Water conservation - rain barrels - 2024 01 27


 

Buyers Guide.org

Finding the best rain barrel product to create a water conservation infrastructure on your property.

Our property has 5 existing downspouts draining rain from the main roofs of the house. If we have a 50 gallon water barrel under each downspout, we could have at least 250 gallons of water in reserve for the summer drought.

If we put 2 water barrels under each downspout, we could have 500 gallons of water on hand.

The average cost for a plastic 50 gallon barrel is between $150 and $250, budget $50 for extra fittings, say $300 per barrel for materials. Installation will depend on each setting, but there will likely be work to establish a footing for the barrel and then downspout and house connections.

There is also the option of having a drip hose installed in the garden to connect to the rain barrel. The drip hose would be installed during garden bed installation. 

The rain barrel could serve as a water distribution centre, so the garden hose could also be plumbed to fill the rain barrel and then feed the drip hose system from the barrel tank.

The work of installing each barrel would include:

  1. Water barrel system design 
    1. onsite consult
    2. drawings, and plans
    3. final approval
  2. Purchasing and delivery of water barrels, fittings and footings
    1.  sourcing and ordering
    2. delivery and onsite storage
    3. onsite materials handling and management
  3. Installation of footing, barrel and fittings
    1. excavation
    2. footing install
    3. decouple existing downspout
    4. barrel install
    5. fittings install
    6. drip hose garden watering system connection
Pricing model is based on time and materials. Multiple barrel installation may be priced for volume discount.



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