GARDENING: Dear Santa: Bring me a rain barrel

Dear Santa, I’ve been reasonably good and would like pearl earrings, an electric lap blanket, a digital reading device and oh yes...a rain water harvesting system. With water being a top concern, you may want this on your Christmas wish list. Capturing rain water is a great way to improve your water resources.

It may have been a while since you’ve experienced a 1 inch rain but for every square foot of roof surface, you can collect 0.6 gallons of water. A 1,000 square foot roof can yield about 600 gallons of water from a one inch rain. With a 1/2 inch rain you get 300 gallons. So, even modest amounts of rainfall can add up in a hurry providing you with a high quality water source.

The water from a rain barrel is non-potable (not for consumption), but it is great for the plants. Rainwater can be used for hand watering plants, watering plants with drip irrigation, watering pets, wildlife or livestock, filling a birdbath or sourcing a water feature.

Capturing rain water reduces the amount of municipal or well water you use and it reduces runoff, nuisance storm water and erosion. Rainwater is great for plants, because it is naturally soft, has a pH of about 6 and it contains no chemicals.

One of the simplest, yet effective ways of collecting rainwater is by using rain barrels. It was common for our grandparents to have rain barrels and it has once again become popular. Commercial rain barrels are easily found at hardware, garden centers and other retail outlets. Some are very ornate while others are strictly utilitarian. Homemade rain barrels are just as useful as the store-bought and with the right materials are easy to construct. And...the price is right.

Ideally, you will want to choose a food-grade container that holds 20-50 gallons. Food grade barrels haven’t contained toxins and they are strong enough to hold water. The barrel should be opaque so algae doesn’t grow in the barrel. If it doesn’t block sunlight, barrels can be roughened, primed and painted to exclude light.

Barrels can be fitted with a faucet so a water hose or drip irrigation can be connected to it. An overflow pipe can be installed too. And for increased water storage capacity, multiple barrels can be connected together so water flows to them during big or multiple rain events.

Situating barrels up on a platform will increase the gravity-fed pressure to help push water through a hose or drip irrigation better. The platform must be on a firm, level surface and be strong enough to hold the weight of a full barrel or barrels.

Place barrels under a valley to catch water as it pours off the roof. Openings where the water pours into the barrel can be screened to keep mosquitoes from breeding in the water. Rain gutters are the ultimate means of directing water into a barrel.

Think about the roof of your home, detached buildings, barn or shop and calculate your water collection potential. You will be surprised at how much you can supplement your water resources. For detailed instructions on this topic, contact Texas AgriLIFE Extension Service for copy of Making a Rain Barrel L-5518 or retrieve a copy from the internet.

A rain barrel today a thousand gallon tank tomorrow! Either way a rainwater collection system could be the perfect gift.