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.