Water Storage

I know this has been addressed here before,, and couldn't really find exactly what thread to post this under.

So,, I need your help.
Quick rundown,,, a buddy in TX has some really bad water in his neighborhood,, he had water tests done,, and it's a laundry list of bad contaminites.
So I'm probably heading out that way to help install and connect a few water storage tanks and he's going to have good water trucked in probably twice a month or so. He's got limited space as he lives in a newer neighborhood,, fancy houses,and HOA's shit .
He's looking at storage tanks 3-5000 gallons,, and pumps. If the tanks can't be put outside,,, then they'll be going in the garage . And I just now thought about it,, not sure your basic 4" of concrete garage floor will hold 5-10'000 gallons of water .
So any ideas , suggestions,, do's and don'ts are appreciated.
Thank you all,, I know this is the best place for recommendations,, because you all have tried and true methods .

 

Is the concrete floor filled with rebar?

You could verify with a metal detector

 

Is this well water or tap water? Would a home water filter solve this problem? Under "normal" conditions as they are now a filtration system would be cheaper that constructing/buying storage tanks of that size and trucking in water a couple of times a month.

 

"Slimline" water tanks offers a wide range of storage tanks, both 'wall mount' (sit against a wall to save space) and conventional. Prices seem middle of the road.
Sold thru a number of vendors like Tractor Supply

 

Yea,,I talked to him a little bit ago,,told him to check his property setbacks ,,
I'd tell the HOA to f'k off,, it's a community well,,and if they can't supply safe water to my family,, and he's paying HOA fees ,, they can't say shit ,, take me to court ,,,
I've not done the math yet,,but 3000 psi concrete will take 50 per square inch,,the tank he's looking at so far is 3100 gallons,, that's 27,000 pounds of water. And thinking of adding 2 of them .

 

Thanks ,,I'll pass that along to him .

 

water must be potable - pass all the regulatory requirements - those "contaminants" must not be too much of anything to worry about >>> most likely eazy enough to treat & filter - definitely eazier than all the crap he plans on doing ...

has he thought far enough down this whole planned project - to realize that the only water he'll be able to get tankered will have the exact same "contaminants" ......

 

ALL water has some contaminants; it only matters when they exceed certain levels. Can't expect water ANYWHERE to be 100% pure, and there are some chemicals that even distillation or osmosis won't get rid of. Can't be like ole ED out in LA who didn't know that you could drink tap water or eat food from a can , especially in Texas. If he gets labeled a "pussy" he'll have to move to another state.

 

I asked him about the contaminates ,, he said it a whole list of things,, arsenic, etc. But they're cutting water off to the neighborhood around 12 hours a day,, the house is around 5 yrs old,, and he's open to selling the house ,,but he'll lose money bigtime with those water conditions. Do you think they're cutting water usage to reduce the chemical intake ?? I'm just trying to help the man and his family ,, and that's all he's worried about , is his family.

And yea ,, I remember ole Ed from LA,,, you had me confused for a minute there ,, I wasn't sure if you was talking Louisiana,, or Los Angeles,,, and from the Louisiana'ns I've meet ,, I didn't consider them on the pussy side ,, but ,, Cali made more sense.
But the boy in TX ,, ain't no puss . I've known him 20 plus yrs,, Afghan Marine vet . He's just trying to look out for his family,, and I'm just trying to help him .
Thanks for your help and input .

 

He's had water brought to his house once before,, and said it's pulled from a good source,, I asked him about that.
He's going to look into the filtration systems ,, but then he's still under usage restrictions, which he said a big inconvenience in itself , considering the times they've chosen to cut them off .
I don't have all the info here ,, I've run some ideas by him to continue to get by. He's in the early stages of planning here,, but he's planning on making a decision on what his options are in the next few weeks. ,

 

Sounds like you’re doing a solid thing helping your buddy out. That’s a tough situation.

