Rain barrels have become super popular with gardeners over the past few years, and are a great way to capture rainwater to water your plants and gardens. But they don’t come with a pump, so how do rain barrels work? This is a very common question. In this post, I will clear up any confusion, and show you exactly how rain barrels work.
Last week a reader asked me “How does a rain barrel work?”. That is an excellent question, and one I often wondered before I bought my first rain barrel. I figure other people would wonder the same thing, so I decided to answer the question in a blog post.
But first, let’s talk about the purpose of a rain barrel.
What Do Rain Barrels Do?
A rain barrel is used for rainwater harvesting, and is a container that captures and stores rainwater. Rain barrels (aka: rain collection barrels) have been around for a long time, but they have become very trendy over the past few years.
Some people only have one or two rain barrels set up for rain harvesting, while others have an entire rainwater harvesting system installed so they can collect thousands of gallons of water.
There are lots of benefits to having a rain barrel, and rainwater can be used for many things. I use it mainly for watering my houseplants and outdoor potted plants, and for keeping my garden ponds and water features full during the summer.
Rainwater is also great for watering the garden and filling up wash buckets to use for odd jobs like washing windows or washing the car.
Rain barrels are used for rainwater harvesting
How Do Rain Barrels Work?
Rain barrels are designed for catching rainwater as it flows through or from the gutters of a house, garage, shed or other structure. Once hooked up, the water from the gutter is directed into the barrel.
A rain barrel can be hooked up to a gutter with a rain barrel gutter attachment, using a rainwater gutter diverter kit, or simply by attaching a piece of flexible downspout tubing.
The exact steps will depend on the type of rain barrel you have. Here’s instructions for how to install a rain barrel.
But basically, rain barrels have an opening on the top or side of the barrel to allow the water to run in from the downspout or the tubing from the gutter diverter.
Each time it rains, the rain barrel will be filled with rainwater from the downspout. Then the water will sit in the barrel until it’s ready to be used.
Flexible tubing diverts rainwater into the rain barrel
What Happens When A Rain Barrel Is Full?
It’s amazing how fast a rain barrel will fill up with very little rainfall, and all of that water needs somewhere to go once the rain barrel is full. And another really common question I get is “do rain barrels overflow?”.
Well, if you’re using a specially designed rain barrel gutter diverter kit, then the diverter is designed to stop the flow of water into the barrel once it’s full.
When the rain barrel is full, the diverter shuts off, and the rainwater will simply flow through the gutter like it normally would.
But, if your setup is like mine, and your gutter has simply been diverted to flow into the barrel, then it’s a bit different. Most rain barrels have an overflow valve near the top where the excess rainwater will drain out when the barrel is full.
I have an old cut off piece of hose that I hooked up to the overflow valve on my rain barrel so I can control where the water goes when it overflows through the valve.
But when there is a heavy rainfall, many times the rain barrel overflow valve can’t keep up, and excess water can bubble over the top of the barrel rather than out the release valve.
That’s not an issue for my barrels, because one is installed next to the garage and the other is next the side of our deck.
But, if you plan to install a rain barrel next to the foundation of your house, and you have a basement, then I would definitely recommend using a rain barrel gutter attachment or installing a rainwater gutter diverter kit to avoid any risk of flooding.
My rain barrel overflow valve
How To Use A Rain Barrel
Now you might be wondering “how do I use a rain barrel?”. To use your rain barrel, you simply turn on the spigot at the bottom of the barrel. Rain barrels don’t come with a pump, so water pressure will occur naturally.
I use concrete blocks to elevate my rain barrels, which not only makes it easier to fill watering cans, but also allows gravity to help with water pressure so the water comes out faster. If you don’t like the look of the cinder blocks, you could buy a rain barrel stand for a much cleaner look.
Just keep in mind that the water from the barrel won’t flow uphill. I have a hose attached to my rain barrel spigot, but I can only use it if I keep it below the level of the spigot (or sometimes slightly higher than that if the barrel is really full).
