Living Green Resources How to Do Your Part to Save Our Planet's Water Supply by Installing a Rain Barrel

So you are committed to living green and conserving Earth's natural resources. Great! You have made an honorable choice. Everyone should make the effort to conserve and recycle resources. Often though, we take our natural resources for granted. Our fresh water supply is one example. Do your part and install a rain barrel.

Consider this, 70% of the Earth is water and yet only 2.5 % is fresh water. In addition, the worlds population is growing rapidly, our water consumption is up, we waste more, consider drought and changing weather patterns and our available fresh water supply is dwindling. You wouldn't think so with all the water, but if we don't manage our fresh water supply, we may one day find that the tap has run dry. One way of conserving our water supply is to install rain barrels. In addition, installing a rain barrel saves money. Don't forget about how much better your plants will flourish. They will love you for it.

In the summer months, the overall average household water consumption reaches 40 %. Installing a water barrel and using rainwater for your gardening will save you money and conserve your municipalities water resources. Yes you will save money, but this is not the only reason to use a rain-barrel for your garden: rain-water is better for your plants.

One word of caution - if you live where air pollution and acid-rain is a concern, tap water may be better for your plants. All-in-all though rainwater is a better for your garden.

Higher Nitrogen Content - Ever notice after a thundershower plants are brighter, greener, trees perk up and plant life in general just seems..well more alive? Why? Rain-water is no doubt the best food plants. It is the nitrogen that dissolves into rain-drops that makes your plants so happy. Plants need nitrogen to grow and thrive, actually a particular form of nitrogen, N3. N3 is produced during thunderstorms through a complicated process called atmospheric fixation.

Naturally Soft - Rainwater is soft water meaning it is free of minerals that is added to your municipalities water supply. Your municipal water supply on-the other-hand is hard water which minerals such as chlorine, fluoride, iron, zinc and other chemicals unhealthy chemicals have been added. These chemicals interfere with the plants ability to soak up the water. This critical process is called osmosis.

"Plants depend on a fragile mechanism called osmosis to survive. What happens in osmosis is that water passes by diffusion from a weak solution (high water concentration) to a strong solution (low water concentration) until an equality is reached between the two. In the case of a plant, the water from the soil (weak) into the plant roots (strong) provides the plant with the moisture it needs to survive."

Thanks to...Ask The Master Gardeners

Before you get started with the physical installation, do some simple calculations as to the capacity of the system you may need. Find out how much rainfalls in your area. Then figure out your roofs square footage. Once you know the square footage you can determine how many gallons of rainwater can be collected per inch of rain. These figures will help in determining how many barrels needed. The final figure is referred to as your 'Storm-water footprint." calculate your footprint at: Greater Goods: Rain Barrel Calculator.

Now that you know the approximate capacity of your rain barrel system, there is just a couple more questions that need to be answered.

Walk around your home during a rainstorm and determine where the runoff is going. These are your likely locations for barrels. Much easier and cheaper to install your barrels directly below the run-off locations. Also take into consideration where you would be using the water. If your garden is in your backyard and that is the only location you will need the water, plan on installing the barrel there. If you need more capacity than one barrel, a simple system can be set-up using hoses to capture more run-off. Plan for your overflow. Most probably your roof will have more run-off than your barrel can collect, make sure you have plans for any excess run-off that is beyond your systems capacity.

Installing a rain-barrel is great way to save money, preserve our natural resources and help your garden grow.