Santa, slide down my downspout

Santa, all I want for Christmas is some rainwater.

Rain barrels are hot

I hadn't thought of this... If you're in a place which doesn't get as much cold weather as Minnesota does, you can use your rain barrel to protect your outdoor potted plants.  The water in a barrel tends to stay warm at night, so having potted plants near or on the barrel helps protect them from frost, especially if you cover it all with a tarp at night.

Thanks, StAugustine.com

State Fair season sales

Remember that it's State Fair season, and many local rain barrel providers are having sales because the end of the gardening season is approaching.  If you're going to a fair, watch for rain barrel ideas and offers in the horticulture, gardening, and small business buildings.

Some exhibitors only offer sales at the fair, while others offer it to all, such as the Barrel Depot.  Watch also for offers with low delivery costs, as the fair exhibitors know that few people will be able to carry a barrel around the fair.

Rain barrel tips around the country

• Delaware, Ohio: Rain barrel tips and raffle today.
• Rochester, NY, multiple dates: Learn to save water via rain barrels and other ‘green’ stuff for you and your kids at the Rochester Museum & Science Center—Rochester, NY
• Learn How to Make Your Own Rain Barrel   August 30th, 2011 @ 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM, Raeford, NC.
• September 20-22, 2011: If you're near London, Ohio, the Gwynne Conservation Area will have rain barrel presentations (pdf). "If you have a roof and gutter, then a rain barrel is what you need! Learn why they are beneficial, some installation tips, and ideas for incorporating your rain barrel within your landscape."

Mind, gutter, movement

source on Crunchyroll.com

More plumbing math

In my preceding post "Rain barrel design using two bunghole system":

The cross-section of a two-inch pipe is 3.14 square inches (if you're doing the math, remember the radius of a 2-inch diameter pipe is 1 inch).  The cross-section of a 3/4 inch pipe is 0.44 square inches.  If you have a 2-inch bottom pipe then it can feed 7 or 8 pipes with a 3/4 inch diameter.

 I'm actually going to be feeding my closed barrel system through the 1.5 inch overflow from an upright rain barrel.  The cross section of a 1.5 inch pipe is 1.76 square inches.  I'll have four barrels, being fed through 3/4 inch diameter pipe.  Each of the 4 pipes has a cross-section of 0.44 inches, for a total of 1.76 square inches.  Perfect in theory, but this will not be theory.  There will be losses such as friction, but this isn't rocket science, even if it might be rocket fuel tank science.

I am aware that I'm playing with engineering when things won't be perfect.  Usually a rainstorm causes a downspout to have a lot of falling water mixed with air, and it is not completely full of water.  Feeding a 2x3 inch downspout into a 3-inch diameter pipe adds much more capacity than is usually needed.  The overflow needs to be able to handle what the 2x3 inch is delivering, and how quickly the barrels can take the water will determine how much of a sudden cloudburst it can catch.

We're dealing with a situation where hundreds of gallons will arrive as quickly as an inch of rain can fall.    If the water tends to arrive as an all-day trickle, then the plumbing only needs to deal with a trickle.  You have to design the plumbing to deal with the amount of water that you're willing to catch or lose.  A little planning can reduce the amount of water that will be lost through the overflow.

Rain barrel design using two bunghole system

I have some barrels that I'm going to put on their sides, so I can use them without making new holes.  The barrels can be filled and emptied using the two bungholes.

Sorry for the crude drawing, I hope it shows the design well enough.

First of all, why not only use the bungholes on the bottom?  Because air has to be able to escape.  You can see that in this design, the top are connected with a pipe which connects to an air vent pipe so air can escape and enter as the water level changes.  Remember to put mosquito screen on the air vent.

The pipe coming in should be as big as possible, because a lot of rain may arrive at once.  The overflow pipe should be as big as the pipe coming in, so water won't back up into the downspout.  This is a sealed barrel system, so you can use an automatic diverter which can deal with the tap pipe being full of water, but the air vent pipe opening must be higher than the diverter is.

