Rain Water Collection Systems?

[jrodpad]

I've been poking around on the beginner Discussion board for a bit and I've noticed that more than a few members cut their tap water with rain water before hydrating their orchids.

For all those who use all or part rainwater, how do you collect the rainwater? Does everyone use a rain barrel? It seems like an overkill if you have a small orchid collection (like me). Also, can you use a rain barrel with an asphalt shingled roof, or would the chemicals from the roof leach into the rainwater?

If not a rain barrel, then how? Can this be as simple as putting a plastic bucket in the backyard with a screen over the top? Will the bucket begin to grow things?

I could just be wildly over complicating this - but I don't want to harm the collection....

Thanks!

- J

[Ray]

Unless you live in an urban area with lots of auto traffic (and exhaust) or near factories, rainwater is likely to be very pure and good to use on your plants.

Unless your roof is new, it is unlikely there will be anything leaching from the shingles, but it pays to let it rain - without collection - for a few minutes at the start of a storm to allow the roof to be washed clean of any detritus that may collect on it.

If you have a small demand for water, sure you can collect it in a 5-gallon bucket rather than a whole barrel, but you'd still need to put it under the downspout.

[John D.]

I collect rain from an asphalt shingled roof by putting a bucket where the water comes off the edge. I dump the first water caught if it is dirty(pollen build up in the spring or after a dry spell) and store the water in gallon plastic jugs in a dark area so algae doesn't grow. I am watering about 200 orchids this way.

[Izzie]

I use a 5gal bucket under my downspout since I have a small collection\- I rarely have left overs.
Of course, I live in CO, where we sometimes get less than ten inches of water a year- so rainwater is really unreliable. But I use it when I get it.
I have a friend who drinks it and cooks with it.

We just got a new roof put on (shingles), did a "taste test" after a couple days and as far as I can tell there's no problems.

[grasshopper]

I use a 40 gal. rain barrel to water my small orchid collection (about 30 orchids), as well as the potted plants on my patio.

When I run out of rain water (typcially in the drier season of late summer), I use filtered water from a Britta filter for the orchids. I store the filtered water in gallon jugs so it's ready on watering days. (The patio plants get tap water...they're not quite as spoiled as the 'chids! )

[Keltera]

i use a barel, and only use rain water for my chids. In the winter when we get snow i pack it in buckets and bring it inside so i can melt and i have 'winter rain' only thing about the snow is it has to be fresh snow, otherwise its chock full of pollutants from the cars and such.i like to fill up kitty litter buckets and bring them up to my chids, so i always have a supply of water near my chids and always have a refill waiting for my in the barrel.