Rain barrels are a way to collect rainwater runoff from roofs and reduce environmental problems associated with stormwater runoff. They are pretty easy to build, but, they look like what they are, polyethylene drums. There are commercially available rain barrels, but, they are expensive and don't look much better.
The idea of this project was to see if some sort of enhancement to the appearance of the barrel could be made, preferably using recycled materials. This instructable is an example design.
There are many variations on the design of a rain barrel. The design for the rain barrel I chose was from this instructable: http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Build-a-Rain-Barrel/?ALLSTEPS
Wood from used wooden pallets was the primary material for this project. Wood pallets are made using ring shank nails and trying to pry the slats off will crack the wood. There a number of instructables detailing how to disassemble them.
Materials used to enhance this rain barrel were:
- Wood slats from used wooden pallets
- Some leftover rope to weave the slats together
- Wood stain & brush (marked down miss-tinted stains, not recycled, but cheap)
- A scrap of plywood and a few nails to make a jig (not necessary, but, saves a lot of time measuring)
- Some glue applied to the ends of the rope to keep in from unraveling while threading through the slats
- Some sort of hard pointed thing like a punch to help thread the rope through the slats
Tools used:
- Table saw
- Drill and drill bit a little bigger than the diameter of the rope
- A tape measure
- A few nails (for the optional jig)
- A file (for shaping the glued rope ends into points)
The idea of this project was to see if some sort of enhancement to the appearance of the barrel could be made, preferably using recycled materials. This instructable is an example design.
There are many variations on the design of a rain barrel. The design for the rain barrel I chose was from this instructable: http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Build-a-Rain-Barrel/?ALLSTEPS
Wood from used wooden pallets was the primary material for this project. Wood pallets are made using ring shank nails and trying to pry the slats off will crack the wood. There a number of instructables detailing how to disassemble them.
Materials used to enhance this rain barrel were:
- Wood slats from used wooden pallets
- Some leftover rope to weave the slats together
- Wood stain & brush (marked down miss-tinted stains, not recycled, but cheap)
- A scrap of plywood and a few nails to make a jig (not necessary, but, saves a lot of time measuring)
- Some glue applied to the ends of the rope to keep in from unraveling while threading through the slats
- Some sort of hard pointed thing like a punch to help thread the rope through the slats
Tools used:
- Table saw
- Drill and drill bit a little bigger than the diameter of the rope
- A tape measure
- A few nails (for the optional jig)
- A file (for shaping the glued rope ends into points)
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Signing UpStep 1: Cutting the Slats
The barrel I used had a diameter of 23 inches and was 35 inches in height. The dimensions in this text are for this barrel. There is a spreadsheet attached that you can use if you want to modify any of the dimensions.
After you have slats you need to saw them into 21 - 3 by 38 inch, 2 – 3 by 29 inch, 2 – 3 by 4 inch and , 2 – 1 1/2 x 36 inch pieces. The shorter pieces are for where the overflow and spigot will be located.
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2
hjjusa
says:
Apr 9, 2012. 9:51 AMReplyI like this, My dog keeps drinking out of the rain barrel smaller inlet would prevent that.
237
jessyratfink
says:
Apr 8, 2012. 5:36 PMReplyThat looks amazing. Very nice upgrade. :D
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