Reasons For Rain Barrels
A rain barrel is any type of container used to catch water flowing from a downspout. Rain barrels reduce the amount of stormwater runoff by collecting roof runoff and storing the rainwater for future use. Water captured in rain barrels is typically used for outdoor irrigation purposes. Children and pets should not drink water collected in a rain barrel. Due to the lack of research data, water collected in a rain barrel is not recommended for watering vegetable gardens.
The use of a rain barrel will provide an alternative to using tap water for watering lawns, flower gardens and houseplants. It will also reduce peak volume and velocity of stormwater runoff reaching lakes and rivers and help reduce peak water demands during the summer months.
For every inch of rain that falls on one square foot of your roof, you can “collect” just over half a gallon of rainwater (0.6 gallons). For example, if you have a shed that is 10’ x 10’ and you can collect the roof runoff from all 100 square feet of your roof, you could collect 60 gallons of rainwater during a 1-inch rain event.