Design of a Rainwater Collection System and Possible Use of Harvested Water in a Kindergarten Building: A Case Study in Tirana City, Albania

This research paper focuses on the design of a rainwater collection system and the possible use of harvested rainwater in a kindergarten building to promote water conservation. Rainwater harvesting is an old technique but increasing in use because of the natural rainwater quality and to reduce the treated water consumption. Harvesting rainwater is considered an alternative source in the field of integrated water resources management and can be approved in many buildings to improve water conservation. In Tirana, there is a little experience in rainwater harvesting, since the availability of freshwater resources hasn't been a problem yet. Once we have studied all the key components needed to design a rainwater collection system, we got a kindergarten building with a catchment area of 370 m2. Rainwater that will be collected will be used for the daily requirements of the building, in flushing toilets, washing machines, and watering the garden. A system of rainwater harvest reduces potable water use, decreases ongoing operating costs for the kindergarten, and prevents storm runoff that would negatively impact the environment.