Couple Replaces Monthly Water Bill With Rainwater
By: Brendaliss Gonzalez
Updated: September 14, 2012
The sounds of raindrops haven't been heard in quite some time.
"We didn't realize it would rain that much until we looked at the rain gauge and its rained about an inch and a half today," said Carl Marugg.
It's especially important for Marugg who collects each and every drop.
"At first we were going to use it on a limited basis but we finally decided, 'we'll well just see how far it goes'," he said.
Every drip of rain he gets goes into one of six tanks.
"It goes through the other pipes, it goes through the filter," explains Marugg.
And it eventually ends up inside the home.
Marugg has been using rainwater to supply his home for the past 12 years.
"We were kind of forced into doing something different because our source of water was being shut off," said Marugg.
"You think about every bit that you use and is there a better way to do this, and do I really have to turn my faucet on full blast to wash my hands? Probably not," said Mary Anne Marugg.
It's a rather tedious and expensive process when each tank can cost up to $1200.
But he and his wife sure can taste the difference.
"You know West Texas water is premium," said Carl Marugg.
"It's just great drinking water. We love it after we run it through all of the filtration," said Mary Anne Marugg.
The last few summers have been rather dry.
"Last year we had got down to about a three months supply, but we've never run out of water," explained the Stamford resident.
So wet days like this one are no drain on them whatsoever.
In total the Marugg's can collect up to 22,000 gallons of water.
They only use the rainwater for inside their home- they have a well to provide water for their garden.
"We didn't realize it would rain that much until we looked at the rain gauge and its rained about an inch and a half today," said Carl Marugg.
It's especially important for Marugg who collects each and every drop.
"At first we were going to use it on a limited basis but we finally decided, 'we'll well just see how far it goes'," he said.
Every drip of rain he gets goes into one of six tanks.
"It goes through the other pipes, it goes through the filter," explains Marugg.
And it eventually ends up inside the home.
Marugg has been using rainwater to supply his home for the past 12 years.
"We were kind of forced into doing something different because our source of water was being shut off," said Marugg.
"You think about every bit that you use and is there a better way to do this, and do I really have to turn my faucet on full blast to wash my hands? Probably not," said Mary Anne Marugg.
It's a rather tedious and expensive process when each tank can cost up to $1200.
But he and his wife sure can taste the difference.
"You know West Texas water is premium," said Carl Marugg.
"It's just great drinking water. We love it after we run it through all of the filtration," said Mary Anne Marugg.
The last few summers have been rather dry.
"Last year we had got down to about a three months supply, but we've never run out of water," explained the Stamford resident.
So wet days like this one are no drain on them whatsoever.
In total the Marugg's can collect up to 22,000 gallons of water.
They only use the rainwater for inside their home- they have a well to provide water for their garden.
