I've been forced into using rain water for drinking and cooking purposes this year due to my well silting up. I am so pleased with it that I intend to install a permanent system. Rain beats well water hands down.
Right now I'm only collecting from a small section of roof - less than 200 sq.ft. It provides more than enough potable water for two people. If I expand the system to encompass just half the roof I will probably have enough water for the entire house.
The roof wash-off sequence depends a lot on where you live and the time of year. Here in GA we get plenty of rain. We also get a lot of pollen and airborne mold. Fortunately the birds prefer to poop in my shop and leave the roof alone.
Unless you plan to filter your rain water you can expect to lose a lot of it in the wash-down cycle. The wash-down time depends on several factors. I haven't yet figured a way to automate it.
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