Chicago-area gardeners thirst for rain barrels

Greenmaker supply near Pulaski and Diversey has a neat device that connects the downspout to the rain barrel and redirects overflow form the barrel to the downspout when the barrel is full. Pretty cool:
http://www.greenmakersupply.com/products/auto...

if you use these, make sure they don't become mosquito breeding grounds. a little dish soap in each barrel will kill mosquitos but won't hurt the water for garden use. by a little I mean 1-2 tablespoons per barrel.

Tree huggers, next they'll say global warming is happening.

check out the rain barrel kits, downspout filters, downspout diverters and mosquito control products here: http://www.aquabarrel.com

In Greenville, SC we are using 2" PVC pipe to join barrles, so no waste! Just an angled piece of downspout is THE perfect connecter from downspout to barrel; works great! Barrels are selling hot here for $99. ea. You are blessed to get them for less. Black ones can be painted, terracota ones not.

PS. Get the largest barrels you can, they fill fast! Set on top of 2 cement blocks so you could get a bucket under the spout if you wish. Once full, they are HEAVY! Add 1 cup vinegar to halt mold, fungus or other undesired growth.

I purchased my rain barrel from the Conservation Foundation. I run my sump pump water into it on a temporary basis. I make sure I'm home to watch the system carefully to avoid overflow. After about a half hour, the 55 gal. container is full. I also divert laundry water into my sump pit when I do a delicate load where I don't use a lot of detergent. One load of wash fills it up half way. I didn't want to reconfigure my gutters, so my set up is high maintenance! I watch over both water capturing scenarios very carefully. The barrel is out of sight under our deck and I get pretty good water pressure when it's full.

Lynne_7 wrote:

PS. Get the largest barrels you can, they fill fast! Set on top of 2 cement blocks so you could get a bucket under the spout if you wish. Once full, they are HEAVY! Add 1 cup vinegar to halt mold, fungus or other undesired growth.

good suggestion!

Size DOES matter, Lynne_7 is correct! http://www.aquabarrel.com has a 75 gallon one and I hear that they are getting to release a new 80 gallon unit in the next few weeks.

I have rain barrels and I'll install them for you too. Shoot me an email if you live in the Baltimore/D.C. area.
markplutz@aol.com
Take care,
Mark

I have 55-60 gallon rain barrels for sale in chicagoland area. Price starts from $45-$70. I have white, 2 styles of blue and the famous terre cotto color that I actually hate. email me for more info at chicagofella123@yahoo.com. You can also use used vegtable or olive oil to put in the barrels so mosquitos cant breed. Price of energy is going up, it takes energy to filter and pump water into our homes. when you use energy your attributing to green house gases.