Ascot Earth Systems is a rainwater harvesting firm based in Greer, South Carolina.  Our primary focus is design and implementation of many different types of rainwater collection systems for commercial and residential applications.  We provide services to the entire southeastern United States and consultation worldwide.  Rainwater collection is to most people a means of putting water into a storage chamber for later use-and it is.  However, Ascot Earth Systems also performs what is referred to as earth works grading where the grade is conformed to maximize rainfall that hits a particular site versus the traditional approach of piping all water off of the property leaving it high and dry.  This creates the continued need for irrigation shortly after a rainfall event since the water left the property quickly and was not allowed to charge, or percolate, locally.

Scott Stapleton, principal, is accredited by the American Rainwater Catchment Systems Association  ARCSA.org

 

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Earthworks Grading

Using earthworks grading creates water-harvesting structures that can be used to put stormwater to good use and improve the site. Stormwater can be intercepted by shaped earthworks where it directly infiltrates the soil at the site, or it can be harvested in tanks and stored for later use. Earthworks, which are the least expensive strategy, include basins, swales, French drains, and gabions. BASINS intercept and use water in a discrete area. They can be small enough to support a single plant or large enough to support a grove of trees. They typically receive water from overland flow, not from channels. SWALES harvest rainwater in linear depressions placed in the broad landscape. Contoured swales intercept water from large watershed areas, so they often need overflow spillways constructed periodically along their length to discharge excess water during large storms. FRENCH DRAINS are rectangular trenches backfilled with gravel. Rainwater quickly fills the pore spaces in the gravel and comes in contact with the sides and bottom of the trench, where it infiltrates into the soil. GABIONS are "leaky" rock dams that slow the flow of water while trapping detritus and soil just upstream of the gabion. The trapped material creates a spongy mat that repairs erosion damage and holds water for nearby plants.