How to Integrate Rain Barrels Into Your Custom Home Design
July 7, 2016Rain barrels can be a wonderful way to conserve water and avoid flooding in your yard or in your home. These barrels are often recycled from construction sites or landscaping companies. They can be custom painted with vibrant colors and unique patterns or to match the décor of your home.
They are often 50-gallon barrels that have mesh over the top to avoid clogging or any possible debris falling into them. Some do come with filtration systems but many rain barrel owners wish to only use them for their garden or outdoor irrigation. Here are a few benefits of rain barrels and how to integrate them into your custom home design:
6 Benefits of Rain Barrels
If you are wondering if a rain barrel is right for your home, here are a few benefits of them:
1. They Are Easy to Install
If you have a rainspout, these barrels are relatively easy to install and work with. They are very light when they are empty and can be transported easily to your rainspout. Once you have found a spot for the barrel secure it with large bricks or rocks until it is full.
That way, it will not blow away in a storm. Be sure not to block the spout with the rocks. You will want to be able to access this when watering your garden or yard. Once the barrel is in place you should put the mesh cover over so leaves and debris do not clog the barrel. And voila! You have a rain barrel ready for the next storm.
2. Rain Barrels Tend to be Inexpensive
Rain barrels usually cost $40 to $150 depending on the parts, size, and amount of customization needed. They can be made to perfectly match your home’s décor or they can pop out of the mundane with beautiful paintings, colors, and patterns.
Hand-painted because they are so intricate and beautiful. Depending on your budget, however, you can always find one that is recycled, bare-bones, and inexpensive.
3. They Are Durable and Environmentally-Friendly
These barrels are incredibly sturdy since they were built for construction purposes, and rarely need maintenance or to be replaced. These barrels will be a part of your home for the rest of your life and can save you money when caring for your garden or lawn.
It can also help the earth since the water will still return to the watershed and be used in its pure form rather than traveling through filtration systems to your tap. They can fit into apartment life as well as large farms.
4. Rain Barrels Can Help Lower Your Water Bills
They also help to lower the cost of water bills. These barrels help to conserve well water for the homeowner who lives in the country. They are nothing but a large plastic or aluminum garbage can.
The lid has a hole drilled through the top where a downspout enters to catch runoff rainwater. The barrel collects water to irrigate garden areas. These rain barrels have a spigot at the bottom enabling attachment of a hose. The spigot has an on and off function to allow the water to be used.
5. There Are Plenty of Options
Whether you choose to buy or DIY your rain barrels, there are plenty of options available. There are plenty of free instructions available along with a list of materials needed to construct an attractive rain barrel. Homeowners can also purchase readymade kits at home improvement stores.
Plus, there are plenty of decorating tips and instructions about ways in which to make these rain barrels attractive additions to any garden or yard. This can save the homeowner money. Home improvement stores have unusual and now very attractive options for sale. These manufactured versions come in different materials and colors such as terracotta, resin, bamboo, and recycled plastic.
6. Rain Barrels Are Versatile
Also, rain barrels are versatile. They can be used to collect and conserve water, but they can also be used for a variety of other things. Some options are built to hold strawberry plants or vines and ivy plants on the top and look like large planters. Some look like a big rock in a garden with a spigot at the bottom.
They also come in different sizes to suit your needs. Homemade and pre-constructed rain barrels are at least 55-gallon or larger containers. Some barrels are less than 50 gallons.
3 Ways to Integrate Rain Barrels Into Your Custom Home Design
With so much consideration being given to environmental conservation, rain barrels are growing in popularity around the world. Rain barrels are being used by homeowners to catch the rainwater that rolls off of their roofs and in other creative ways. In fact, adding rain barrels, or checking them if you have them already, is one of the summer gardening tips.
If you are considering integrating rain barrels into your new custom home, you may be wondering how this can be done creatively and attractively. The truth is that there are a lot of extremely attractive ways to integrate this environmentally conscious element into your custom home design.
1. Add Them Into Your Landscaping
One of the more subtle ways of implementing rain barrel usage into the schematics of your home design is to make the barrels a part of your landscaping design. The different ways that this can be are endless.
You can create a rock bed and place the barrel in the rock bed, surrounded by shrubbery and ivy vines. There are numerous ways to channel the runoff. You can be as creative as you like and rain barrels can even be used to turn your backyard into an elegant retreat.
2. Use Rain Barrels Made of Ceramic or Stone
Instead of using the traditional wooden barrels, you can have ceramic or stone barrels created that can be used as a part of a fountain runoff. You can be very creative in designing ways to capture water and then run it off into the barrel.
You can use a spigot that is attached to a fountain system that catches rainwater and have that spigot pour the water into a ceramic barrel with a rock filtering system.
3. Consider Stainless Steel or Aluminum Containers
If you are looking to design a more modern or contemporary home, you can use stainless steel or aluminum containers to receive your runoff. These containers can be designed in a number of sizes and shapes and placed alongside the house in the same manner as a central air unit; proving that concealment is not always necessary with rain barrel integration.
Whether you integrate rain barrels into your home’s gutter system or put them in the yard to collect water, make sure they have a suitable top. Otherwise, the water can become contaminated and also collect mosquitoes and other bugs. When it comes to adding these pieces to your home, the only limits to the ways that rain barrels can be integrated into the design of your home are your imagination and creativity.