Why Act?

Rainwater collection can help you save water for use in your yard, eliminate potential flooding in your basement, and reduce stormwater management costs. Water running off your roof during a rainstorm can be a problem or a resource put to good use. On many properties in Arlington, rooftop rainwater runoff drains onto yards with compacted clay soil or onto hard pavement. It eventually flows into storm drains and directly into our local streams. Reducing stormwater runoff is the first step to reviving life in urban streams. This action will show you how to divert and store rainwater runoff so that you can help support aquatic life and reduce streambank erosion.

Action Steps

1. Check to see where the rain from your roof goes. Count how many downspouts you have. Then estimate the size of the floor space under your roof and the amount of rainwater that runs off. In a one inch rainfall, a one thousand square foot rooftop drains approximately 600 gallons of rainwater.

2. Determine the size and type of cistern or rain barrel that best suits your needs. If you use a rain barrel, look for one with an overflow hose near the top of the barrel because the barrel will fill up in heavier rains. Cisterns are available in larger volumes and they are a good option for storing larger amounts of water.

3. Before installing a cistern or rain barrel, check your gutters and roof drains, and remove any leaves or other debris that may block water flow. If leaf accumulation is a problem, consider installing commercial gutter shields.

4. When you install the cistern or rain barrel, ensure tight connections between the downspout and overflow pipes. To avoid mosquito problems, leave no openings. Mosquito dunks (a commercially available biological control) are also recommended.

5. When temperatures are below freezing, leave the outflow spigot open to avoid ice damage to your cistern or rain barrel.

6. Use the water you’ve collected to water trees, shrubs, and other plants between rainfalls, or allow the water to dribble out through a soaker hose into your garden.

Materials

Ladder, gloves and eye protection to wear while cleaning gutters, cistern or rain barrel, connectors, hose for outflow, hacksaw to cut downspout to right height

Time

One to six hours, depending on gutter maintenance and size of rain barrel or cistern

Resources

Arlington County Rain Barrels information page

GREENCulture Rain Barrels

Urban Garden Center Rain Barrels

Polyprocessing – larger tanks for cisterns