220gal rain water collection system
Vložit
- čas přidán 20. 08. 2024
- Many thanks to the people that post how to videos on this subject.
I borrowed a little from a couple different videos and came up with this system. Works well. We had a few hours of light rain right after installation and the barrels are doing their job.
After the research was done and supplies gathered, the ground work and assembly took just over 8hrs for one person. This is an easy weekend project and is well worth the time and money.
A person should have 70 gallons of water per person (min) on hand in case of an emergency. This is not drinking water, but it can be very easily and the garden likes rain water the best.
Check out the installation video for a complete list of materials needed for this project and pictures of the installation process. - Věda a technologie
I wish you had a video on how you built that. I’ve been looking for a good set up for rain catchment and so far this is the best one I’ve seen.
Ben, I did an install video also for this set up. Its mostly a picture show of how the items were selected and installed. You are correct, a little direction would help. I installed every piece to each barrel seperately while upright. Then put all the barrels in place (upside down), then installed my smaller pieces for the manifold. I did have some leaks initially at the bung, so I took it all apart and applied plumbing teflon tape to the threads. Works perfect now. Thanks for checking it out.
Thanks Tex. I gave you props at the 0:16 mark of the vid. Your set up was an inspiration to do my own. Appreciate the compliment.
You are correct, the barrels will fill from the bottom of each barrel, thru the manifold. The overflow at the top of each barrel serves two purposes. One is that when the barrels are full, it gives a route for added rainwater to overflow with a larger dia pipe. I do not have overflow routed thru my downspout like some of the other models. The second purpose is for vacume. The two center barrels would create a vacume when draining. The other option is a hole in the top of each.
I found my barrels and supplier from a Craigslist search of my local area. I understand they can be found at manufacturers of food products (important to have food grade barrels). Put an ad on CL and see what pops. The guy I bought from had a warehouse full of barrels of different sizes and shapes. Good luck.
hahaha, that victory laugh... success!
Excellent setup!
The earlier reference to the blocks was pertinant. The blocks are more likely to break under the weight of the barrels, the way you have them stacked.
The 3/4" threads in those bungs are very likely to strip out. Ask me how I know. LOL
Your same setup will still work if you flip everything upside down and put a tap on the side/bottom of the last barrel. Easy enough to plumb it in place of the 2" overflow you have. Then put another overflow near the top of the upturned barrel.
Hey thanks for our input.
I should explain the expansion tubes were more for pressure than for flow. Agree, the design of the system is from the bottom up thru the manifold. The system works great, water flows fast. I found the center barrels would require a pressure release or the sides cave in when they drain. Like if you turn over a full 2 liter bottle. I guess I could have just drilled a hole, but this keeps it sealed from bugs, etc. Plenty of ways to do it Im sure. Thanks again..
Since the video I have added a 12V DC pump (found at local discount store) and attached to a deep cell battery that stays inside the barn. It pumps 200gph thru a long hose uphill to my garden and it works perfect to pump garden water over the fresh veggies. The battery is charged by a solar charger on the barn.
Wow, that looks great man! Fantastic installation!! Well done!
Thanks for the compliment. The barrels were purchased from a local provider. He sells all sizes of food grade barrels. He did not disclose where the barrels were obtained, but only that they stored balsamic vinegar. There was still some in each barrel when I cleaned them and prepared for storing water.
Yes, the manifold system will work on any size container. Works great, equal fill, equal empty. Color matters if in a very sunny spot like I have. Light will assist with bacterial growth in the barrels. I have heard of folks using white, running a piece of masking tape down the lenth of the barrel and paint the barrel a darker color like green using plastic paint. Then remove the tape and you have a fill indicator as you can see the water level in the white of the barrel. Good luck
Hey , thanks for the compliment. This system is flawless. Never had a problem with it. Not sure who Kevin Smith is but will check it out. LOL.
this is awesome. i would sugest you raise the barrels higher in the air. the higher up they are the more watter pressure you will have. XD
Thanks for the advice. I may build a new set up soon and will consider your advice. Thanks.
I have not researched any winter storage options. That is a very good question and I think of it every fall when I winterize our property (Open the ball valve on the barrels, remove all hoses, etc).
My system has been thru two full seasons and only sun fade that I see. I only used sealing tape on the threads and pvc glue on the joints with no leaks. I have seen silicone and it looks bad after one season. Also I do not want my water to contact silicone (personal preference).
The top connecting tubing is just sump pump piping found in the plumbing section at the big box stores. The material is very flexible and cuts easy.
@aellis1790 ..You are correct; the barrels will fill from the bottom of each barrel, thru the manifold. The overflow at the top of each barrel serves two purposes. One is that when the barrels are full, it gives a route for added rainwater to overflow with a larger dia pipe. I do not have overflow routed thru my downspout like some of the other models. The second purpose is for vacuum. The two center barrels would create a vacuum when draining. The other option is a hole in the top of each.
Clean, simple and useful.
Also, visually pleasing
Thank you. RR
Thanks for checking out the video. Appreciate your feedback
You did a great job!
Martinb22a, thanks for the compliment. The system works fantastic. The barrels on the outside have holes that assist with venting already (input from the gutter and overflow) therefore I had to put some type of hole in the center barrels to prevent suction. The rise and fall are done thru the manifold at the bottom. All barrels fill and drain at the same time. I just threaded the bung on the barrel and used tape to seal the threads. Check out my installation vid for detailed pics.
The bungs on these barrels screw out and have a spot in the center of the hole that needs to be cut out and some even have threads in the bung ready for a ¾” fitting. I used a steel pipe and threaded mine because they were smooth. Use a sealing tape on a standard PVC fitting and thread it into the bung. I then used plumber’s sealer on the PVC pipes and fittings all the way to the ball valve. Attach PVC to garden hose adaptor and add your garden hose extensions and accessories.
