Rain barrel

We used a plastic trash can as a rain barrel for a number of years. The barrel sits by the side of the house and collects rain if we remember to remove the lid. If an inch of rain falls and the lid was removed before the storm we accumulated an inch of rain. Not the most efficient way to collect water.

Last week we purchased a rain barrel from a catalog and now I need to hook it up to the down spout. I'll need some cinder blocks to elevate the barrel which will make draining the barrel easier. I also need some tubing to divert the overflow water into the drainage pipes. When the house was built I added 25 feet of drain pipe onto every downspout so the water was discharged away from the house. With all the plants, electrical boxes, air conditioners, etc we only have one downspout that can have a rain barrel.

I think every community should pass a law that all new homes must have a rain barrel at every downspout. It's my belief that people would use rain water if it was easily collected. Adding rain barrels after the fact is more work than most people want to undertake. Besides, the barrels are expensive and additional fees are tacked onto the price for shipping. I thought the barrel would ship in a large box but it was wrapped in shrink wrap plastic. I'd like to have spoken with the FedEx guy that delivered the barrel.