rain barrels for water off roof?

I am considering placing some rain barrels, like seen here: http://www.sprucecreekrainsaver.com/barrel.html
at some of my downspouts instead of running drain pipes from them to a burried tank (sistern). I wonder if anyone else has done this?
Here are the pros I see: [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
1 - don't have the time & expense of installing drains.
2 - save the water for plants & garden. Our county water is pricey.
3 - save the electric use required to pump from tank. Our coop electric is very high.
4 - nastalgic country appearance of some barrels.
5 - would have water at every barrel if I put them at garage & barn.
6 - I could wear my "green hat" once in a while [img]/forums/images/icons/wink.gif[/img]
Here are some cons: [img]/forums/images/icons/frown.gif[/img]
1 - what about water drainage in the winter? will the barrels break if frozen (here in Ohio)? Would I have to have winter drainage anyway?
2 - How much water will my roof produce (36x30 @ 6/12 pitch)? It seems that a pair of 55 gal barrels may have to be emptied frequently during rainy periods.
3 - Odor & bugs from barrels if water is not used enough?

Any advise or opinions would be appreciated... [img]/forums/images/icons/confused.gif[/img]

[mac]

Boy, this is going to be a doozy, I will ramble and drink more rum and coke as I try to give my opinion. Plastic barrels can be had for about 10$ or so from a coke or pepsi distributor, much cheaper than the company you are looking at. The plumbing can be engineered from a local lumber supply or hardware store. Overflow, there will be a lot during times of heavy storms or gentle long rains and the movement of the excess water will be a problem. I have looked at solar pumping and or a series of hand controled valves which demand constant attention. What will work for you I can't say but the price of those barrels are out of line with where you are trying to go. Good Luck! The reason I don't post more is : My mind is sharper than my spelling!! Mac

[moragafarm]

Down here in the sunny and dry Southwest, water has always been a premium commodity. I have looked into setting up water catchment equipment for a couple years now - I already have barn water filling the horse trough. I have a new LARGE garage which will shed plenty if it rains ('IF' is the operative word). There was a fella at the local growers market trying to sell me a 55 gallon plastic barrel with a window screen leaf trap and a $1.65 plastic valve all for $85. HA! He obviously has never worked on a farm - we tend to be a little more resourceful - especially with our money.

At any rate, I am planning to build a wooden tank on a recycled timber base (I can get my own $1.65 plastic valve) sometime when my list gets shorter. All the water here soaks in - we have no pavement to speak of, but I hate to see a ton of water pond up under the overhang when I could use it later for the garden.

[herbenus]

My dad had one made from an old wooden barrel. You need an overflow on it, a screen for bugs and catching leaves, and maybe raise it as high as you can. I built me one behind the garage out of a plastic trash can, with standard faucet near bottom, raised up on cinder blocks. This is about as simple as you can get.

By the way, Mother Earth News has an article this month on a gentleman who built a complete rainwater catchment system. Complete with gutter washing, tanks, pump, filters, and uv treatment. Water is suitable for drinking when he is done.

[Hondo]

You might want to go bigger. In essence, a structure with a 1000 sq. ft. footprint will yield about 600 gallons of water per inch of rain, depending upon how efficient your system is. Ours isn't terribly efficient - our 1200 sq. ft. barn gives us less than 600 gallons per inch of rain. We collect water in two above-ground 1100 gallon tanks, and I'm contemplating adding another strictly for overflow.

Thanx to all for the info. It appears that the drums only may work at my garage & barn downspouts where there is less roof area. A burried cistern may work well for the house downspouts. We would only use the water for watering plants, garden, maybe animals, & washing the tractor if it could supply the power washer with enough water. I heard that septic tanks were good to use for underground storage if you can get one.

[GERARD]

I have "mentally" designed my system many times for our next house/barn because when the horse arena gets dry it gets dusty and the wife likes to water it. Well I don't like sucking 500-1000 gal out of a well at one time so........... I would use a large underground septic (plastic kind) tank at least 1000 gal in size. At the base of the barns would be a trench containing 4 or 6 inch drain tile covered by pea gravel that would all tie together and dump into the underground tank. An overflow line would go out and either come out above ground or into a dry well. I'd then have a shallow well jet pump goping into it so I'd have pressurized water. Having everything sealed and underground takes care of the insect problem/leaves etc. Other than excavating it's a do it yourself project. (I've done the drain tile thing at my last house. gets the water away from the foundation and you don't have to worry about cleaning gutters)

[agcomike]

they use a system in some island countries that takes water from the roof to like semi-sunken covered swimming pools that are pumped like a well. I seen it on that old house. Pretty neat they said they could store 1000 gallons or so.

[egon]

In the high rainfall areas of Southeast Alaska there are many houses that have storage tanks supplied by roof water or even special roofs. Tanks I saw would range up to 250 barrels or so on a quess. They were almost all above ground.

Egon

[gsganzer]

As crazy as this may sound, if you have an open barrel, throw a couple of goldfish in to prevent them from becoming mosquito breeding farms. With the West Nile problem, you certainly don't want to encourage the mosquito's.