This is kinda awesome and great for the environment. Kudos. BTW you sound exactly like the director Kevin Smith lol
If you start with new barrels, you can put 3/4" plumbing in the bottoms, by working through the bung openings.
Plumbing just about any of these sort of installations is a lot easier if you use barrels with removeable tops.
@isabstmr The white pvc pipe is a fitting with a 3/4" threaded end. Some of the bungs on these barrels are threaded and all you need is sealing tape. My barrels were not threaded, I used a steel pipe to thread and worked great. The White bungs come with most barrels or can be purchased seperately from online vendors. Do a Craigs search in your area, the barrels are not expensive and some will give them away. Thanks for the compliment.
Good job. Nice set-up.
this is great I'm going to do our just like it, great job!!!!
Linda, it sounds like you have a good start to a water collection system. After reading your comment I realize I could add some information on the installation video to answer these questions. I cannot give you exact prices because a lot of it can be found cheap or free. The list I will add, will be posted to the installation video. You can get to it from this page as video response or from my channel. Please make a video and share when yours is complete. If I can help along the way, let me know
NICE!!! Thanks for the info.
I personally would not drink directly from the barrel water without a filter in place. This can be done making a sand filter or adding any filter systems you can purchase. This is potable water I use for the garden and would use in an emergency and only drink if I could boil clean or filter completely. Do your homework, ask around and make the best decision you can afford. This is a work in progress, there are a lot of neat systems out there.
the purpose is just to release pressure as the barrels drain. Not for fill or routing. When the barrels are full, I expect the water will use that path as well to make its way out the overflow on the last barrel. There are many ways to release the pressure, this is just the route I used.
Thanks, still working great.
Maybe so, I was more thinking of contact surface for the weight of the water. Thanks for your input.
Good job but the overflow expansion tubes weren't neccesary. As all the drums are connected together and water flowing into the first drum will force water into the next drum and so on. The beautiful thing about water is that it will alway's find it's own level. Not hackin on you just letting you know so if you do it again you wont have to waste time with those tube's. ;)
I noticed your water pressure is not very good and I think the reason is you need to have extra holes in the barrels to let some air in, once that is done your water will spill out much faster, and no overflow is necessary except for one barrel only, you just need to let air in at the top of even one barrel.
+Chris Darby Thank you for your input. Some do not understand why the holes are needed for proper flow. This was not an issue with the set up here but I could see it needed by some.
ok, maybe a dumb question. What is the order you put everything together? Did you put the piping in the bungs while they were upright, then turn them over and hook everything up? Maybe a little step by step of the construction would be helpful- at least to me! Thanks! - otherwise- great video!
The white pvc pipe that is attached to the opening of the barrel- is it screwed in? The white ring that is visible on the barrel opening, is that part of the barrel itself? Looks very professional.
@JustForYouinTempe Thanks for the compliment
Great system - I used the same size pvc pipes, ball valve is at one end. However, no water is coming out of my 50 foot hose. Is that too long or what could be the issue? (Hose works fine on spigot, so does the ball valve - has a lot of pressure when turned on) Let em know before I implement plan b-that is replace pipes with 2 in pvc pipes
@txdurk No sand filters, but going to work on that this spring...
So niceee
Nice system! I have a couple questions though... where did you get your barrels, and where did you get those bung connectors? I live in the sticks so sometimes it's hard to come buy little parts like that (connectors).
Thanks for the great post. I'm building a similar system and was hoping you could help me. Do you have vent holes in the barrels to allow the water level to rise and fall? Could you tell me the technique you used to connect the hoses to the barrels so there weren't leaks? My barrel will be fed via two, 1 inch lines that come off a rain diverter on my downspout. I was told I could insert these lines at any height on the barrel (lower preferably for my setup), but they need to be water tight.
NICE
Hold on - what is the purpose of upper connecting pipes, if all your barrels are connected together at the bottom?
was wondering what you used for the 2 inch over flow pipes at the top!!
Are all four barrels slow sand filters then with no clean water stotage?
Would you be able to send me a list of all the parts for 3 (55 gallon) barrels? I have the white coca cola barrels with the two top valves that open. Overflow expansion tubes, manifold system with wire hangers to ball valve, 3/4 inch piping (how much). Honestly I'm barely able to follow this. I would be grateful for your step by step assistance. Linda
Fajne . Zapraszam.do siebie❤
Your bricks are not stacked properly. The webs should always be verticle.
MAC construction? Is this in Florida?
Roofing and window company in Missouri
you probably get this alot but where can i find barrels like that? anyone? thank yoU!!! :o)
Lynne, check these out, they may help you:
baytec containers, look for the bulkhead fitting to connect a
faucet to a barrel without using silicone
You tube video:
Rain Barrel Water Pressure/Volume Demonstration.
Grady Barrels for water diverter
information cupboard.com for a great way to connect all barrels
with a manifold system to a single faucet.
You tube video
5 Dollar RAIN BARRELS 55 gallons to 1000 gallons
Connecting multiple barrels with part numbers for the pvc parts
Check these out for ideas that may help you:
baytec containers, look for the bulkhead fitting to connect a
faucet to a barrel without using silicone
You tube video:
Rain Barrel Water Pressure/Volume Demonstration.
Grady Barrels for water diverter
information cupboard.com for a great way to connect all barrels
with a manifold system to a single faucet.
You tube video
5 Dollar RAIN BARRELS 55 gallons to 1000 gallons
Connecting multiple barrels with part numbers for the pvc parts