Rain water that is typically lost to runoff, streams or sewers can be collected from your roof and stored in rain barrels. Rain barrels generally consist of a 55 gallon drum, a vinyl hose, PVC couplings and a screen grate. It simply has to be positioned underneath the gutter of your roof and it will collect the rain water while it is pouring.

Rain barrels are efficient for the purpose of water harvesting and conservation. Using rain barrels serves the double objective of reducing the cost of water usage and also helping during shortage of water. Throughout heavy rains, if used properly one can store as much as an entire barrel full of water. A rain barrel can collect the rain water pouring on the roof which can be later utilized around the house. It can be used for many purposes like watering the plants and the garden or washing your car. In a given year one can save up water enough to last one whole summer depending on the number of rain barrels that are put to use. During peak summer months, a rain barrel can collect about 1,300 gallons of rain water.

Using rain barrels have a lot of benefits like saving money on the consumption of water. The water collected is soft water and is excellent for garden use. Rain water is also very good for washing cars since it contains no dissolved minerals like chlorine, calcium or lime. The use of rain barrels is apposite in places where a convenient spout is not located. In dry periods when water is in short supply, rain barrels make for a good provision of water. The environmental benefit of using rain barrels is undeniable as they efficiently conserve rain water which is the most easily available sources of natural water.

Care has to be taken that rain barrels should be kept covered with a secure lid so that children or pets do not fall into it. Also, the water in the rain barrels should not be used for cooking, drinking or bathing. If a moss killer or some other spray has been used on the roof then a couple of initial rainfalls should not be collected. The rain barrels should be kept a little elevated to make the spigot easily accessible. Multiple barrels can be used to increase the storage capacity. They can be connected with one another to be able to collect and store more rain water.