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How to Calculate Your Farm Water Needs

How to Calculate your Farm Water Needs

If you run a farming business in rural Australia then obviously it is vital to have a renewable and affordable water supply. You may have access to water on your property, but if it isn’t enough or you need to truck in a lot, then your farming business may not be sustainable.

Your first step is to audit how much water is required by your farm. This means identifying all the uses of water on your property including farming activities, processing, cleaning, fire-fighting and household needs (if you live on your property).

Your water usage audit should record the estimated daily (litres/day) and/or annual use (megalitres/year) of water for the following kinds of activities:

  • For Livestock Farms
  • For Horticultural Farms
    • crop irrigating
    • crop spraying
    • produce washing
  • General farm activities
    • yard/shed cleaning
    • equipment cleaning
    • various other processing activities, such as cooling, sprays, etc.
  • For household/domestic use (if you live on your property)
    • Drinking water
    • Bathrooms
    • Toilets
    • Laundry
    • Lawns/gardens
    • Fire-fighting

The sum of all these areas will give you an idea of your farm’s overall on-farm usage.

Once you know your farm’s water use requirements, you can then look at your current water supply sources and water storage facilities.

The Victorian Department of Environment and Primary Industries provide a very handy online Farm Water Calculator that can help you work out how much water you use on your farm. It can also help you evaluate your potential water water use supply sources and current water storage capacity. They also have a very detailed guide that Dairy Farm owners can use to calculate their dairy shed water use.

Clark Tanks works closely with many farmers to supply reliable water storage with dedicated water tank fittings appropriate to your farm’s water source and usage. If you have a good idea of the volume of water you want to store, then we can help you work out the most economical quantity and configuration of tanks to meet that volumetric requirement. If you have found this article helpful, why not contact us today to discuss your needs.

Download – How to Calculate your Farm Water Needs