The air vent is connected to both the top and bottom pipes so air can easily escape as the pipes fill with water.  The separate vent should reduce gurgling and speed the flow of the water.  The same principles are used in household drain systems.

The large vertical pipe on the left carries the water down from the intake, so it should be at least as large as the intake pipe.  The horizontal pipe at the bottom should also be that large, so all the water coming in can easily reach the bungholes and flow in to the bottom of the barrels.

This is where the first bottleneck can be expected.  Your downspout is probably 2x3 inches or 3x4 inches, so a 3 or 4 inch diameter pipe can handle it all; if your diverter has a smaller pipe then that's the largest size that you need (you might consider a larger pipe across the bottom in case you might be cross-feeding from a second downspout).  But your bunghole has a two inch diameter -- or if you're using 3/4 inch pipe threaded into the bungs then you only have the 0.75 inch diameter to fill the barrel through.  Obviously you want the horizontal pipe to be larger than the openings into the bungs, otherwise all the water will try to go in the first barrel and the other taps will be starved.

The cross-section of a two-inch pipe is 3.14 square inches (if you're doing the math, remember the radius of a 2-inch diameter pipe is 1 inch).  The cross-section of a 3/4 inch pipe is 0.44 square inches.  If you have a 2-inch bottom pipe then it can feed 7 or 8 pipes with a 3/4 inch diameter.

If you're using two-inch feeds into the bungs, but only have a 1.5 inch diverter pipe coming in, then you won't have enough water coming in to fill a single 2-inch opening, so there's not much of a problem in that case.

If you're paying attention, you might have noticed that I haven't explained why I'm showing the water-filled vertical pipe on the left having a connection to the top horizontal pipe.  That's because I'm using that to cheat.  If the bottom bungs can't let water into the barrels as fast as it is coming in, then the water will flow across and also try to fill the barrels through the top bungholes.  There will be a steady flow of air coming out, but some water will probably be able to flow in through the top.  There is a risk of bubbling or gurgling noise from this, but I don't know how it compares to the sound of the rain.

Also, even if you're feeding two-inch diameter taps into the bottom bungholes, a 3/4 inch pipe is sufficient for air to flow out of the top.  This is useful because barrels tend to have bungs with different threads -- the bunghole with the NPT thread ("fine thread") can fit two-inch diameter threaded pipe.  But the other bunghole has buttress thread ("coarse thread") and it's easier and cheaper to get buttress bungs with a 3/4 inch NPT knockout, then use that for 3/4 inch air venting.  If you tap the barrels while they're upright, it will be easier to keep track after that which side should be up.

EDIT: Notice that this design is based on using rigid plumbing.  Using hoses requires extra care to not trap too much air or water in curved hose sections.

Electric rain water pump options

When looking at possibilities for electrically-powered pumps, I encountered several options that I want to remember in case I decide to add an electric pump to my rain water system.  There are several types of pumps, but I haven't explored what is presently popular for the actual part which moves water.

What I did take note of is that one type of pump assembly would be convenient for many situations:  A demand pump or on-demand pump combines a pump with a pressure cutoff switch.  The pump will automatically turn off when its output side has more than a certain pressure, such as 30 or 40 PSI (pounds per square inch).  When connected to a hose or watering system, this allows the pump to turn off when water is no longer needed or when the pump is moving water faster than it can drain out.  A diaphragm tank (because there is a flexible diaphragm which uses pressurized air to push water out of the tank) can hold some pressurized water, so a more constant flow of water can be provided.

However, a pressure cutoff switch only controls what is happening on the output side of the pump and does not protect against what is happening on the input side.  A low water cutoff switch or float switch can turn off the pump when the water level in the rain barrel gets too low.  That protects the pump from trying to pump air, or pumping dry.  A float switch can also be used to stop a pump when a destination barrel is full.

When it rains, it sometimes pours

I've decided to catch the rain from the drainpipe by using barrels with a large open top, so I know that I'll be able to get the first 50 gallons of a sudden cloudburst.  Well, 50 gallons per barrel if they're empty.  I have some 20-gallon barrels that I'll also be connecting in the system, and figuring out how to connect them has been fun.

