Norwesco 1725 Gallon Low Profile Cistern

What it is for

Rainwater collection for a house or an outbuilding, well water storage where the well cannot keep up with peak demand, hauled water storage where there is no well at all, and a fire reserve on a rural site. Buried, the water stays cool in summer and liquid in winter and the yard stays clear. The low profile matters where the water table or bedrock is close to the surface and a deep hole is not an option. Our guide to sizing a first flush diverter for rainwater harvesting covers the one piece of a catchment system people most often skip. For a fire reserve, see the fire water reservoir design guide; for a reuse system, the water reuse tank layout guide. For the volume, use the tank sizing calculator and tank sizing guide.

Openings and what to check before you buy

1. Manway. One 20 inch manway on top. It takes the pump, the float switch and a person's arm and a brush for cleaning. Risers bring it to grade; tell us your burial depth and we add them to the order.
2. Inlet and outlet. No fittings are listed on this tank. Tell us where the inlet, the overflow and the pump line enter and what size, and we confirm what ships on the tank and what to add before it leaves the plant.
3. The hole. The tank is 157 by 69 inches at the body and 51 inches tall. Excavate wide enough to compact bedding and backfill evenly around it, on a firm, level base with no rocks under the tank.
4. Cover and traffic. Norwesco's installation instructions set the maximum cover and rule out vehicle loads over the tank. Follow them, not a rule of thumb.
5. Drinking water. If the cistern feeds a house, keep the lid sealed, screen the overflow and the vent, and plan for disinfection and filtration downstream of the tank.

Norwesco's drawing for this tank is linked on this page under Technical Drawing. It shows the manway position, the rib pattern and the outside dimensions for the excavation plan.

Installing it

Set the tank on compacted bedding, check it for level along its length, and fill it with water as you backfill so the water inside balances the soil outside. Backfill in lifts and compact each one; a void under a rib is where a buried tank fails years later. Before the fittings are covered, run water through every connection and look for weeps. Bring the manway to grade so the lid sits just above finished ground and surface water runs away from it.

Shipping and receiving

The tank is oversize freight, NMFC 156600: 157 by 69 by 51 inches and 508 lb, on a flatbed from the nearest of Norwesco's plants in Marked Tree, Arkansas, Merced, California, Philippi, West Virginia, Shawnee, Oklahoma, St. Bonifacius, Minnesota, Tooele, Utah and Washougal, Washington. Risers ordered with the tank travel with it. You need a forklift or several hands and a clear bay to take it off the truck. The listed price is before freight; the freight cost estimator gives the lane cost to your ZIP, or request a written quote for a job that needs paperwork. At the tailgate, check the part number against 44407 on the bill of lading and look over the ribs and the manway flange for transit damage before the driver leaves; a buried tank is the hardest one to swap later.

Questions before you order? Call 866-418-1777.