Here's part 1 of the series - Building a compost bin

My next project was to find and install an effective rainwater harvesting system on my property.  It's always bugged me that I have to fill my pool and irrigate our garden with public water - all while the rainwater washed away.  I determined to find a solution to that challenge.

I got to talking to Michael Stark from www.starkenvironmental.com, who gave me some great ideas and talked about his services.  Me being a dyed-in-the-wool DIY'er, however, I just had to figure out a system I could build myself and install.  The biggest challenge was the barrell itself - too big to buy online, and the local options seemed unnecessarily expensive.  Then a friend turned me on to a local manufacturer who had surplus barrels they would sell.  Now I was getting somewhere!

I contacted the company and picked up my first barrel for $5.00. Then, I turned to the DIY'er's best friend, big orange, for the plumbing.  I replaced my downspout along the garage near the garden with some 2" PVC piping.

(note - the downspout pipe in this photo is the one attached to the gutter.  The other two are feeders for my solar pool heating system.  More on that in the next post in the series)

Then, I placed the barrel below on a pad that was there.  Cement blocks or pavers in the ground would work also. 

You can easily see the piping arrangement - the water fills the barrel and begins overflowing into the existing buried water line.  Works like a charm!  I also bought a second barrel (visible on right) which I'll connect to the first barrel with a cross-pipe to double my capacity to 110 gallons.  I used epoxy to affix the drain tube and screwed on a 1/2 inch brass hose bib.  Venting is handled because it's open at the gutter drain.  Oh, and I popped a mesh gutter drain cover in up there to minimize the debris flowing into the downspout.

That's in - my first rainwater harvesting effort.  So far, so good.  If you want any other details feel free to contact me.  As always, as your Realtor I will give you advice on "green" projects around the home you are purchasing or own! 

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 For Lancaster PA homes for sale click here. Jeff Geoghan is a top real estate expert in Lancaster County, PA, and an involved community member. Jeff's work has been featured in the Lancaster Newspapers, WGAL Channel 8, PA Business Journal and Wall Street Journal. Jeff's blog on Lancaster County and its homes is nationally-featured. Contact Jeff for more help with your Lancaster PA Real Estate needs. Jeff is also a photographer - view some of his portfolio. Comments are welcome!