All Questions
Tagged with water-butt or rain-barrel
25 questions
2
votes
1
answer
45
views
Correct name for Water Butt / Rain Barrell Tap/Valve/Shutoff Fitting?
Its difficult to find a suitable tap/valve/shutoff for water butts.
This is also made worse by most tap/valves not having a backing flange which allows proper sealing up against the water butt.
What ...
- 21
1
vote
0
answers
49
views
From rain barrel to hose: math and kit
I've read some similar questions (i.e. this one) but still I need some help.
I have a water barrel in the garden:
capacity 120 L
50 cm diameter
80 cm height
I want to feed a water hose, placing the ...
- 313
6
votes
1
answer
119
views
Will mosquitoes fly through this overflow hose to breed in a rain barrel?
I've got this rain barrel setup with an overflow hose that drains into the bushes. To deter mosquitoes from breeding inside the barrel, I have a screen on the top of the barrel where water enters. I ...
- 339
1
vote
3
answers
205
views
Drip irrigation pressurised by a pump
Does anyone have experience with automated drip irrigation system such as rainbirdr brand that is provided water input from a pump rather than from faucet? I moved to an apartment so I have no option ...
- 221
1
vote
0
answers
37
views
How to gravity feed differently sized rain collection tanks at equal rates?
I recently purchased two 300 gallon tanks to supplement my existing two 55 gallon barrels, allowing me to do some more legitimate rainwater harvesting. I've been really intrigued by manifold system ...
- 151
3
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Treating AC condensate water to make it good for plant watering
Late last summer we tested capturing the condensate that is pumped out of our central AC unit, and found it produced ~14 gallons per day when it's hot/humid out. That would go a decent way towards ...
- 255
1
vote
1
answer
94
views
What kind of pump do I need for my giant rain barrel?
I have a giant rain barrel that holds 1,000 litres when filled. It was one of those industrial white cube barrels that are used for food. It was decommissioned and sold as a rain barrel. Anyhow, it's ...
- 11
0
votes
1
answer
372
views
Tips to start a siphon without getting a mouthful of water
I have spent the week setting up my water storage system including a1000L ICB, I am lucky that my allotment is next to one of the large communal water capture and storage areas and with heavy rain ...
- 209
2
votes
1
answer
127
views
rainwater tank freezing damage
I am thinking of placing a 1000L rainwater tank in greenhouse to prevent temperatures inside greenhouse from dropping below 0°C(32°F). The tank is from PE-HD plastic. I am not able to assess how ...
- 1,673
5
votes
2
answers
10k
views
How long can rain water be stored in tanks?
I plan to collect rainfall (this autumn or next spring) from roof into plastic tanks (1 m3 capacity) and use collected water later for watering vegetables.
My question is for how long can rain water ...
- 1,617
3
votes
2
answers
93
views
How much rainwater should I collect for the garden?
What are the steps to calculate how much rainwater I should collect for my garden?
Let's reason in liters/square meter of plants, to make it generic.
Let's use this for the statistics of rainfall: ...
- 133
3
votes
0
answers
37
views
How do I deal with variable head in a gravity drip system?
I am planning a gravity drip irrigation system fed from a large cistern that is 55 inches tall from the faucet to the overflow tube.
This will yield a significant variation in water pressure between ...
- 177
3
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Soaker hose with a rain barrel
I have a simple setup with a rain barrel, and I'd like to run a soaker hose from it to water some flowers at my house. I am hoping to find a soaker hose that will be reliable enough to use for a few ...
- 339
1
vote
1
answer
198
views
rain barrel diverter for 6x6 downspout [closed]
We are planting a garden at our preschool, including a rain barrel painted by the kids. The downspouts on the school are 6 inches by 6 inches. All of the rain barrel diverters I have found are ...
- 111
11
votes
3
answers
626
views
Any reason not to add a spigot to the bottom of my rain barrel?
I got a rain barrel that has a spigot coming out of the side about 5" above the bottom. This seems inefficient, since it means that there's always going to be 5" of standing water in the barrel below ...
- 1,595
2
votes
1
answer
65
views
Micro Drip Irrigation Backflow Filter (To Protect Pump)
I've installed micro irrigation, as:
water butt > pump filter > Shurflo 30psi pump > 16mm supply pipe > 4mm pipe > emitters
Have seen others mention dirt can enter the emitters & eventually ...
- 21
10
votes
3
answers
4k
views
What are the absolute most water-thirsty plants?
I have a balcony that gets about 4 hours 1 hour of direct sunlight a day (but several many hours of indirect sunlight bouncing off a building in front) that has an A/C unit where the water condensate ...
- 209
4
votes
1
answer
448
views
Should I clean out my rain barrel before using the water on my vegetables?
I am concerned about the quality of the water in my rain barrel, but I am not sure if it is harmful or helpful to plants - especially in my vegetable garden.
It would be pretty simple to clean it ...
- 43
14
votes
2
answers
30k
views
Is rust from a steel rainwater barrel harmful to edible plants?
We are using a used steel drum barrel as a rainwater container. Someone else in our house brought it from work, and we haven't bothered replacing with a plastic one yet.
Supposing that there is no ...
- 558
9
votes
1
answer
948
views
How can I pump water from a rain barrel to my balcony?
I live in an apartment with a porch that is one story off of the ground. I plan on container gardening on the porch, but I don't have a spigot outside to connect a hose. There is, however, a gutter ...
- 191
7
votes
4
answers
263
views
Could rain barrels be considered suitable substitutes for rain gardens?
My county requires rainwater management to be incorporated into lot plans for new construction if a certain percentage of the lot is impervious. This seems a sensible measure.
We are under the ...
- 245
4
votes
3
answers
7k
views
How best to connect multiple water butts?
I've just come into possession of two 120L water butts to connect up to my shed on my allotment plot, but as it is a pent roof I need to connect the water butts together as there is only one downpipe.
...
- 1,528
8
votes
5
answers
7k
views
Which US states restrict rain water harvesting?
Does anyone have an up-to-date list of which US states require a permit or otherwise restrict land owners from harvesting water? I know Washington, Utah, and Colorado were on the list at one point.
10
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Why does the water in my rain barrel evaporate quickly?
I have some rain barrels in my yard. After a certain amount of tinkering, they collect rain water well. However, I notice that a day or two after the rain, most of the water is gone. I've checked for ...
- 237
39
votes
9
answers
75k
views
Is rain water better than tap water for plants?
Is it better to water your plants with rain water collected in water butts? I mean is that better than water straight from the tap?
And is it just a matter of temperature (presumably plants don't ...
- 9,633