Also, the farther away you run the hose from your rain barrel, the slower the water pressure will be. The weight of the water also helps with water pressure, so the more water that’s in the barrel, the faster the water will come out of the barrel. These are all important things to think about when you’re deciding where to install a rain barrel.
Water flowing out of the spigot on my rain barrel
Where To Buy Rain Barrels
They’re so popular, you can get rain barrels just about anywhere these days. You can find rain barrels for sale at home improvement stores and garden centers, or buy them online.
Many people have also made their own rain barrel out of anything from a small whiskey barrel to large food grade containers. So if you’re handy, that’s another great option.
I hope this post has answered the question “how do rain barrels work” for you. Now that you understand how rain barrels work, you can take the plunge and install your own rain harvesting system – whether it be a single rain barrel, connecting rain barrels together, or building a large rainwater collection system.
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Share your tips on how rain barrels work for you in the comments section below.
Craig Maw says
Hi Amy
I have a single rain barrel that i use for watering.Now that fall is here i want to winterize my system. That means i empty the rain barrel and move it to storage. My dilemma is the spout for the barrel is 48 inches off the ground.The lawn is 16 feet away over a concrete patio.Last year i tried a couple of lengths of downspout assembled and placed at a considerable drop so when it freezes the roof water or snow melt will flush it. My problem is i used an old table to secure the downspout to it is not an acceptable for this season. Any ideas?
Thanks!
Amy Andrychowicz says
Humm… it’s weird that your downspout doesn’t have a spot to drain that is closer to the house. I’m not really an expert in gutters, sorry. But I would talk to someone who knows the best way to attach a gutter/downspout for a long distance like you have. Perhaps a home improvement or hardware store would be the best place to start.
Suze says
I just got two rain barrels. I love them, but the diverters are not working as they should. One of the downspout diverters does not divert as intended, and during a heavy rain, the water fills up my barrel and then spills out onto the ground (not back up the diverter, which seems to have been a waste of money). And my 2nd problem: I have an extra hose attached to the top spigot of my barrels to help with overflow. But in order to get the water to flow out of that top hose, I have to manually jiggle the hose *each time* and get the water flowing out of the barrel by moving the hose around, after which the water flows out of that top spigot. Impractical for nighttime rains or during thunderstorms.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Bummer your rain barrel isn’t working quite right. I would replace the hose on the overflow spigot, or the spigot itself, and also see if you can exchange the faulty downspout diverter for a new one. They really do work very well, it just sounds like you got a lemon.
Will says
I have the same issue of having to jiggle the overflow hose (release pressure?) to allow the water to flow freely. What is that all about?! Also, I live in the Northeast and am about to go thru our first rain barrel winter. The plastic barrel is adequately raised and has a hose attached at the bottom to drain. Can I just open the valves during the winter and not risk damaging the barrel? Or will I have to get a gutter diverter and run more gutter drainage?
Amy Andrychowicz says
I’m not sure why your overflow hose isn’t working properly. Maybe there’s too much pressure/suction building up inside of the barrel once it becomes full? I’ve never had that problem with mine, but it’s completely open on the top, so there’s no way it could build up suction like that. I don’t know how cold it gets where you live, but here in MN, I must store my rain barrel during the winter or it will freeze solid (even if I had both of the spigots removed). But we have several months of below zero temps, and it can even get down to -20/30 below. But if your winters are pretty mild, then it should be fine just leaving everything open as you describe, as long as the ice doesn’t build up in there. But if it’s consistently below zero, then I would remove it and store it.
Paula Feldman says
Which is better a wooden rain barrel or a plastic as pictured here? Which lasts longer if kept clean or mold?
Amy Andrychowicz says
I have never used a wooden rain barrel before, so I can’t speak from experience. However, I would expect that a plastic one would last longer.
Susan says
Can a rain barrel be placed in direct sunlight or should it be in the shade? I live in NE Iowa where the most easily accessible downspout is on the west side in direct sunlight.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Shade would be ideal to help the rain barrels last longer, and also prevent algae growth. However, mine sit in the sun for a good part of the day (one on the east side of the house, and one on the west side), and besides being a little faded, have faired just fine for well over 10 years.
