Another common question/concern I hear from people with rain barrels is about mosquitoes getting into their rain water, breeding and spreading disease, particularly the West Nile Virus.
There are over 150 different species of mosquitoes in the United States. The life cycle of a mosquito (from egg to adult) can take as little as 4 days and as long as one month. An average life cycle is from 10-14 days.
Of course, the best way to keep mosquitoes out of your rain barrel is to have a completely closed system. If mosquitoes can't get to the water's surface, they can't breed. In most cases, this is not practical. If you feed your downspout directly into the top of your rain barrel or rainwater collection system without any type of debris filter in the line, you will end up with leaves, pine needles and all other sorts of mess down in the bottom of the rain barrel. (That is a topic for another discussion.)
The next, non-chemical, way to keep mosquitoes from breeding in your rain barrel is to use some sort of screen separating the water in the rain barrel from outside pests and insects. Simply wrapping the downspout in a piece of window screen before placing it into your barrel will filter debris but will clog easily and become ineffective.
I have seen many different solutions to this problem. I have seen people using a simple piece of window screen with a bungee cord holding it onto the barrel, pool baskets, yard drains and almost anything you can think of that can be used as a filter. These things can get expensive.
The best thing I have found (and use every day on my own rain barrels) is a screened basket. This basket simply drops into a hole cut into the top of the rain barrel. It is suspended above the water level and creates a barrier between the rain water and the mosquitoes.
I don't have any gutter covers on my gutters. The basket I use is large enough that it won't clog during a rain storm, no matter what washes down the downspout. It can also be easily removed from the barrel for cleaning when I see that it has been collecting leaves.
If you are still nervous about mosquitoes getting into the barrel, I would suggest using the basket with a piece of window screen around the bottom of it. The basket is sturdy and will catch the heavy debris while the window screen will act as a backup to the screened basket.
I have also seen products called Mosquito Dunks and Mosquito Bits in the home improvement stores. This is a product that is advertised as safe for plants and fish and creates a floating barrier so that any mosquitoes that find their way to your rain water are not able to breed on the water's surface.
As a final note, I would like to add that, given the average life cycle of a mosquito, it is likely that you will use the water you have collected in your rain barrel faster than any mosquito eggs can hatch and grow to adult mosquitoes. If it is 1-2 weeks between rain storms and you use the water you have collected during the dry periods, you shouldn't experience any problems.
For questions or more information, I can be contacted through my website: www.AtlantaRainBarrels.com
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Bulkhead Fittings make the Perfect Watertight Seal
If you already know about bulkhead fittings and are looking to purchase one, you can see them on my website: Atlanta Rain Barrels
I have received many questions from people who are making their own rain barrels or who have problems with rain barrels they bought. One of the questions that seems to come up often is, "How do I attach a garden hose or a spigot to my rain barrel?" or "The spigot on my rain barrel is leaking. It is sealed with caulk but that is not working. What should I do?"
First, I would like to talk about some of the ways I have seen spigots connected on different rain barrel designs.
Rain barrels are becoming more and more popular as people explore water conservation. That has lead to more and more people selling rain barrels around town. Some of the designs are well thought out but most are designs that are adequate at best and clearly not tested by the manufacturer.
The most popular way that people connect garden hose spigots to their rain barrels is simply to drill a hole and manually thread a brass spigot into the barrel. Sometimes these spigots are sealed with some type of caulk. The main problem with this connection is that it won't stay sealed. The barrel wall is flexible and the spigot will get pulled and twisted as you use it, leading to cracked caulk and a leaky connection around the threads. This type of connection is easy and inexpensive but you will be disappointed as soon as you start having problems with it and have to drain your rain water to fix something that could have been done right the first time.
Another popular option is to use PVC parts and o-rings or washers to create a seal from both sides of the barrel. Honestly, this is a good option if you are going to rely on home improvement store parts to make your rain barrel. The problem with this type of connection is that you often still have to use caulk around the seal because the PVC connectors are not made wide enough to properly seal the barrel and are prone to coming loose. If your only other option is to thread the spigot directly into your rain barrel, the use of PVC connectors is a decent alternative.