While I'd like to have two-inch pipe running everywhere, it looks like it will be more practical to feed the extra barrels through a garden hose and 1¼" sump pump tubing (from my overflow pipe).  Obviously this will work better if the rainfall is a trickle rather than a downpour.

So I was wondering how quickly the rain falls... there was a light rainfall yesterday, so let's see what the rate was.  The local National Weather Service office is in Chanhassen, Minnesota.  No rainfall info.  And it says "The weather observations depicted here are not official, and are not quality controlled. For the nearest official observation, check out the data from Flying Cloud Airport in Eden Prairie."  Well, I can understand why the weather office's weather readings might not be official, but it just doesn't seem right.  OK, off to the airport.

During that light rainfall yesterday, there was one hour with 0.14 inch of rain, one hour with 0.05, and several hours at a lesser rate.  Good, that was a nice trickling rate, so collection should work fine with days like that.

When there are brief burst of sudden rain, I should be able to catch much of it also.  The barrels will all be connected together at the bottom, so if the system is half full, each collection barrel can handle about 25 gallons of water at once before overflowing into the 1¼" tube.  The water can then trickle into the other barrels through the bottom hose during the time between cloudbursts.

I'm hoping that will work well enough.  In case I need more capacity, I will have the plumbing designed so I can add more connections.

Keep the critters out of the rain barrel

The openings into a rain barrel system need to be covered to keep out animals.  Some "hardware cloth" coarse screening will keep out most rodents, and many people also use mosquito screen to keep out smaller insects and debris.  Some people use mosquito control tablets to kill the larvae.  Some people put fish in the barrel to eat the insects, although if you have to winterize then the fish is something else to deal with.

However, a little hardware cloth won't solve all critter problems.  (I couldn't find the original source of the bear, merely references to Colorado)

Remember your air vents

I've seen some sketches for rain barrel systems where the designer forgot to supply an air vent.

A bottom-filling sealed barrel won't hold much rainwater if air can't get out of the barrel.  Add a vent to the top, and remember to have the vent opening be higher than your diverter or collector barrel.

A sealed barrel system which fills near the top can also encounter problems if air can't also escape easily through that top pipe.  If you have a two-inch pipe from the diverter, and a two-inch opening into the barrel, you might be fine most of the time because usually there isn't more water than that.  As long as water can flow most of the time there will probably be more than needed to fill the barrels.

Remember to let the air escape so water can flow.  That is also the principle behind the drain-waste-vent (DWV) system that is probably in your house.  Any place where liquid is supposed to flow also needs an air vent behind and in front of it, so the liquid can flow downhill without fighting the air pressure and so the liquid won't create air pressure which will cause problems.

It's a magical wrench

Yay!  My bung wrench arrived!
When making (or cleaning) rain barrels, if you want to open the two-inch bungs on barrels, the tool for the job is a bung wrench.  I chose a plastic wrench instead of metal because I expect I'll have little enough use for it that it will last a long time.

Bungs have two kinds of thread
When you're tinkering with the barrels, be aware that most of them have two different kinds of bungs.  The threads on one bung are hydraulic buttress threads (wedge-shaped in cross section), while the other bung uses National Pipe Thread (NPT) -- also called NPS.  Some people call NPT a "fine thread" and buttress a "coarse thread".  You may be able to identify a sealed bung's type by reading labels on the bung plug (BUTTRESS, NPS or NPT).

That also means that you can screw a two-inch-wide NPT pipe fitting into one of the bung openings, but not the other.  But also keep in mind that bung plugs are available with 3/4 inch NPT knockouts in the center, which offers another way to connect pipe to a barrel.

