Rainwater Harvesting Tips

If you’ve ever lived through a drought or live in a drought-prone area (pretty much any place down South this summer) then you know the wistful feeling of watching it rain and wishing there were some way you could collect some of that rainwater to help tend to your lawn and garden.  The good news is there are a number of ways for you to harvest rainwater - and most are pretty easy.  Here are five tips:

Rainwater harvesting systems channel rainwater from a roof into a storage tank via an arrangement of gutters and pipes. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

#1.)  The good old-fashioned rain barrel is perhaps the easiest and most affordable option.  You can make rain barrels yourself from waterproof containers you have lying around the home or you can purchase them online or in your local home or garden store.  While placing a bucket out in the rain is one option, the best way to capture the most rainwater is to position your barrel under your rain gutter downspout.  Ensure that the downspout flows directly into the barrel.  That way you’re collecting all of the rain that hits the roof of your home, which is a much larger surface area than a bucket collecting water in the yard.

#2.)  Tap your rain barrel with two flows.  One flow will be there to release overflow in the event it rains so hard that your barrel fills up.  The other flow can be used to utilize the water.  You can attach a hose to it and direct water into your garden, or simply have a faucet you can turn off and on to fill your watering can as needed.  You can purchase these simple faucets and overflow attachments at your local hardware or home store.

#3.)  Protect your rain gutters.  Placing covers over your rain gutters prevents the debris on your roof from entering your rain barrel.  This debris can rot and contaminate the water.  And it can clog the outputs in your rain barrel, making using the water difficult to draw out of the barrel.  Rain gutter guards and shields can be purchased at your local hardware or home store and range in price from a few dollars to a high-priced and comprehensive gutter system.

Rain Barrel System (Photo credit: Chiot's Run)

#4.)  Pay close attention to how your rain gutters are set up.  If you have more than one downspout, you may want to position a rain barrel under each downspout to harvest as much rainwater as possible.

#5.)  Finally, make sure you’re allowed to harvest rainwater.  It may sound silly but in some areas with water rights restrictions, you’re not allowed to harvest rainwater and can be fined (which in my opinion is pretty ridiculous, but if you live in a drought-prone area you may want to check). 

Harvesting rainwater is an excellent way to maximize available water for your garden - and it also saves you money on your water bill!