Forced to take hot showers without turning your geysers on? Here are ways to tackle the issue

As the heatwave conditions continue to prevail in the national capital, people are now forced to take hot showers despite keeping their geysers off. The reason behind this is plastic water tanks placed on terraces are exposed to the temperatures reaching above 45 degree Celsuis through the day.

Previously, houses and buildings had rooftop concrete tanks, which have now been replaced by the ubiquitous sintex ones. Due to the rising temperatures that are being recorded in the country, tap water, even early in the morning, is very warm.

To tacke the persisting issue, many have resorted to storing water in drums and vats while others keep buckets of water in rooms where the ACs are turned on.


Practical ways to solve hot baths trouble:
To tackle the problem of overheated tanks in summer, Dipti Ranjan Sahoo, professor of civil engineering at IIT, Delhi, suggested using insulation, reported ToI. It can be a tank jacket made of ultra violet-resistant material like foam and fibreglass.

However, the solution has its own drawback. The above mentioned solution could be costly for some. Those looking for an affordable solution can place the tank in a shady, isolated spot, Sahoo added, “If relocating the tank is not feasible, constructing a shade over it can achieve the same effect. This will not only keep the water cool but also extend the tank's lifespan because materials like fibreglass and plastic degrade with prolonged sun exposure," reported ToI quoting Sahoo.

Another say to solve the issue is by placing thick jute bags around the tank to block direct sunlight. One can also paint the tank with reflective paint to reduce the radiative heat.

Subhramaniyam pointed out how earthen pots keep water cool because of the porosity of the material they are made of. Water stored in such pots diffuse and moisten the outer surface, where it evaporates, in the process absorbing the heat and cooling the water inside. “Materials with similar porosity could offer comparable benefits,” said the professor. “Replicating this methodology with controlled porous materials for water tanks could enhance water cooling, but the brittleness of ceramics necessitates a protective environment.”

A simple solution could be storing water in 100-litre indoor tanks, suggested Anil Haritash, head of environmental engineering, Delhi Technological University. "Water from the overhead tanks can be channelled to smaller, secondary tanks for 2-3 hours until it cools down,” he said. “These tanks can be placed near rooms, kitchens and toilets. The flow in the tap, however, won’t be as powerful because of lower gravity," said Haritash to ToI.

Another way to take cooler baths is by installing solar panels over the tanks.

Heatwaves to continue in North India:
A sluggish southwest monsoon on Wednesday covered large parts of Maharashtra, awaiting a fresh pulse to march across central and northern India, which continued to reel under intense heat conditions.

Heatwave conditions were observed on Wednesday in most parts of Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and other areas of the country.

The maximum temperatures were in the range of 45-47 degrees Celsius over some parts of west Jharkhand, south Uttar Pradesh, Haryana-Chandigarh-Delhi, Punjab, north Rajasthan.

(with ToI inputs)