CISTA: A taller rain barrel shipped in a smaller package

Although it's not on the market yet, architect Carolyn Moss came up with a different design for rain storage.  It's not shaped like a rain barrel.  CISTA is designed to be shipped as several U-shaped sheet metal pieces, brackets, and a 100-gallon bladder.  The brackets are bolted to a building, the metal sides mount on the brackets above each other to form an eight-foot-tall tank, and the bladder is supported inside. Because the pieces can be nested or folded for shipping, they take less space until installed.

It's designed to be installed a little above ground level, so a planter underneath can be used to cover the rain tank with climbing vines.  It looks pretty, of course.

Source: Eco Innovation | EcoLiving

How can I hide or decorate a rain barrel?

Some of my barrels will be white plastic, and I'd like to have something less stark.  I'm open to suggestions.

Let's see...

First I found some barrel covers.  Umm...  They're covers for quarter horse barrel racing.  Zebra striping or blue camo is a little bolder look than I'm after.  That's hardly surprising, as these are supposed to be visible to the racers.



Well, a pretty sunflower.  That's more of a decoration than a disguise.  These are pretty, but then everyone's an art critic.  There are any number of ways to make a barrel slipcover or paint a barrel.  Or to have it painted, depending upon your talent at painting a rain barrel.


My talent at painting is about right for the leaf stencil spray painting method.  Spray a coarse background pattern on the barrel, then use various leaves and small branches as stencils to create natural patterns across the barrel.




A wooden container is an interesting alternative.  Pick your favorite wood and color, and build a barrel-sized box.  I suppose that could also be done with bricks if you prefer brick walls.

Speaking of wood, a wooden lattice was my first thought.  I see that a nearby hardware store has prebuilt lattice panels that are three by four feet, which seems about right.  But they'll cost more than inexpensive barrels cost.  A compromise is to get 4 x 8 foot lattice panels and make smaller panels from those.

Rain gutter and downspout terminology

I had to look up what to call some of the pieces involved with gutters.  From top to bottom, here is a glossary of some terms:

• Rain deflector:  Not actually part of a gutter but rather it is a metal guide which is installed on the roof over a door to guide water sideways and thus reduces water falling over the door.  Often not needed over a gutter system.
• Drip edge flashing: Metal roof edge which extends from under shingles.  Guides water away from edge of shingles.  Might be considered part of the roof.
• Fascia board: Board running along the ends of the rafters at the edge of the roof.  The gutter is often attached to it.
• Splash guard: A baffle which raises the edge of a gutter, to divert the flow of water into the gutter. Often needed at an inside corner due to the water flow from the corresponding trough where two roofs meet.
• Gutter leaf guard: A screen or other device over the gutter to block most leaves from entering the trough.
• Hangers: Brackets that support the gutter.
• Rain gutter, gutter, or eaves trough: The horizontal trough which captures rain water below the edge of the roof.
• Drop out or outlet tube: Connector for the top end of a downspout.  Short tube which is sealed to the edges of a hole in the gutter which has been cut for the tube.
• Leader head, conductor head, or rainhead: A decorative box to collect rain water from gutters and guide it down a downspout.  Used instead of an outlet tube.
• Downspout strainer: A wire mesh or grate at the top of the downspout to block debris from flowing down the downspout.
• Downspout: The vertical tube which carries water downward.
• Downspout strap: Metal straps which hold the downspout against the wall.
• Offset: Elbows used to route a downspout around an obstruction on the wall.
• Downspout diverter: A device to divert water, automatically or manually, between a rainbarrel and downspout.
• Elbow: Often the bottom of a downspout has an elbow which sends the rain away from the building, either away from the wall or to the side (probably toward the corner of the building).  Often a length of downspout, hinged trough, or other device is used to carry the water further from the building.
• Splash block: A concrete pad, masonry, or other device on the ground to protect the ground from the force of water falling from a downspout.

Rain barrel diverter diversions

It turned out that deciding how to get the water into the barrel was a major issue.

There are two main issues:

• Open or sealed barrel system?  A sealed barrel system uses watertight connections everywhere.  An open barrel system usually has water entering through the open top of a barrel.
• Diverter or open barrel top?  Should water enter the system through the top of a barrel, or through a tube from a diverter?

