Visited a community garden in Denver and noticed their rain barrel setup

I was walking through the Denver Urban Gardens space over on 38th Ave last weekend and saw how they connected three 55 gallon rain barrels together. They had them linked with simple PVC pipes and a overflow hose going into a flower bed. Has anyone tried linking multiple barrels like that for their backyard watering system?

2 comments

2 Comments

olivia_moore9d ago

More often than not people overcomplicate rain barrel systems. Three 55 gallon barrels sounds like overkill for a backyard unless you have a serious drought problem. Most folks just need one decent barrel and a good soaker hose to get the job done. PVC pipe connections can be finicky and prone to leaking if you don't know what you are doing. I have seen setups that look nice on the outside but spill water everywhere after a heavy rain. Maybe start with one barrel and see if you actually need more before you go building a whole water tower situation.

kimmurphy9d agoTop Commenter

I read somewhere that a single 55 gallon barrel can water about 200 sq ft of garden for a week. So unless that backyard is a farm, three barrels just sounds like a headache waiting to happen. You are so right about the PVC leaks too, I have seen that mess firsthand.