A rain bucket saves you money while conserving water resources. You can purchase many styles of rain buckets online but it can be satisfying to make your own. Better known as rain barrels, rain buckets can be made in an afternoon. The most challenging part can be finding the large bucket. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Purchase a 55-gallon plastic barrel on the Internet or from a local manufacturer. Food suppliers, restaurants, breweries or construction warehouses might have the proper kind of bucket. Avoid using trash cans since the plastic they're made from is too weak to support the water weight when they're full.
2. Drill a hole 3 to 4 inches up from the bottom of the barrel, using your drill. Make the hole 15/16 of an inch. You'll fit the plastic faucet in here for easy water removal.
3. Thread the plastic faucet through the hole you created with the drill. You'll feel the threads catch on the barrel, but keep going. When you've fed most of the threads through, apply a thin layer of silicone sealant to the remaining threads and continue to turn. Once the faucet is secure, leave the rain barrel overnight to allow the sealant to dry completely.
4. Tape the mesh screen to the top of the barrel using your electrical tape. The mesh screen is necessary and will help keep your rain water clean. If you have a rain barrel with a lid, it's still a good idea to install a mesh screen so that no bugs or leaves fall in the small opening. Simply use the tape to secure the screen to the barrel, then reinforce the tape by applying a few more layers.
5. Position your rain barrel under a gutter spout, rain chain or eaves of your house. You might wish to elevate the rain barrel on a wooden or cinder-block platform so that it's easier to get the rainwater out of the bucket.
Tags: rain barrel, mesh screen, barrel using, barrel using your, plastic faucet, rain buckets, screen barrel