There are many kinds of downspout diverters available.  After wading through the characteristics of many, it became apparent that there were a few different types:

• Offset diverters - usually a Y-shaped downspout with a lever for manually selecting whether to send all the water to the water barrel or down to the ground through the rest of the vertical downspout (or a new replacement for the rest of the downspout).
• Automatic diverters with automatic overflow.  A single tube goes to the rain barrel.  The barrel must be of the sealed type, so when the barrel is full the tube will fill with water and all water will then go down the downspout.  There is one exception to the "sealed type" rule: If the barrel is connected to the diverter through the side of the barrel, an automatic diverter which is installed at the same height as the barrel's opening can work.
• Diverter and overflow tubes.  One tube goes from the diverter to the rain barrel, and an overflow tube comes from the rain barrel to the downspout.  If the overflow tube is below the level of the rain barrel's overflow, this can work with an open barrel system.

Decision: Open barrel system

I wanted to keep the intake both simple and allow maximum capture.  So I decided to simply cut the downspouts above the level of the barrel and put in new elbows, directing the water away from the house and toward the open top of the barrel.  All the water will be aimed at the barrel, and I'll deal with the overflow in the barrel and on top of it.

That means that I will use a design where there is a wide opening in the top of the barrel.  So it will be an open barrel system instead of a sealed barrel system.  The exact aiming of the downspout can be adjusted by adding a short length of downspout, or a short flexible downspout extension.

Catching rain water is against the law - ksl.com

Oh, great. Utah requires a "valid water right" in order for you to use rain water that falls on your property. I'm glad I'm not in Utah.

Catching rain water is against the law - ksl.com

How much water can I collect?

I want to use rainwater in my garden, but how much might I get?  Will one 55 gallon barrel be more than enough, or can I expect more water than that?

Calculating how much water is available

The formula for calculating how much water my roof will collect is:

[ Collection area (in square feet) x 144 (square inches per foot) x Rainfall (inches of rain water depth) ] / 231 (cubic inches per gallon) = Gallons of water

Those square feet are based on flat land, so the slope of my roof doesn't matter.  With a house that's about 50 feet by 30 feet, that's 216,000 square inches.  If I capture all of a one-inch rainfall that's 931 gallons.  Okay, so one inch of rain is a lot of water.

How much rain can I expect?

I'm in Minnesota, and the average rainfall during each month of the growing season (April - October) is:

2.06   3.06   4.17   3.95   3.69   2.91   2.29

That's 22.13 inches total, divided over 7 months is a little over 3 inches a month, so there's about one inch of rainfall every 10 days.

931 gallons every 10 days.  That does seem useful.  At a minimum I can keep the dry flower box damp.

Average rainfall for each state

You can find your state's average rainfall in the table below, which came from the NOAA.  This is a rough estimate, as many states have wetter and drier areas.

Total Precipitation in inches by month
 Climatology by state based on climate division data: 1971-2000
  
