How many rain barrels are enough?

If people are trying to conserve water with rain barrels, this is a good question to ask because the more rainwater you collect, the less water you will have to use from other sources. For the purposes of this discussion we will assume you are trying to use rain barrels to collect rainwater to water your plants. This makes a lot of sense for all of us because our drinking water is precious and should be conserved for drinking, rather than to water our plants.

 

How much water will I collect in a rain barrel?

This depends on where you live, how much surface area that is feeding the rain barrel, and how big is the rain barrel. Since your watering demand is greatest when it is not raining, the more rain barrels you have the more water storage you will have when it isn’t raining, and your plants need the water. You may also have rain barrels at multiple locations around your house. Perhaps you will have a rain barrel at every downspout.

 

Lots of rain barrels may not be the answer to saving more water.

If you really want to use rainwater for irrigation you should look into the complete process of rainwater harvesting for irrigation. How you distribute the rainwater you have collected is as important as collecting the rainwater in the first place. Drip irrigation is the most efficient way to irrigate plants whether you are using rain barrels or not. If you can make the water from a rain barrel last longer before the next rainfall occurs, it is the same as collecting more water with more or bigger rain barrels.

 

Drip irrigation and rain barrels

Drip irrigation is the most effective way to water because the water is delivered right to the roots of the plants where it can slowly be absorbed into the soil. This reduces run-off and spreads the water out into the soil better, which promotes root growth and a healthier plant. Water is also not lost to evaporation the way it is when it is sprayed onto a plant by the hose or by a sprinkler system. The complication to drip irrigation is that the water has to be filtered and pressurized so that the drippers don’t clog up and the water is spread evenly throughout the system.

 

Rain barrels or a rainwater harvesting system?

This is really not a proper question because rain barrels can be part of a rainwater harvesting system. What we really mean is that you should really look at a complete rainwater harvesting system instead of a lot of rain barrels if you are really trying to use rainwater to water your plants. In order to do this we have to advance the concept of a rain barrel into an automatic rain barrel

 

An automatic rain barrel

What this does is take the rain barrel concept and put a filter, pump and float switch into the rain barrel and make it into a machine that can produce filtered and pressurized water that can feed a drip system – and it will automatically turn off if it runs out of water. This automatic rain barrel can then be set above ground or buried in the ground. You may have multiple automatic rain barrels located around the property feeding water into an efficient drip irrigation system. Now instead of having a rain barrel or a number of rain barrels around your property and dipping water out of them with a bucket to water your plants, you can have it done automatically with an automatic rain barrel.

 

Watering with automatic rain barrels

The advantage to installing an automatic rain barrel and a drip system is that if you do run out of water in your automatic rain barrel, you can unhook your drip system and connect it up to the faucet and efficiently water with your domestic water. This way when you do have to use your drinking water, at least you’ll be using it wisely. By keeping up with regular watering, even when the rainwater runs out, the soil will be moist and ready to receive rainwater again when it can be collected. Your time and effort in installing a drip system will pay off whether you are using rainwater or not.

 

So how many automatic rain barrels are enough?

The automatic rain barrels that are sold on the Flotender web site tell you how long you can water based on the amount of drippers you have on the system. With Flotender you can put in an above ground automatic rain barrel and add extra storage tanks later. Obviously, the more water storage you have the better when you are using rainwater for irrigation. One way to find out how many rain barrels you need is to purchase a drip system from Flotender that can be attached to your faucet and then operate that for a couple weeks to get an idea how much water you need. If you purchase one of these kits you will be getting a drip system with components made to work well with rainwater harvesting. Then you can purchase the automatic rain barrel later to connect to your drip system.

 

Above ground or below ground automatic rain barrels?

The advantage to above ground automatic rain barrels is that you don’t have to dig and you could disconnect it and take it inside in the winter. The disadvantages are that they may seem unsightly and you have to find a way to connect up to the downspout. A below ground automatic rain barrel really becomes a permanent rainwater harvesting system. It is hidden from view and offers access to underground downspout piping which might allow you to connect to multiple downspouts from one location.

 

Do your part

Help reduce the demands on our infrastructure by using rainwater to irrigate your landscape. You can start by installing a drip irrigation system that can be later hooked up to an automatic rain barrel or you can put in a complete rainwater harvesting system. Using grey water for irrigation is also an excellent way to replace drinking water as a source for landscape irrigation. The Flotender web site can give you all the information on grey water for irrigation systems.

 

 

Learn More about Automatic Rain Barrel Systems>

< Back to Greywater Recycling & Rainwater Harvesting Research