Pro service · Phoenix Valley
Rainwater harvesting in Phoenix
Rainwater is a vital resource in the desert, and most of it runs straight off your roof into the street. Seamless gutters, tanks and basins put it into your soil instead, where a single storm keeps the ground moist for months.
“Does it actually rain here?”
Yes. The Phoenix Valley averages about 7 inches a year, spread across seven wet months, and a roof turns every inch into hundreds of gallons.
- 7 inAverage rainfall a year in the Phoenix Valley
- 620 galCaptured per 1,000 sq ft of roof, per inch of rain
- 12,000 galA year from an average 3-bedroom house with a 2,400 sq ft roof
- 5 of 20Years with less than 5 inches of rain
- 7 of 20Years with more than 7 inches of rain
- 7 monthsEach year with more than half an inch of rain
Rain at your address, year by year
The recorded rainfall for your part of the Valley, one year at a time, and what it adds up to on a roof.
Looking up 25 years of rain at Phoenix.
Measure your roof and see the gallons
Your address opens the satellite view of your yard. Trace the roof, and every section is listed with the gallons it sheds per inch and per year, at the real rainfall for your address. No account needed.
Save this to your property
A free account turns these shapes into your property, where the planner adds gutters, basins and tanks on the same map and any estimate you ask for starts from them. What you drew here stays on this device in the meantime.
The three critical steps
Whether you hire us or do it yourself, this is the proven order. Do it now and you are fast-tracking groundwater recharge and a yard that grows.
Design your system
Before a spade touches soil, find out where your utilities run. That tells you where not to dig, and from there you can plan basins, trenches and footpaths, seating areas and ground-level gardens. It is a lot, and we are here to make it easy: the watershed planner measures every roof and basin on your yard.
Install gutters and pipes
To get as much rain as possible into your basins and tanks, build the gutter system before the next storm. We only recommend and install seamless gutters, which last a lifetime. The store-bought pieced ones tend to fall apart after a few monsoons.
Add basins and tanks
The best place to store water is in the ground. Dig basins anywhere you do not have utility lines and you sink hundreds of gallons deep into the soil, keeping it moist for months after a single storm. Tanks store more for irrigation and other uses. We like basins and tanks in combination when the budget allows.
Seamless gutters, installed and repaired
The entire Phoenix Valley, all roof styles, same or next day. Protect the house and keep the rain at once.
Heavy-duty seamless aluminum, run on site to the exact length of your roof. No joints, so nothing to leak.
What we do
- Any roof styleCorners, curves, flat roofs and odd angles.
- Scupper conversionsWater sent straight down into the new gutters.
- Two and three storiesApartment buildings and 25-foot structures.
- Same or next dayAcross the Phoenix Valley.
- RepairsSagging runs, pulled hangers, leaking corners.
- Downspouts to basins and tanksOver, around or under patios and hardscape.
- Custom catchment boxesNo overspray, even in the biggest storms.
- Color-matched, or made to stand outRounded profiles that follow the house.
Pieced or seamless?
DIY pieced gutters
- Made of
- Store sections, about 10 feet each, joined with couplings
- Joints
- Every 10 feet, and at every corner
- Leaks
- At the couplings. Vinyl is worst, metal only slightly better
- Lasts
- A few monsoons
Seamless, formed on site
- Made of
- One run per roof edge, formed on site to the exact length
- Joints
- None
- Leaks
- Only if punctured
- Lasts
- A lifetime
Two ways to keep the rain
Plant the rain, and watch the water bill drop.
Active: tanks
A plastic or metal storage tank holds rainwater, and other water, for drinking, irrigation and fire safety. The design above shows a system feeding a future tank and the basins around it.
Passive: basins, arroyos and swales
Water stored directly in the ground, where trees and deep-rooted perennials can reach it whenever they need it. Hundreds of gallons per basin, per storm.