   State           Jan    Feb    Mar    Apr    May    Jun    Jul    Aug    Sep    Oct    Nov    Dec    Total
Alabama            5.91   5.18   6.65   4.77   4.69   4.59   5.39   3.90   4.26   3.16   4.79   5.01   58.28
Arizona            1.30   1.25   1.35   0.54   0.42   0.31   1.74   2.09   1.30   1.20   0.97   1.13   13.61
Arkansas           3.65   3.61   4.93   4.82   5.20   4.31   3.52   2.87   3.72   4.08   5.34   4.72   50.78
California         4.14   3.95   3.55   1.40   0.83   0.32   0.19   0.30   0.58   1.20   2.63   3.11   22.20
Colorado           0.79   0.75   1.29   1.47   1.92   1.44   2.01   1.95   1.35   1.20   1.03   0.77   15.97
Connecticut        4.30   3.23   4.42   4.30   4.33   4.05   4.19   4.39   4.36   4.31   4.42   4.08   50.39
Delaware           3.92   3.10   4.34   3.51   4.18   3.52   4.05   4.63   4.19   3.38   3.31   3.55   45.68
Florida            3.61   3.17   4.13   2.84   3.92   6.94   7.19   7.26   6.39   3.46   2.88   2.76   54.57
Georgia            5.20   4.49   5.28   3.62   3.58   4.44   5.05   4.66   3.89   3.01   3.55   3.94   50.72
Idaho              2.12   1.72   1.73   1.56   1.97   1.51   0.92   0.84   1.08   1.30   2.07   2.14   18.96
Illinois           1.97   1.99   3.22   3.83   4.31   4.12   3.94   3.69   3.24   2.87   3.41   2.74   39.32
Indiana            2.44   2.31   3.40   3.96   4.47   4.25   4.20   3.88   3.18   2.92   3.62   3.09   41.72
Iowa               0.95   0.98   2.20   3.33   4.23   4.62   4.27   4.18   3.40   2.51   2.13   1.24   34.05
Kansas             0.77   0.91   2.25   2.59   4.18   3.88   3.61   3.16   2.68   2.18   1.73   0.98   28.92
Kentucky           3.77   3.77   4.60   4.19   5.05   4.34   4.47   3.71   3.49   3.13   4.09   4.38   48.98
Louisiana          5.91   4.66   5.32   4.89   5.46   5.20   5.15   4.47   4.55   4.05   5.06   5.38   60.09
Maine              3.46   2.52   3.37   3.46   3.64   3.77   3.74   3.61   3.68   3.70   3.82   3.51   42.28
Maryland           3.66   3.03   4.09   3.43   4.27   3.80   4.11   4.01   4.04   3.38   3.41   3.41   44.64
Massachusetts      4.17   3.34   4.16   4.11   3.91   3.84   3.83   4.02   3.94   4.16   4.35   4.05   47.88
Michigan           2.02   1.45   2.22   2.69   2.94   3.23   3.15   3.58   3.65   2.85   2.77   2.28   32.84
Minnesota          0.86   0.64   1.45   2.06   3.06   4.17   3.95   3.69   2.91   2.29   1.58   0.77   27.44
Mississippi        5.92   4.96   6.30   5.61   5.39   4.47   4.80   3.67   3.81   3.45   5.19   5.64   59.23
Missouri           1.95   2.15   3.51   4.04   4.82   4.26   3.96   3.58   3.97   3.36   3.82   2.81   42.23
Montana            0.80   0.60   0.90   1.30   2.34   2.40   1.65   1.35   1.33   1.05   0.86   0.80   15.37
Nebraska           0.51   0.60   1.66   2.38   3.75   3.45   3.27   2.63   2.10   1.56   1.16   0.57   23.63
Nevada             0.96   0.92   1.09   0.76   1.01   0.63   0.51   0.63   0.71   0.75   0.81   0.76    9.54
New Hampshire      3.42   2.62   3.37   3.50   3.76   3.85   3.94   3.97   3.66   3.95   3.93   3.44   43.42
New Jersey         3.94   2.96   4.18   3.93   4.28   3.77   4.46   4.57   4.14   3.51   3.70   3.71   47.15
New Mexico         0.67   0.60   0.71   0.63   1.11   1.23   2.27   2.64   1.82   1.34   0.83   0.78   14.63
New York           2.99   2.41   3.12   3.42   3.68   4.00   3.81   3.86   4.14   3.48   3.74   3.24   41.90
North Carolina     4.51   3.71   4.67   3.47   4.28   4.40   5.04   4.97   4.78   3.61   3.45   3.57   50.45
North Dakota       0.50   0.45   0.80   1.40   2.31   3.19   2.75   2.10   1.74   1.41   0.73   0.44   17.82
Ohio               2.51   2.27   3.06   3.47   4.06   4.10   4.09   3.77   3.10   2.62   3.16   2.93   39.16
Oklahoma           1.48   1.78   3.07   3.32   5.13   4.24   2.73   2.75   3.80   3.39   2.79   2.05   36.55
Oregon             3.79   3.16   2.93   2.18   1.88   1.27   0.62   0.73   1.07   1.90   3.97   4.06   27.55
Pennsylvania       3.04   2.58   3.41   3.55   4.07   4.45   4.15   3.78   4.08   3.18   3.58   3.16   43.02
Rhode Island       4.45   3.63   4.65   4.32   3.72   3.52   3.20   3.99   3.80   3.79   4.55   4.36   47.98
South Carolina     4.70   3.79   4.64   3.16   3.69   4.72   5.05   5.29   4.51   3.42   3.21   3.67   49.84
South Dakota       0.45   0.53   1.30   2.11   3.10   3.24   2.75   2.13   1.66   1.62   0.82   0.44   20.14
Tennessee          4.65   4.31   5.60   4.51   5.33   4.48   4.67   3.52   3.88   3.32   4.77   5.18   54.22
Texas              1.59   1.67   1.85   2.14   3.52   3.35   2.22   2.54   3.19   2.95   2.02   1.84   28.87
Utah               1.05   0.99   1.21   1.07   1.20   0.64   0.88   1.01   1.07   1.30   0.99   0.82   12.26
Vermont            3.11   2.33   3.07   3.28   3.84   3.93   4.21   4.49   3.97   3.67   3.73   3.19   42.82
Virginia           3.64   3.13   4.04   3.42   4.26   3.79   4.34   3.84   4.00   3.50   3.29   3.15   44.39
Washington         5.38   4.37   3.76   2.71   2.23   1.77   1.02   1.05   1.65   3.05   5.85   5.93   38.78
West Virginia      3.46   3.11   3.97   3.62   4.57   4.23   4.75   4.13   3.51   3.05   3.46   3.43   45.30
Wisconsin          1.22   1.00   1.96   2.86   3.37   4.02   4.07   4.27   3.74   2.50   2.29   1.35   32.64
Wyoming            0.63   0.57   0.86   1.36   2.06   1.58   1.33   1.02   1.14   1.04   0.76   0.62   12.97
  
