Acid rain?
Electric goes out? Does it still work?
Costs of the whole thing?
Acid rain isn't a real issue here, but I like my water slightly alkaline. I use a calcium+charbone/coal and sodium bicarbonate attachment that lasts for about 4 months. The system has a "catchment system", which basically is a trap that dumps all of the unwanted debris that the collection system didn't initially prevent off to the side.
The gravity of the water is enough to supply the house for about 4 days with no electricity. But I have a manual pump that back pressures about 30 gallons at a time.
It's not cheap at first. I spent about $3800 for mine, and $4 a filter(per month) and $7 for my mineral block(like I mentioned above). But I also did it myself, which saved me in installation charges. My system is supplemental, a hybrid both grid and my own source. But you can buy larger tanks, multiple tanks, custom tanks. Anything you can imagine almost, mainly because the industry has been R&D'd to all ends around farming applications of all shapes and sizes, much of which translates to residential.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't rain water basically the same water as what the municipal services supplies?
No, not even close. The municipal services treat the water different, and pull the water from 'public' sources. The reason I first went with the system, was because we didn't have Lake Michigan water initially, we had water from Joliet(bleh, not only did it taste bad, it was one of the more contaminated sources according to the EPA, whom also permits the industrial pollution). Lake Michigan water is better, but also not all that great. Remember, this is where antifreeze was accidentally discovered, and millions of fish, birds, and other animals bathe and do their business. Rainwater isn't pure, but it's cleaner, and since I don't need it to get pumped through an elaborate and expensive network to my house, the cost for a well designed system is less over time.
