Device for collecting rainwater for plants

hello932

Its been absolutely lashing today and the plants in my back garden are really soaked But a lot of the water was wasted into the ground-are there devices you can buy from garden centres that trap the water in a barrel or container for later use?

looksee

Well yes, but you need a supply of water coming off a roof so you can direct the water into a container. I have just put guttering on a garden shed for that purpose (I didn't get the barrel yet though so the water is still going into the ground :rolleyes:)

simonj

Waterbutt is what yer looking for -
http://www.wormery.ie/waterbutts.htm

but I'm sure they are in most large homecare/DiY places as well as garden centres

magicbastarder

i installed one yesterday. 100l model, it was installed at 11am and full by 4pm.

Sonnenblumen

hello932 wrote: »

Its been absolutely lashing today and the plants in my back garden are really soaked But a lot of the water was wasted into the ground-are there devices you can buy from garden centres that trap the water in a barrel or container for later use?

Have you tried using an open top bin/plastic barrel? You'd be surprised just how much rain they collect. If you have outbuildings you could consider rain butts, but capacity tends to be very limited, and personally not sure if the gain is woirth the expense over a simple barrel etc

hello932

magicbastarder wrote: »

i installed one yesterday. 100l model, it was installed at 11am and full by 4pm.

Is this just a basic barrel model? to be honest i would rather have a basic container in the garden that just sits there by itself and collects water. I dont wont to have to add extra piping to the roof/or my house-currently occupied with water/toilet pipes :pac: I assume that a basic barrel model is just that yes-a open receptacle for water with no external pipes?

Goodne

Hi, Dublin City Council sell water butts for €40 complete with tap & all the connectors needed. It doesn't matter where you are from they will sell them to you once you can collect. I fitted mine a month ago and am delighted with it.

magicbastarder

hello932 wrote: »

Is this just a basic barrel model? to be honest i would rather have a basic container in the garden that just sits there by itself and collects water. I dont wont to have to add extra piping to the roof/or my house-currently occupied with water/toilet pipes :pac: I assume that a basic barrel model is just that yes-a open receptacle for water with no external pipes?

with the one i got, you have to install a diverter to your down pipe to catch the run-off from the gutters - it comes with a 500mm long pipe, so it has to stand close to an existing downpipe.
it's one of these:
http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/7202272/Trail/searchtext%3EWATER+BUTT.htm

inigo

magicbastarder, do you have to drill any holes in the pipes with that?

magicbastarder

you have to cut the pipe clean through.

inigo

Are there any water butts that don't require drilling or cutting any of the existing pipes? My landlord wasn't exactly thrilled when I mentioned the idea...

magicbastarder

if you have downpipes that reach the ground, i think you're out of options - you need a way to divert water out of the pipe in such a way that it enters at the top of the butt.

inigo

There is a part of the roof higher than the rest. It was built to accommodate windows in the first floor/attic bedrooms and bathroom instead of velux. Its gutter has no pipe down so the water runs free onto the original roof which has its own gutter and pipes reaching the ground. So I suppose I could try to collect that water and run it down a hose or something similar into the water butt. Any ideas how or better suggestions?

Also, what happens when the butt fills up? Is there a sort of bypass or is it just like a big bucket with a tap at the bottom?

Sorry for "hijacking" the thread!!

goat2

inigo wrote: »

There is a part of the roof higher than the rest. It was built to accommodate windows in the first floor/attic bedrooms and bathroom instead of velux. Its gutter has no pipe down so the water runs free onto the original roof which has its own gutter and pipes reaching the ground. So I suppose I could try to collect that water and run it down a hose or something similar into the water butt. Any ideas how or better suggestions?

Also, what happens when the butt fills up? Is there a sort of bypass or is it just like a big bucket with a tap at the bottom?

Sorry for "hijacking" the thread!!

i have the same question, what happens when the butt fill up, where does the rain then go, is there a diverter to take it back downpipe

magicbastarder

with the diverter i used, which is the one requiring the pipe to be sawn, it uses a doughnut shaped 'basin' - i.e. with a hole in the middle. the water collects in the basin, and runs down a small pipe into the water butt. this diverter is positioned lower than the top of the water butt, but higher than the inlet of the pipe into it; so when the water level reaches the level of the diverter, the 'basin' fills and overflows inside the downpipe.

X1R

A meter squared of roof will collect (in an average Irish year) 1000 ltrs of water. The handiest of all collectors are IBC's. These are 1000 ltr containers, on a plastic pallet surrounded by a tubular cage. There is a 1" outlet at the botom with a large opening on top to allow you to fill it. They can be bough from most good hardware/farmers co-ops for around €50-€80. Hope this helps.....;)

goat2

X1R wrote: »

A meter squared of roof will collect (in an average Irish year) 1000 ltrs of water. The handiest of all collectors are IBC's. These are 1000 ltr containers, on a plastic pallet surrounded by a tubular cage. There is a 1" outlet at the botom with a large opening on top to allow you to fill it. They can be bough from most good hardware/farmers co-ops for around €50-€80. Hope this helps.....;)

that is one brilliant idea, will be looking it up thank you