 Calculated at NOAA-CIRES CDC based on data obtained from NCDC

RainPerfect Rain Barrel Pump

I'll revisit pumping later, but before I forget I'll mention that I just noticed the RainPerfect solar-powered rain barrel pump.  It has a battery to store the electric power from its solar cells, able to power pumping of up to 100 gallons at 13 psi.

The design requires that the control box with the battery and pump (actually I suspect the pump is inside the barrel) are to be mounted on top of a barrel, providing a compact package where the hose is attached.  A pipe under the control box extends down into the barrel.  This can be a problem for a single rain barrel with an opening on the top, but would work on a barrel with a hose intake or on one of the overflow barrels of a multibarrel installation.

More at: RainPerfect™ Rain Barrel Pump by Rule

Rain water safety

I know that urban rainwater is considered to not be potable, but I did consider whether to use it on my few vegetable plants.  I decided not to use it on my tomatoes and other veggies.

Dust and ash (from incinerators and coal power plants) are one source of contamination.  During a dry period, windblown dust accumulates on roofs.  Ash accumulates year-round, depending upon wind direction from the incinerator or power plant.  Minerals and toxins from those can be reduced by not collecting the first rain after winter or after a dry spell.

However, bird droppings and squirrel droppings can't be avoided so easily.  I could test for minerals and toxins to learn what my water is like, but bird droppings are a more random source and I never know when a flock of something will pass by.

I'm not yet interested in adding filters suitable for removing bacterial contamination, so I'll use potable water for the vegetables.  I don't have many of those anyway.  The flowers are thirstier, so they'll get the rainwater.

Almost-free water

I have a small garden area and a flower box that have trouble staying green.  There is sand under the topsoil, so I started by adding more organic matter to the dirt so it would retain water better.  But it's a shame to run the sprinkler every few days when we tend to get rain once a week.  So I started looking at collecting the rain water so I can make use of it.

As we all do, I have limited funds, so I want to spend as little as possible.