Saving Rain Blog

New filter basket coming soon

admin — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 10:11:32 +0000

For all of you who have purchased the diverter and need a new filter basket, we will have a new model for you soon that hangs on the edges. Check back or leave your e-mail address and I will get back to you.

Build a back on your rain bench

admin — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 22:22:53 +0000

Bench with back

Build the basic bench using one 4×8 sheet of exterior plywood-directions in the kit, then simply cut two simple ends, and 2 backrest pcs., attach and you have a comfortable bench that holds 65 gallons of rainwater. Notice the diverter installed approx. 20 feet away on the house.

Rain barrels, mosquitoes, and algae

admin — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 17:20:33 +0000

What are the problems associated with rain barrels? I hear about mosquitoes, algae, and overflow. First of all, if you have any standing water, even just below that screen in the open top method of filling a barrel, mosquitoes will hatch in a week and algae will appear. Okay, invest in the mosquito dunks and throw those in your barrel. Or use the water within a week so that doesn’t happen. Same thing with algae-use the rainwater. Oh, but you wanted to save that rainwater for when you really need it? Well, then I think you need a closed system so that you don’t have either of those problems to begin with. Is the investment in a good diverter worth it? Or do you want to invest in mosquito dunks forever? What are the other benefits of a good diverter? Yes, it has a filter. And two outlets. Why TWO outlets? Because a barrel will fill up so fast you’re going to either be wasting the excess or if you’re using an open top filling area it’s going to be overflowing that little screen you have in the top of the barrel and going right down into your foundation. I just don’t see doing that. So use the second outlet for a rain garden or for another rain bench way out in your yard. It’s just a no-brainer for me but then maybe we just have alot of rain here in WI and I don’t want to waste it. And what about those torrential rains. If the two outlets on our diverter can’t handle all the rain then the overflow will divert the rest down the original downspout.

What was one of the other questions we get. Oh yes, is the water that runs off our roof clean enough for my garden? First of all, you are probably going to use soaker hoses in your garden-not spraying the foliage. When rain soaks into the ground, the soil is a natural filter-and thus the bird droppings and small asphalt particles that were washed off your roof never reach the roots of your garden plants. And plants do love rainwater.

So what if you already have an open top barrel with the little screen and are having these problems. Drill a 1″ hole in the side up near the top, close off the screened area by removing the screen and putting a solid piece in its place, and connect a hose from the diverter to the barrel by using a male thread adapter x barb.

Small space gardening

admin — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 17:30:52 +0000

The pump is removed for the winter

Taken in December so the downspout diverter shown is winterized

This shows a very simple method of collecting water in the downspout diverter, hiding the tubing under the second story deck, and utilizing your space wisely by storing the rainwater in the benches. Then, when you want to water your window boxes up there or your hanging baskets, simply plug in the pump and use the retractable hose reel to water!

Benches for Small Spaces

admin — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 23:43:31 +0000

All the tubing is hidden beneath the deck

PICTURES FROM A HAPPY CUSTOMER IN NEW YORK

This is a view of how you can store water in the bench and utilize all the space you have in your yard. All the tubing from the diverter and from the bench are hidden under the deck. There is actually another bench in the other corner of the deck.

Calculating Rainwater runoff

admin — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 18:07:09 +0000

Just how much rain do you get and how much can you collect? Using a very easy method, just remember that for every 100 sq. ft. (that’s a 10 x 10 area) you could collect 62 gallons of rain in 1 inch of rainfall. That’s alot of water!! What if you only have one rain barrel? Have you thought about all the rain that is going to waste? Is your barrel just going to overflow? Perhaps you have a sufficient overflow on your barrel so that it can keep up with all the rain coming in-or do you?

How to Paint a Rain Barrel

admin — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 17:35:52 +0000

Easy to do!! You don’t have to be an artist but your neighbors will think you are!!!
These are also available on our shopping cart for some areas of the country-or ask your favorite garden center, hardware store or garden club to inquire about wholesale buying.

Updated rainwater diverter

admin — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 17:11:00 +0000

We have threaded the outlets on the diverter, enabling you to attach any 1/2″ male threaded insert. This now allows you to adapt the outlets to any size tubing you may have. 1/2″ M thread adapters are available at most hardware stores. We can find whatever size you are looking for. We carry the 1/2″ M that adapts to a 1″ ID tubing with a barb or to a regular hose thread. The outside measurement of the outlets still allows you to clamp regular sump pump hose with a 1-1/4″ ID. This hose is cheap, flexible, and made to withstand all temps.

Prevent your rain barrel from overflowing

admin — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 00:20:13 +0000

Don't let this happen to you!

It’s been awhile since I found something to describe what I’ve been trying to tell people about the advantages of using a diverter-this picture tells the story. This barrel is being filled from the top directly from the downspout and is overflowing all over. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want water puddled near my foundation. The same thing will happen if the overflow is not large enough to handle all the rain.

Using the rainwater diverter on commercial downspouts

admin — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 00:36:24 +0000

The saving rain diverter is generally made for household size roofs and downspouts. However, we are finding that more and more commercial applications are working well. Some of the suggestions we are getting is that the owner installs 2 or 3 downspouts on each side of a large building to disperse some of the volume coming off the roof. Another suggestion is that the owner install a bulk head fitting into the side of the diverter to handle large amounts of rain. Obviously if you are wanting to collect all the rainfall off a roof you need a very large reservoir or several smaller containers. In a 1 inch rainfall, 1000 sq.ft. roof will give you 623 gallons of water.