Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond by Brad Lancaster

Search this site:

Thought Seeds

“Don't pray for rain, if you can't take care of what you get.”

--  R.E. Dixon (1937) Superintendent, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, Spur, Texas

As reported by American Rivers, development and excessive impervious paving in Atlanta, Georgia and surrounding counties contributes to a yearly loss of rainwater infiltration ranging from 57 to 133 billion gallons. If managed on site, this rainwater -- which could support annual household needs of 1.5 to 3.6 million people -- would filter through the soil to recharge aquifers, and increase underground flows to replenish rivers, streams, and lakes.

« Previous
Next »

September 27, 2013

I Knew It Was the Fall Equinox On September 22 Because My Sun- & Shade-Harvesting Sculpture/Calendar Told Me So!

by Brad Lancaster © 2013
www.HarvestingRainwater.com

I designed the sizing and placement of the roof overhang/gutter and windows on my garottage (one-car garage turned cottage) in Tucson, Arizona, to let the sun’s rays in when I need them for heating, and shade the sun’s rays out when I need cooling.

The sculpture shown in the photos below celebrates both the sun’s seasonally changing path and how the building was designed in relationship with that path. The sculpture also acts as a calendar, building on a long tradition of such calendars among Native American cultures in the southwestern U.S. See here for virtual tours of ancient sun calendars at some of the archaeoastronomy sites that have been surveyed in the Verde Valley of Arizona.

Note that while the angle of the sun is the same on the spring and fall equinoxes, there can be more than a 20ºF (11ºC) difference between the outdoor temperatures on the two equinoxes. This leads to a design challenge of how to let in more spring light and heat, while providing more fall shade and cooling. I solved this by designing for a seasonally extendable/retractable awning for the south-/equator-facing windows on the ground floor (see figure 4, above).

For more on how you can better design and live with the seasonally changing patterns of sun and shade, see:

Comments are closed.

Drops in a Bucket Blog

 »Read all blog posts...

Sign up for the Newsletter



Upcoming Events

  1. 24th Annual Dunbar/Spring Neighborhood Rain, Tree, & Food Forest Planting January, 2020 – Tucson, AZ

    January 18 @ 8:00 am - 12:00 pm

  2. Water Harvesting Presentation, Book Release & Signing with Brad Lancaster – Phoenix, AZ

    January 24 @ 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

  3. Borderlands Regional Watershed Restoration Practitioners Workshop

    February 8 - February 9

  4. Spring 2020 – Permaculture Design Course, Tucson, AZ

    February 8

  5. Online Water Harvesting Course Through Oregon State University

    February 10 - March 15

View All Events


Umbrella Newsletter

The Umbrella: Winter 2019/2020

THE UMBRELLA: A catch-all of resources, events, media, and more from Brad Lancaster   Rain Planting E-BOOK now available! Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond, Volume 1, 3rd Edition now available in E-BOOK format Plant the Rain gifts Get holidays gifts that spread the word and practice on how we can make the world a […]

 »Read all newsletters...

Like what this website offers?

Donations are greatly appreciated as they enable us to continuously update this expansive resource and generate new content. Thanks!