Rain Barrels

Great idea Rob.They sure come in handy.

-- Bon,Hastings,Ont.....zone 5a....Always room for one more

Excellent. Is this a purchased one or have you adapted a barrel?
We have water barrels for the first time this year as well.

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

Good for you!
Been talking about it since we moved here. But that is as far as we have gotten!

-- Eklectic, Follow my Bliss, South East Ontario 5a

I was given the plastic barrel and put in the water valves myself.

-- Rob myspace.com/midnightowlrob

that’s what Rick wants to do—put the water spouts in the barrels that we’ve been given. Nice to see that it works.

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

Very nice…Looks tidy too.

-- Xploreorganics, 5b Canada, LFD 06-20

We have one here too, got it from the city last year. The way I have it setup is, I removed have the down spout attached to the house, and the slid the rain barrel underneath what is left.

The rain just goes into the barrel through the top that has a sieve to filter out stuff. It also has a rubber tubing at the bottom that lets excess water drain away. A good buy at $25

-- Hooked on Gardening.....Ontario zone 5b

wow.. good buy indeed.

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

what is a rain garden?

I have the barrells, I have the roof of the barn and the shed, I just have to get around to putting eavestrough up. Thinking I would raise the barrells, connect several together, then bury a hose to my new trees, from there put in the slow weeper/bleeder hose.

I think they are a great idea

-- Central northish Ontario

A rain garden is great for areas where water will stand in your yard and instead of fixing it by making it flow away from that area such as concrete, make it to where the water will be absorbed in that area and planting native to your area plants to thrive. First you must remove the clay that makes the water stand and fill with something like sand with maybe rocks over that and plants on both sides. www.rainkc.com/ or google raingardens

-- Rob myspace.com/midnightowlrob

From a longtime rainbarrel user, a word of advice…keep a hose attached to your overflow in case of a heavy downpour. All winter in Seattle, mine is connected to hoses and I use it as a way to divert water away from my foundation and into my water-hog plants (gunnera, ligularia, alpine water fern). And, check it regularly in the rain. They can get clogged and overflow pretty easily, which can prove disasterous for your buildings. And, two last notes…you might think about putting a threaded hose attachment near the top of the barrel to use as overflow control in the slower rain seasons. The one will keep it from overflowing if you get a light rain, but it will also not drain most of the water during the drier seasons. And, if you don’t already, be sure to have a fine screen at the top. This will help filter any gunk that runs off the gutters and it will help keep mosquitos from getting in to lay or getting out after hatching.

I love my barrels, but they do have the problem of filling too fast when its raining and being too empty when its dry and I need the water. Also, I don’t use my rainbarrel water on any edibles. As much as I love rainwater on my plants, I’m not sure what kind of junk is coming off my roof.

If you’re interested in putting in bigger catchment, there are lots of under-deck bladder systems as well as above and below-ground cistern systems to choose from. These have been useful in helping people take their irrigation completely off the grid!

Good going!

-- GardenMentor, Seattle, WA (zone 8/9), www.gardenmentors.com & www.gardenhelp.org

thanks for the tips!

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

I had a barrel put in by the city 10 years ago. It was a disconnecting downspout programme. Didn’t cost me anything! It has a lever so I can position it for winter or summer. It is completely enclosed, so no mosquitoes will lay their eggs.

-- "Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away..."

I love my rain barrel, and so do my plants. There is an interesting discussion going on at the garden web about the fact that in Colorado, it is illegal to use a rain barrel. Apparently all the water that drops from the sky belongs to the state, and it cannot be harness. Ridiculous !

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/frugal/msg061846516039.html

-- jroot

belongs to the state???
and .. they own the sunshine as well I guess?

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)