My rain barrel froze solid during that cold snap in January

I was out in rural Vermont and thought my setup was fine. Woke up to 10 degree temps and found the barrel completely frozen with a crack running down the side. Took me 3 hours with a heat gun to thaw the valve just so I could drain it. Anyone else deal with winterizing issues or found a cheap way to keep barrels from splitting?

3 comments

3 Comments

calebc401mo ago

Man, that duct tape fix sounds exactly like something I'd end up doing. I learned the hard way that you gotta drain those barrels before the real cold hits, or at least leave the spigot cracked open so the ice has somewhere to go. My neighbor swears by floating a chunk of foam or a plastic jug with some air in it on top of the water, says it takes the pressure so the barrel doesn't split. I tried it last fall and my barrel came through that January freeze just fine with only a thin layer of ice on top. Looks goofy as hell with that jug bobbing around in there but beats shelling out for a new barrel every winter.

blairc901mo ago

Honestly, that heat gun trick was smart. I had a similar issue last winter with a cheap plastic watering can I left out overnight. It turned into a solid block and the handle snapped right off when I tried to move it. Ended up just leaving it in the garage to thaw for two days and then duct taped the handle back on. Still holds water if you don't look at it too hard.

ray_williams1mo ago

Back when I was younger, I figured a plastic jug or foam float was just one of those old timer superstitions that didn't really do anything. But I had a 55 gallon drum split right down the seam two winters ago, lost probably thirty gallons of water all over the patio. This past fall I finally tried the floating jug trick with a half gallon milk jug, and sure enough the barrel came through that cold snap in January without a single crack. It does look a bit silly but it saved me from having to haul another barrel home from the farm supply.