The need for and use of water tanks has been around for as long as civilization has. Water tanks can be used for a huge number of things such as storing water for outdoor use or drinking by humans or livestock, agricultural irrigation systems, fire suppression systems (think fire hydrants), or in specially created water treatment systems. The latter category of tanks are created with special materials and allow for the holding of water that is being treated with chemicals so that it becomes safely usable by the public once again. The Municipal Water Treatment Plant of Houston, TX uses several of these types of tanks.
Many different materials can be used to construct water tanks. Historically wood or ceramic was a popular choice, but tanks today are made out of things such as polyethylene or polypropylene plastics, stone, any variety of steel types, concrete, etc. The National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) International group has written a list of standards stating which materials can be used in water tanks which will be used to hold water for human consumption. The United States Food & Drug Administration also has a say in which materials are approved for this purpose.
Water tanks come in a large variety of shapes and sizes which largely depend on what they will be used for. They can be safely placed inside or outdoors and some even hold special positions such as on roofs for rainwater collection. Most water tanks are ground water tanks and are designed to collect or receive water that is then stored for later usage. However, most people will be familiar with water towers, which are all simply extremely large elevated water tanks. The height of these tanks allows them to create pressure and deliver water for industrial or domestic use to large numbers of people; thousands of people in a small town or city can be serviced by only one water tower.
One other special consideration that should be thought of is what kinds of conditions the water tank will be expected to have to survive. For example, many California residents must worry about whether their water tanks will be able to withstand the seismic activity and earthquakes so common to the region. Specialized water tanks can be built that will outlast whatever earthquakes or high-wind areas (think Florida and the hurricane states) might throw at them.
use when there is a water shortage and use when there is a water surplus
Yes, the first use was about twenty years earlier in WW1 tanks were used extensively
Great Britain
Soldiers typically get their water from a variety of sources, depending on the circumstances. In a base or camp, water may be supplied through water tanks, pipelines, or water purification systems. On the field, soldiers might carry their own water supply in canteens or hydration packs, or they may use portable water purification methods to treat water from natural sources such as rivers or lakes.
Sherman medium tanks were common amphibius tanks use often to quickly land with engineers, it was primaraly used to get tanks on the beach with the early attack wave rather than waiting for large heavy transport to land. It was dangerous risking the entire crew to drown if not exactly done. The inspiration of the Sherman DD amphibius tank came from the general's question to quickly land tanks.
use when there is a water shortage and use when there is a water surplus
water tanks are good for the environment because they only use rain water rather then water from dams
So you can use gravity rather then a pump to get water out of them.
Water tanks are a way for people to have fish in their home so they can they enjoy them. There are also water tanks inside each home that hold water for people to use so they can shower, drink, and wash dishes and clothes.
Distilled water from you local grocery store or walmart.
I don't know, instead of using this website use a freaking history book :)
Submarines change their depth by use of ballast tanks. To dive, they open their tanks so that they become filled with water. They also angle their dive planes. To surface, they pump the water out of their tanks and fill them with pressurised air.
I would use a cleaning tube or use a bowl or something
For storage of water to be used for gardening and washing that could save you 1000s in the long term
There is no information on where, when and who created the first rainwater tanks. Rainwater tanks have been used for centuries as a way to collect rain water and then use it for drinking, bathing, and cleaning.
septic tank
By Carbon; The reason we use Canister Tanks underwater.