A few things to keep in mind:

1. Weight on the garage slab:
You’re absolutely right to be concerned. Water weighs about 8.34 lbs per gallon, so even a single 5,000-gallon tank is over 41,000 lbs. Most standard 4” residential concrete slabs aren’t rated for that kind of load, especially if they weren’t poured with reinforcement or compacted sub-base. Worst-case scenario, the slab cracks or fails—especially if the weight isn’t evenly distributed.

Options:

• Consider multiple smaller tanks (e.g., 2x 2,500 gal) to spread the load.
  
  
• If possible, reinforce the slab—though that’s a big job.
  
  
• Best bet is to keep them outside on a reinforced concrete pad or gravel base. Even with HOA nonsense, if they’re shielded with fencing or painted to match the house, they might let it slide (sometimes “temporary emergency storage” gets more leeway).
  

2. Tanks & setup:

• Go for NSF-certified potable water tanks—don’t cheap out on off-brand poly tanks.
  
  
• Make sure they’re UV-resistant if they’re outside.
  
  
• Add a first flush system if he ever wants to supplement with rainwater.
  
  
• Tank color matters—darker tanks (black, dark green) inhibit algae growth.
  

3. Pumps:

• A simple pressure pump with a pressure tank can give decent household pressure.
• Add a float switch or level sensor to monitor tank levels and avoid dry running.
  

4. Other notes:

• Make sure your buddy has a solid backflow preventer if anything ties into the house system.
  
  
• Have a clear overflow plan—that much water can do damage if there’s a leak or overfill.
  

If it’s just for drinking/cooking, and the rest of the house still uses city water, you could downsize the tank setup and avoid a ton of hassle. But if he’s going full off-tap, then yeah—big tanks require more planning.

HOAs are a pain...

 

Well,,, like I said ,, he's in Texas,, they don't have the heaviest rainfalls in the country,, and with all the drilling and fracking going on down there,, there's no telling what kind of contaminates they have in the water out there.
I've got him checking on HOA stuff ,, property setbacks,,, he may possibly have the water supplies running thru the attic,, if so ,, we could replumb some of the house to run off of stored water ,, which could save some of the hauled in water for drinking and cooking,,, and use the crap water for toilets and clothes washing and showers.
So for now , we're just in the planning stages. Looking at all our options, and getting prices together. And just figured this is the best place I know of to get some ideas and options, as a lot of folks here live the lifestyle that require some of these options.
Thank you all for all of your input.

 

I'm assuming that your buddy is not in East Texas, where the water problems usually involve there being too much of it, and where there are plenty of city water systems.

 

Yes sir ,, you are correct ,, west Texas.

 

What about putting in a Well of his own? I think we also don't completely understand the problem like why are they turning off the water? Are they trying to cut usage? Is it because some people aren't getting their cisterns filled completely? It appears we are looking at two problems also: lack of water and water contaminants.

The HOA should be doing something about the contaminants, at the very least, yearly testing.

I am also off a community Well. One of our stipulations is each of the homes (9 of them) must have a cistern. My cistern is underground, has a pump which pumps water to the house. The house has a pressure tank which holds about 50 gallons of water and provides water for use.

So, my recommendation is to put himself an underground cistern with a pump and plumb it into the house with a pressure holding tank. Done. My cistern is 1500 gallons, and it is more than enough especially if you control usage. It is also better than having it above ground.

 

I don't have the answers to some of your questions. This guy is sitting on a 1/4 acre lot,, if that. That's the lot sizes in his neighborhood,, he seems to have had water problems since day 1 in the hood ,, and it's not getting any better ,, only worse . And he says they're putting in another 200 houses behind him . Yep ,,, I asked him how they're gonna handle more houses if they can't supply the ones they have . I don't know if he can put in his own cistern ,, or if he's talked to a well company,,, I'll tell him to try talking to one,,, if they're a decent local company,, some of them will have an idea of the underground streams .

 

I'd be selling that house before it's worth less than he paid for it! He got suckered and might lose some money but get the frack out and let some other sucker worry about it! Next time he'll know better!