impulsive offer on a block of bare, coastal land in the Waikato, they all asked the same question: “Does it have water?” “No,” we replied sheepishly. “But it has an incredible view of the water!”

Ignoring the warnings, we ultimately purchased the property, satisfied that whatever critical infrastructure it lacked would be vastly compensated
by scenic beauty. But with no stream, bore, brook, creek, or even algae-rich trough on the block, water was naturally front of mind when we began planning our house build.

The prevailing advice was that we would need at least two 25,000-litre tanks to have enough water for daily life during dry spells. This was wise counsel, yet due to budgeting and resource consent constraints we ignored that advice as well, opting for one 25,000-litre tank with plans to add a header tank up the hill at a later time.

In the interim, I was determined to manage our limited water supply through frugal use, and shrewd monitoring of water levels – and shower length –much to my wife’s dismay.

The problem, of course, is that when you’re new to an area and a house with its own water pressure, it’s very difficult to gauge how quickly your consumption diminishes your supply, and how fast rainfall will replace it.

Then there’s the other problem – time. When you’re immersed in the daily running of a block – keeping chickens and animals, planting trees, growing food, setting up a house and, in my case, running a business from home – manually checking the tanks on a daily basis tends to fall by the wayside.

I needed an easier way to check. That’s when I found the perfect solution.

Water monitoring

There’s not much that can’t be viewed on a phone these days, and water volume is no exception. All that’s required is a product attached to your tank that can read your water levels and communicate that data to your phone.

After a bit of research, I came across the Satellite Liquid Monitoring solution from Gallagher – a product that’s designed to measure the liquid content of virtually any receptacle on farms or lifestyle blocks, whether that’s water tanks or troughs, or diesel or LPG tanks.

It essentially comprises a micro-satellite mounted on top of the tank, connected to a submersible pressure-based level sensor which sits at the bottom. The sensor talks to the micro-satellite, which talks to a bigger satellite in space, which then talks to your phone. Simple!

The installation was surprisingly easy. All I needed was a power drill and a 25mm bit to drill a hole in the top of the tank through which to feed the level sensor cable, and some screws to secure the mounting bracket.

Then it was time to set up and register the product on my phone through a dedicated app. For this I needed to input the height and width of my tank, as the level sensor uses that information along with the pressure reading to calculate the liquid volume.

After a 10-minute process, it was all set up. It can take a couple of days for the satellite to get an initial reading, but when it did I was pleased to see on my screen that I had a healthy 22,000 litres in my tank despite little rain for two weeks. It appeared that my tyrannical water-saving regime was paying off.

Sufficient supply

As anybody who has seen their cherished garden succumb to drought will tell you, running out of water is not pleasant. Some people spend months nurturing an abundance of crops and painstakingly tending sprawling beds throughout spring. To see it all wither away in high, dry summer is a colossal waste that illustrates the importance of having adequate water throughout the year.

The same goes for stock. Thirsty animals are less productive, more prone to health issues and generally less happy. The more stock you have, the greater effort you have to make when monitoring your water, especially if your animals and your tanks are spread across a larger area and not easily accessible.

At the moment, I have a small flock of chickens and a relatively small vegetable garden, so it’s pretty easy to keep them watered without putting significant pressure on our supply. But with hundreds of thirsty juvenile trees in the ground that will need regular drinks to survive the summer, it definitely pays for me to keep my eye on the app every couple of days.

Then there’s the other big reason – fire risk. For rural properties, Fire and Emergency NZ recommends having at least 45,000 litres of water spare for use by emergency responders in the event of a fire. For those with tank capacity to carry this volume, it’s very important to know exactly how much water you have on hand, and whether your tanks are full or running dry.

Peace of mind

Of all the critical resources on a rural property, water is arguably the hardest to go without – even for a few days. If push comes to shove and our tanks run dry, we could buy in water – much like we do when our LPG tanks are empty or we run out of firewood. But buying in water is expensive, and sometimes it takes days or even weeks to deliver, especially if there’s a lot of demand.

Because we don’t have that much to begin with, having an easy way to monitor our supply and tweak our consumption, or else prepare to bring in water in advance, is an important tool to survive out here as we come to know this land and this weather.

After all, it’s hard to enjoy a beautiful view when the taps run dry. ■


Water-saving tips for dry months


A daily reading of your water supply on your phone will allow you to stay ahead of the curve and moderate your water consumption or develop a contingency plan ahead of time.
However, practising some easy water-saving techniques over summer will also help avoid any shortages.

• Put a bucket or container in your sink or shower. This will allow you to catch valuable grey water which you can then manually add on your plants or trees. Make sure to use eco-products when you clean or bathe.

• Install smaller tanks on every building or roof. Small tanks such as 1000L IBC tanks make for great alternative water reservoirs, and can be rigged up to supply certain areas of your property, such as gardens, orchards or stock yards. Chicken coops, wood sheds, tool sheds and garages are all valuable catchment areas that can harvest rainwater.

• Plant drought-hardy plants that can endure long periods without water. Examples include chicory, figs, globe artichoke and fennel.

• Protect your soil from the sun and increase water retention by mulching around trees, planting cover crops in garden beds and allowing grasses to naturally cover areas of bare, unused soil.

For more information about Gallagher Liquid Level Monitoring Systems visit am.gallagher.com