Collecting Rainwater w/o Rain Barrel

[lmbjer]

I am looking for a very frugal (as in using what I already have) alternative to a rain barrel.

If I were to collect rain water using small buckets, pour these buckets into a rubbermaid tote, store the water with the lid on, and the simply dip water out to water my small garden...would it work? Am I looking at any stagnation issues? How long could I keep this water?

[Purple*Lotus]

I know it sounds crazy, but my neighbors use an old toilet and an old bathtub in their yard for this purpose. They must have sealed the toilet off somehow. But it works for them and it is two less things in the landfill I am not sure how long it would take to get stagnant, hopefully someone else has more info.

[SuburbanHippie]

It depends on how much water you typically use to water and how much water you end up collecting. It will probably end up stagnant and a little stinky, but no big deal. We have 4 rain barrels and they end up smelling a bit after awhile, but we just try using it up quickly at that point. I haven't opened up two of the barrels yet this season. I'm kind of scared too. LOL.

[Owen'nZoe]

I have two ideas for you that could be cheap or expensive, depending on what resources you have.

First, you could work on storing more water in the soil. If you had areas where you buried tons of organic matter, it would hold more water when it rains than poor soil. I have some areas in my yard where I've buried brush and straw, and then I've planted slightly downhill from those areas.Theoretically at least , the brush and straw area should be holding more water, and then letting it slowly seep downhill. I think it is working, but I'm never quite sure if it is just that my garden is becoming more established and just weathers dry spells better.

Second, what about a small pond you could pull water from? I know they can be pretty expensive if you need to purchase a liner, but you could do a make shift pond with a kiddie pool or some heavy plastic sheeting, and if you are creative with the landscaping around, it could look very nice.

Good luck!

[artparent]

just beware mosquitos, you don't want to give them a place to breed!

*

[ktarsha]

I've been using a very large plastic garbage can. I leave the lid off when it rains, and set out buckets and other containers, then pour everything in (I put an old sheet over the top to strain out dirt and leaves and other gunk). Then I put the lid back on, usually right over the sheet, to keep critters out. It gets a little funky-smelling, but I go through lots of water in the summer, so it hasn't yet had time to get really disgusting.