DIY Network

Does the water caught in a rain barrel (attached to the gutter) get too hot to use on the lawn or garden?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: whattheheck,

temp can't be any higher than ambient unless the barrel's in direct sun all day long,,, even then, the heat-sink properties of soil'd negate any danger imn-s-hfo

Hi whattheheck!
I just wanted to add: I received a rain barrel for mother's day, and it's been my experience, (and as the previous poster stated), the water does not get too hot for use on my plants. I've been using it for two months now, and I think (or like to believe!) that my container plants are doing much better with that water. (Of course, our faucet water here leaves something to be desired!) My barrel does get hit with afternoon sun, but it doesn't seem to raise the temperature much, or make it feel 'hot'.
Hope that helps!

i wanted to add my two cents worth,rain water is better for your plants than tap water, it actualy has nutrients in it that are good for them. on the down side it could also have bad stuff. depends on where it has been

Hi, Our rain barrels are plastic and the water temp. doesn't get to hot to use on the plants. We do buy some disks to float in the water to kill off the Mosquito larvae, they are really bad this year.

are any of you in northern states? I ask because I am wondering if you have to remove them for the winter months to prevent freezing.

I live in MN and am interested in getting a rain barrel.

Hi, I'm in Michigan and yes we drain them out and leave them turned upside down durning the winter so they dont freeze and break. Then when the snow is gone, we set them back up.

I thought rain barrels were of plastic,,I didnt know they would break..I am also interested in one.I live in the suburbs.When you have a rain barrel,,does the water go stagnet on you?

The rain barrels are plastic but it you leave them full of water they can freeze, expand and burst at the seams. Take a plastic milk jug and fill it full of water, place in the freezer and watch what happens. We constantly use the water from our rain barrels so the water doesn't get stagnet.

Ok Thankyou

go to a plumbing supply. and buy these items
1- urinal spud rubber washers
1- boiler drain- valve out of a washer box with
brass nipple
2- of the brass nuts from the bottom of a
kitchen sink faucet
2- washers from same faucet
drill a 1 inch hole in the bottom of the rain barrel. install the above fittings and you will have a hose connection.