Rain we have already put to work
Three Phoenix-area watersheds, from a backyard to one of the largest residential catchments in the Valley.
Liane and David, North Scottsdale
Read the case study →Over 234,000 square feet of road and rooftop catchment, about 145,746 gallons per inch of rain, tamed and sunk into the landscape instead of flooding it.
Chawn, Scottsdale
Read the case study →More than 3,600 square feet of roof draining into the backyard became the water supply for a more productive orchard.
Sheila H., Scottsdale
Read the case study →Drainage problems at the foundation redirected into a future tank and basins around a diversity of desert-adapted fruit trees.
Questions people ask about rain in Phoenix
Does it rain enough in Phoenix to bother?
Yes. The Valley averages about 7 inches a year, and in the last 20 years only 5 saw less than 5 inches while 7 saw more than 7. The rain is also well spread out: seven months of the year get more than half an inch. Every 1,000 square feet of roof sheds about 620 gallons per inch, so an average 3-bedroom house with a 2,400 square foot roof can capture around 12,000 gallons a year.
How do I know how much my roof collects?
Trace your roof on the satellite map on this page and the gallons come from the real shape, at the real rainfall for your address. A rule of thumb: multiply your house's square footage by 1.5 to estimate the roof, then multiply the roof's square feet by 0.623 for gallons per inch of rain.
Tank or basin?
The best place to store water is in the ground. A basin anywhere you do not have utility lines sinks hundreds of gallons deep into the soil and keeps it moist for months after a single storm. Tanks hold water for irrigation, drinking or fire safety. We like to use both together when the budget allows.
Why seamless gutters and not the store-bought kind?
Pieced gutters come in sections, usually 10 feet long, joined with couplings, and every joint is a place to leak. Vinyl ones are the most likely to leak over time, and metal ones are only slightly better. Seamless heavy-duty aluminum gutters are run on site to the exact length you need, so by design they cannot leak unless punctured. They are the only kind we recommend or install, and they last a lifetime.
How much do seamless gutters cost?
Less than most people expect, and quoted per foot on your roof. The rest of a system, tanks, basins, downspouts and underground pipe, is quoted on your roof and your yard. Estimates are free.
My roof has scuppers, or it is three stories. Can you still do it?
Yes. We replace existing scuppers with a design that sends the water straight down into the new gutters, build custom aluminum collection boxes to stop overspray in the biggest storms, and have installed gutters and downspouts on three-story buildings and 25-foot structures. Corners, curves and odd angles are part of the job, and gutters can be color-matched to the house or made to stand out.
What clients say about our design and install work
4.8 on Google from 15 reviews. Read them all
Permascaping transformed my front yard into a sustainable, beautiful oasis. … The team’s expertise and attention to detail were outstanding, creating a low-maintenance, eco-friendly landscape that I absolutely love. … Highly recommend Permascaping for anyone looking to elevate their outdoor space in Arizona!
Permascaping completely transformed the property. … The whole project really pulled our landscape together and solved our drainage issues. … On top of doing great work, they were quick and offered a great price.
Jeremy and Clint were wonderful to work with and really listened to our goals for the project, offered excellent recommendations along the way and completed the project on time and in budget. … They know what they are doing and can help anyone trying to apply permaculture principles to their own home!
Great communication, great work and fair prices. … I will definitely call them back for additional work!!!
I recently hired Permascaping to do a backyard makeover and happy with the result. Highly recommended!
Permascaping worked MIRACLES on my property. … Their pricing is competitive, and a partial write off as well.
Request a consultation
Tell us about your roof and your yard. We'll set up a free discovery call about gutters, tanks and basins, and what each would cost at your address.
“Permascaping transformed my front yard into a sustainable, beautiful oasis. … The team’s expertise and attention to detail were outstanding, creating a low-maintenance, eco-friendly landscape that I absolutely love. … Highly recommend Permascaping for anyone looking to elevate their outdoor space in Arizona!”