Hi Amy, I got mine from the local car wash for five bucks.

This is probably a stupid question ... but how did you know to ask for it??

Thanks for the link. I've been seriously considering getting a couple of rain barrels.

Amy, There are no stupid questions here. I work next door to a carwash. I saw all these barrels lined up so a lightbulb went off in my head. There are many available premade but that of course is beyond my budget. I really thought they would be free since they have so many. There really are tons of stuff online that tells you how to make one. I chose a white one to blend in with the house. It is way cheaper to make your own. Good luck! Rhonda

I just went to a workshop on making rain barrels this week. The instructor recommended getting food-grade barrels, which you can get from most places that manufacture or distribute food products. I got a 60 gallon barrel from a soda company; it was used to store soda syrup. The barrels end up in the landfill, so its worth asking for one (or more).

Any one close to me in west tn. that wants one send me a Email. Don't know as they are food grade but the contents went into drinking water at a water plant.
Norman

Is getting barrels from a car wash safe?? Many site recommend food grade.

The stuff from the carwash is probably concentrated, so a thorough wash may be necessary, but there shouldn't be anything in them that you couldn't wash out good enough.

I take that back. If you don't have good access to all parts of the inside of the barrel, the liquid wax might possibly be a problem. I would think that if you checked the barrel out before you got it, you could open the lid and use your finger to see how much gunky residue was left inside. You might be able to tell what it had had in it. If it was soap or any of the other water soluable stuff, that would be washout-able. If it was wax, I'm not sure.

I guess reading the label made a little nervous. It is a Simonize super foam concentrate. It states on the label NOT to reuse the barrel. From the label: "Empty containers contain product residue, do not reuse."

My plan was to rinse it the best I could through the bung holes and the holes i drill to make the barrel.

The ingredients to not list any wax.

Jay

im using an old boat i had to collect rainwater. got a hose hooked up to the plug. it seems to work really well.

I wouldn't want to drink from a used carwash barrel, but if you rinse it out until no more foam is formed when water is sprayed into it, I would think the chances of any remaining residue hurting your plants would be very very slim. Simoniz Super Foam is completely water soluble so you should be able to rinse it out of the barrel without much difficulty.

You would really freak if you knew what I use to water my trees. I have 5 gallon buckets that originally came with hydraulic fluid and motor oil in them.

I got my barrels from the farm co-op, and they had alcohol inside them (I think farmers use it for diluting fertilizer or something). The first one I rinsed the heck out of, the second one I got smart and left it open a day or two until the alcohol (methanol) evaporated.

Wanted to extend a huge thanks to maternut for the three Polly drums destined to be rain collection barrels.
Took a lovely drive out to the country, was amazed at the size of his blueberry and fig plants!

http://nashville.craigslist.org/grd/704427115.html

http://nashville.craigslist.org/grd/693631598.html

http://nashville.craigslist.org/grd/691935484.html

http://nashville.craigslist.org/mat/686056518.html

I found ours at a nashville Ace hardware. they were like 10-20 dollars depending on the size.

I just bought my 55 gallon plastic barrel last week in Nashville from the local Coca Cola bottling plant on Craigshead by the fairgrounds. Call first, they only sell them one day a week. The 55 gallon ones are $6 a barrel. You need to call Monchellas Williams at (615) 383-6230 beforehand and she'll tell you the time & day they sell these. Then go to this website to see what you need to buy, how to build it and how to hook it up. Only takes a few dollars in parts: http://www.nashville.gov/stormwater/docs/pdfs/Rain_Barrel.pdf

I'm building mine next week!

-Chris

I hurried like mad to get my barrels finished and in place before the "big rain storm" rolled in..... soon as I hooked the last one up it stopped drizzling and the sun came out! Hasn't rained a drop since that day, two weeks ago!

>Hasn't rained a drop since that day, two weeks ago!

I happily take that all back! It's pouring outside and the barrels are collecting beautifully... Times like this make me wish I had a barrel attached to _every_ downspout of the house!