Maureen says
Can i use a rain barrel just for the purpose to drain water away from the house. If i set it up with it going directly in the rain barrel and leave my hose connected to the spigot and when its going to rain just put the hose that’s attached down the driveway and leave the spigot open. I will use the water for gardening, however looking for a way to divert excess water from the house. Would this work?
Amy Andrychowicz says
I think it would work just fine during light rain. However, during a heavy rainfall, rain barrels fill up very quickly, and I don’t think it will drain from the spigot fast enough to keep it from overflowing. I recommend you get a gutter attachment that will shut off the flow of water to the barrel once it’s full, so the water will go through the gutter as it normally would.
shelley Sheridan says
My water will not flow through the hose. Must the rain barrell be lifted on blocks to allow gravity for the water to flow???
Amy Andrychowicz says
Yes. The rain barrel has to be elevated in order for the water to flow, and/or the entire hose has to be lower than the spigot on the barrel. The higher you elevate the barrel, the faster the water will come out of the hose.
kathleen Forrest says
My barrel is only 1/3 full so it will not run through my hose. Any suggestions?
Amy Andrychowicz says
Do you have it raised off the ground at all? As long as the water is higher than the hose, it should still come out. It will be slower than it would if the barrel was full though. Also, when mine gets really low, sometimes I need to tip the barrel towards the hose to speed up the water flow. Be careful though, cause the water can be pretty heavy. 🙂
James says
Here in the UK, we use a thing called a diverter- so we cut the downpipe from the gutter, and put this device between the cut ends at about the height of the top of the rain barrel. Then a flexible pipe connects this to the rain barrel inlet. Do you use these too?
Amy Andrychowicz says
Yes, we have gutter diverters for rain barrel here in the US too, and they work great!
Capt. Brigg Franklin says
I currently have five rain barrels all located 10 feet above ground. Since I am in a two story house the roof gutters are all on the second story roof line and easily fill the rain barrels. This provides lots of water pressure for my whole garden.
Amy Andrychowicz says
WOW, your rain barrel setup awesome! Do you have to take them down to winterize them?
Capt. Brigg Franklin says
We have very mild winters here in Washington state, so I just leave the drain valve open all winter and the water drains out into my yard which has very sandy soil. When my barrels fill in summer or winter I have an overflow pipe that also drains out into the yard.
We are building a similar rain collection system out in the Wildlife botanical Gardens where I volunteer.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Very cool! Have fun install the new rain collection system! 🙂
MI Patriot says
My ideal rainwater collector would be one of those big square tanks in the metal mesh and hold about 250 gallons. Unfortunately, I don’t have the space or a fork truck to move it around. What I did do was take 3 40 gallon garbage cans and line them up by the downspout. I took a length of rigid PVC and drilled holes about 4 inches down from the top and then put the PVC in the hole in one barrel and into the hole of the next barrel. They act as overflow valves. A good rain will fill all 3 and then some. I did have a rain barrel under a down spout for awhile and I was happy. It wasn’t until we got covered gutters that I realized just how much rain I was missing out on. They work great and I’ve got water that our local DPW can’t charge me for.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Wonderful, I love the creative alternative rain barrel setup you came up with using garbage cans. Sounds great, thanks for sharing!
Stasher says
We have two barrels!
Amy Andrychowicz says
Awesome! 🙂
joann wilford says
Hello,
I have a rain barrel and fully submersible pump and I was wondering if I can leave the pump in the rain barrel when not in use as it takes me a while to dig out the pump and hose and I feel it could be easier if I just left the pump in, as I cant find any instructions to say I can or I can’t I am asking for your help.
Thank you for your time
Joann
Amy Andrychowicz says
Hi Joann,
If your rain barrel pump submersible, I think you could leave it in there all the time for sure. As long as it doesn’t freeze to the bottom in the winter, the pump will be fine.