No matter where you live, the most important resource that a prepared homestead can have is access to stored water. It may be abundant or scarce, but you still have to be able to collect and store it somewhere. That's where tanks and cisterns come in. Wells are fantastic, but if you have no holding capacity, your access to water is 100% dependent on the pump and the electricity to run it. Whether you're in a wet or dry environment, being able to collect rain or just hold a reserve of water is essential.

We happen to live in the Arizona desert and water is a huge issue with us. We have no well on our property, so the storage of our summer and winter rains is crucial. Unfortunately though, storing water isn't as cheap as it once was. It used to be that you could get a plastic tank or some used IBC (intermediate bulk container) totes for cheap or build an inexpensive concrete cistern. Large-capacity poly tanks have become very popular as well as pricey, and building a concrete cistern isn't exactly cheap either. Not to mention very labor- and maintenance-intensive.