The single best way to connect a garden hose, soaker hose, spigot, or anything else to a rain barrel is to use a bulkhead fitting. A what? Yep, that is what I said the first time I ran across one of these. Bulkhead fittings are used in aquariums, pond liners, or on any tank wall that needs a hose or pipe passed through it. They are designed to give a watertight seal and will not leak, even under pressure. A bulkhead fitting usually has 2 washers, a sealing washer and a friction washer. One goes inside the rain barrel and one goes outside the rain barrel for a good double-whammy against leaks. They either have internal slip fittings or threaded fittings, depending on what you are trying to pass through the the tank wall. For my rain barrels I use the bulkhead fittings that are threaded inside. A 3/4" spigot or hose bibb can be threaded directly into a 3/4" threaded bulkhead fitting and will not leak. The bulkhead fitting can be purchased inexpensively and will outlast your barrel. They are available in most common sizes from 1/2" up to 3" (for those really big projects).
The cost savings using PVC parts over a bulkhead fitting is very minimal. You will probably spend $2-$4 for PVC parts, washers and caulk and can do it the right way with a bulkhead fitting for around $5.
For more information, email me or see my website. I also offer free instructions if you want to build your own rain barrel and have many different rain barrel parts if you want to design one yourself.
I have received many questions from people who are making their own rain barrels or who have problems with rain barrels they bought. One of the questions that seems to come up often is, "How do I attach a garden hose or a spigot to my rain barrel?" or "The spigot on my rain barrel is leaking. It is sealed with caulk but that is not working. What should I do?"
First, I would like to talk about some of the ways I have seen spigots connected on different rain barrel designs.
Rain barrels are becoming more and more popular as people explore water conservation. That has lead to more and more people selling rain barrels around town. Some of the designs are well thought out but most are designs that are adequate at best and clearly not tested by the manufacturer.
The most popular way that people connect garden hose spigots to their rain barrels is simply to drill a hole and manually thread a brass spigot into the barrel. Sometimes these spigots are sealed with some type of caulk. The main problem with this connection is that it won't stay sealed. The barrel wall is flexible and the spigot will get pulled and twisted as you use it, leading to cracked caulk and a leaky connection around the threads. This type of connection is easy and inexpensive but you will be disappointed as soon as you start having problems with it and have to drain your rain water to fix something that could have been done right the first time.
Another popular option is to use PVC parts and o-rings or washers to create a seal from both sides of the barrel. Honestly, this is a good option if you are going to rely on home improvement store parts to make your rain barrel. The problem with this type of connection is that you often still have to use caulk around the seal because the PVC connectors are not made wide enough to properly seal the barrel and are prone to coming loose. If your only other option is to thread the spigot directly into your rain barrel, the use of PVC connectors is a decent alternative.
The single best way to connect a garden hose, soaker hose, spigot, or anything else to a rain barrel is to use a bulkhead fitting. A what? Yep, that is what I said the first time I ran across one of these. Bulkhead fittings are used in aquariums, pond liners, or on any tank wall that needs a hose or pipe passed through it. They are designed to give a watertight seal and will not leak, even under pressure. A bulkhead fitting usually has 2 washers, a sealing washer and a friction washer. One goes inside the rain barrel and one goes outside the rain barrel for a good double-whammy against leaks. They either have internal slip fittings or threaded fittings, depending on what you are trying to pass through the the tank wall. For my rain barrels I use the bulkhead fittings that are threaded inside. A 3/4" spigot or hose bibb can be threaded directly into a 3/4" threaded bulkhead fitting and will not leak. The bulkhead fitting can be purchased inexpensively and will outlast your barrel. They are available in most common sizes from 1/2" up to 3" (for those really big projects).
The cost savings using PVC parts over a bulkhead fitting is very minimal. You will probably spend $2-$4 for PVC parts, washers and caulk and can do it the right way with a bulkhead fitting for around $5.
For more information, email me or see my website. I also offer free instructions if you want to build your own rain barrel and have many different rain barrel parts if you want to design one yourself.
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