I wasted $200 on a rain barrel setup that barely collects water

Bought a 50-gallon rain barrel kit from a local hardware store last spring, thinking I'd save on watering my garden. But my short downspout and flat roof mean it fills up maybe once a month. Has anyone else found these things don't work great in older neighborhoods?

2 comments

2 Comments

angela_harris1mo ago

Heard my buddy had the exact same problem with his 1920s house. He ended up just using it as a bird bath.

the_wesley1mo ago

Ha, that's honestly not a bad idea for a lost cause! I've seen people turn old sinks and tubs into bird baths before, they work great for the birds and it saves you the headache of trying to fix something that's probably beyond saving. Plus, you don't have to worry about it matching anything else in your yard since it's just a bird bath now. If you really wanted to, you could even paint it up nice and make it look intentional instead of like a broken sink sitting there.