You can resuse a wine barrel for years after it has served its original purpose.
A wine barrel can only produce a single vintage, after which it is usually broken up or thrown away. Since a well-built barrel can remain sturdy for years, this practice seems wasteful. With a little time and effort, you can convert a wine barrel into a receptacle for rainwater, which can then be used to grow an outdoor garden. In this way, you can put two items to good use that would have been cast aside. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
Preparing the Barrel
1. Fill the barrel from a garden hose to determine if it is watertight, especially if it has holes. Seal any holes properly.
2. Drill a hole near the base of the barrel, just a little narrower than your spigot. The force of gravity will move the water, so the lower the spigot, the greater your access to the water in the barrel. Insert the spigot.
3. Select a location for your barrel; you will place it under a downspout so that it can collect rain quickly. Locate it near the plants you want to water so that the hose can reach them.
Installation
4. Stack the cinder blocks so they can support the weight of the barrel. Do not allow any of the barrel to go over the edge of the blocks. Elevate the spigot higher than the plants you plan to water with the rain barrel.
5. Drill a hole on top of the barrel large enough to fit your rain spout. If a space is between the wood and the spout, attach a sheet of fine mesh over the opening. The mesh prevents mosquitoes from using your barrel as a breeding ground, as well as minimizing the amount of debris that enters.
6. Attach the hose to the spigot. Use your garden hose to fill the barrel to give the apparatus a trial run.
Tags: Drill hole, garden hose, wine barrel, your barrel