Water Barrels

So what should your water barrels be made of. Well if I had the space my water barrels would be a pond. This could be as large as I like and could simply be a hole in the ground and then lined with a pond liner. If you do decide this is what you want to do you need to use a special pond liner rather than just a sheet of ordinary plastic as the pond liners are much thicker and designed to be in constant contact with the ground. You may also need to line the pond with something such as sand or old carpet before laying down the liner. Get advice from where you buy it as they will have local knowledge of the conditions you may face.

So why have a pond as a water barrel. Well the size is up to you really. My three water barrels hold about 150 gallons of rainwater. A pond can hold thousands of gallons. You can keep the water fresh by adding oxygenating plants and fish. Frogs and toads will naturally colonize your pond and an advantage of this is that they love to eat slugs. You should never run out of water and it can be a lovely feature in your garden. However, you will need to fence it off to make sure children cannot fall in and there are always horror stories in the newspapers of little children drowning in small ponds. Be safe when it comes to ponds. One of the other problems is the pump. My pump will cope with solids up to about a quarter of an inch but some pumps will cope with solids up to one and a quarter inch in size. This could be your fish or frogs. With a pond you will need a filter round your pump to make sure you do not kill any of the wildlife which will be in it. The filter needs to be a fairly fine mesh. OK, that is enough about ponds as most of us will not have the space for one.

What most of us will be able to cope with is a water barrel or more than one but what type should you buy. My first water barrel was plastic and was from a pickling factory. As far as I know it had held vinegar. I got it second hand and it had been used to store water in someone's garden before I got it. It did not have a lid so I just made one by cutting out a circle from wire mesh and fastening this on with wire. I have still got it and I am still using it. However, I have been out recently and bought a new water barrel , well two purpose made water barrels. These have come complete with a tap, (faucet), a pre drilled tap hole and a close fitting lid for safety and to keep dirt out.

I have noticed that in the UK, water barrels are now becoming 'designer'. You can buy them in different colors, shaped like classical columns and I have even seen a water barrel shaped like a bottom. It is called a water butt - no prizes for guessing where the tap is. there are even designs of water barrel which will stand flat to a wall and high capacity water barrel . These cost a lot of money and can also be buried in the ground. It all depends on what you want to spend and what you want things to look like. Me, I am functional and inexpensive, so my barrels are inexpensive and they do what I need of them without looking posh.

There is also a growing market in recycling containers to make into a water barrel . Close to where I live is a company which recycles orange juice containers. These hold 400 gallons (about 1800 liters). I would love one but do not really have anywhere to put it. This company also sell a water barrel which holds 220 gallons (1000 liters) and comes built into steel cage on a steel pallet. I could get one of these in my garden and this should make me totally self sufficient in rain water - well in a normal year anyway. They have previously held a resin but this has been cleaned out and are marketed for water harvesting so I assume these are safe for plants. If you do decide to recycle on your own, find out what the water barrel has contained and make sure you clean it safely and thoroughly.

Finally, I have seen a new type of water barrel in the which is made from wood and a butyl liner. They look great, work well and come in different sizes up to 6000 liters, about 1300 gallons. Make sure you buy one with a lid on for safety though.

Whatever type of water barrel you decide to buy or make, think safety above all else and then think about the other things you need to think about such as site, height and so on.