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Used to think rain barrels were a waste of time... now I'm hooked
For years I just let all that roof runoff go to waste, figured it wasn't worth the hassle of setting up barrels and hoses. Then last April after a dry spell, my neighbor in Vermont showed me his setup with a 55 gallon drum and a simple spigot... he watered his whole garden for free during a drought. I finally built my own system last month, cost me about $30 for the barrel and a screen, and after one good rain I had enough to keep my tomato plants alive for two weeks. Any of you use first flush diverters or just let it all go straight in?
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price.ben1mo ago
Used to think rain barrels were a waste of time" - sounds like you finally saw the light. Next thing you know you'll be out there measuring how many inches fell with a ruler.
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xena_bailey181mo ago
Ha, @price.ben will probably be building a rain gauge next to his barrel before summer hits!
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karenb971mo ago
That's the thing about little habits like that... they sneak up on you. You start with one rain barrel to save a few bucks on the garden, then suddenly you're checking the weather forecast just to see if your collection tank will fill back up. It's funny how keeping track of something so simple makes you notice all the other small patterns you used to ignore. Kind of like how people who start composting end up knowing exactly what their kitchen produces each week. One small observation leads to another and before you know it you're seeing connections everywhere you look.
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claire_grant341mo ago
Oh man, that's so true about the compost thing! I started one last year just to cut down on trash and now I'm literally weighing my banana peels like it's a science experiment. It's wild how paying attention to one small thing opens your eyes to everything else you never noticed before.
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the_thomas1mo ago
Does your setup have any kind of overflow pipe or do you just let it spill when the barrel is full? I'm trying to figure out if I should add a second barrel in series so my tomatoes don't dry out during a heat wave. I keep hearing mixed opinions about whether first flush diverters are worth the extra plumbing.
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