This is just a suggestion, but, has anyone every tried a rain barrel catching system? They are efficient, cheap set up, one could actually set a system up from stuff at home, and you can really save a lot of money from set one of these genius ideas up! Another thing you can do with them is create thermal energy, and realistically hook it up to your main water supply. I use two 55 gallon blue hard plastic barrels or reservoirs, known to some people that use them for different things. Overall I would invest in this to anyone that is trying to cut down their water bill and/or their overall utility bill. It conserves water as well, obviously, so you are adding to the alternative energy output that I believe everybody in this world should at least have some input on. If we do not, then first, we will start to run out of good water which is a huge crisis and two, just like with everything else in the world, water prices will go up as there will be less abundant amount of usable water out there. So, if anyone actually has ever used or is using them, tell me how you like it, how much it cost you for the initial investment, and how long you've had it. Thank you everybody, and lets go green!
I have never used one but was seriously considering one for this summer. I'm planning a much more extensive garden in my small yard this year. I live in NC, where the summer months can be very hot, but not necessarily dry. We often have rain every afternoon for the month of June and at least half of July. We cannot currently afford a sprinkler system, and our yard is almost too small to worry about it anyway. I'm planting a container garden on the sunniest side of my house and thought about a couple of rain barrels on that side as a method to preserve water for keeping up with the garden. My biggest thing, more than cost, is aesthetic. I don't want them to be ugly or cheap looking. I've seen where they can sit right under the gutter run off, I'd just have to shorten that section by a few feet and have it drain right into the barrel. Perhaps the cost savings won't be mind blowing, but I'm thrilled about the idea of energy conservation and sustainability and I feel like there are so many little things that can make a difference. This is my "little thing" for this year.
My parents living at countryside have a similar barrel, I think it`s a 20 gallon one. They use to leave it in the yard, so the summer rains could fill it and then the water is used to wash carpets, clothes. It`s a sort of saving money on water costs in that region
I use something called 'Mystic Rainwater Collection System'! It works great, It attaches to your gutter's down spout and diverts water into my rain barrels. I then use that water to water all of our outdoor plants. I would like to say how surprise I was at first on how fast rainwater can fill a barrel this way!
I have that set up. The place I live in so windy and there's some factory close-by that churns out so much smoke that when it rains for the first, the water is always so bad that's unfit for consumption. After it rains for two or three days the rain water eventually gets cleaner. Of course I hate having to drain the rain barrels but some sacrifices are worth making because the water collected during the rainy season can last all summer for drinking.
When I used to rent an apartment that was attached to a house, I was responsible for the lawn in exchange for a discount on my rent. Since we sometimes have watering restrictions in Miami due to drought, I used to put a big blue plastic barrel outside to catch rainwater and use it to water the lawn and plants. You don't need a fancy setup, if a big, clean trash can is all you have, it's enough to get the job done.
Yep, we have one in our back garden because we haven't got a hose long enough to go from the kitchen into the garden (the ones that are long enough are ridiculously expensive), I like it so much that I'm thinking of buying a couple more as they are dirt cheap.
We have a rain barrel to catch rain water but I definitely cannot call it a system because all we do is to put a large basin at a place where rainwater flows the strongest. Then we just use a dipper to get water and maybe use it for watering some plants or rinsing some clothes. We don't really give much attention to it though as we don't have a shortage of water here. When I was in college, rainwater was our friend. Water was very hard to come by in our boarding house so when it rained, we automatically had our containers ready and we washed our clothes like crazy.
Use 50 gallon drum or larger, and collect all the rain fall from house gutters or even your local stream. You can use it during the dry season to water your lawn or if it placed high enough you could use it to trickle into washing machines. You just need to filter out the water first before it touched your clothes. If you had a water tower, just pump it up and use it for showering.
I live in a very hippie-ish town and people have those everywhere. Everyone I have met that has one does nothing but sing the praises of the money it saves them. I've been interested but we haven't moved to doing these for ourselves yet. Seems like a simple enough idea to water the garden or lawn and I'm sure it would cut down majorly on bills. Since it's getting close to winter we decided that we will wait and see what happens in the spring if we decide to give it a shot. Let us know how it works out if you decide to try it!
I don't do this myself, but I think its a great idea. Especially in areas where there are drought conditions. I have heard on the news that in the state of California alone most of the water from rain storms gets wasted and is not able to be harvested for water use. So, this state remains in drought conditions. Such a set up like this is ideal for California residents to be able to harness the rain water, so it isn't wasted.
We have a metallic rainwater barrel that lies at the end of a rainwater collection gutter. Whenever there is precipitation, we have a fresh supply of rainwater. Plastic tanks are all the rage now and we plan to buy one because they are durable and don't cost much. In some arid areas, communities use a waterpan to collect water from the sky.
