You might want to make sure rain barrels are not, in fact illegal in your area.
We were building a new deck at our house and one idea I had was to put a rain barrel in to water our garden..awesome, great idea right?
Wrong..when we asked the contractors about how to put in a rain barrel and integrate to the garden they told us...get ready..
Rain Barrels are ILLEGAL! Okay, so that's not exactly true...but for us..and a lot of people they are here in CO.
here is an article about it: http://www.dailycamera.com/home-garden/ci_13125924#axzz0hWgp5kzt
This legislation took place in 2009. We didn't fit that criteria at all so yes, for us a rain barrels are in fact illegal.
Re: PSA to those interested in rain barrels
I know. There are some weird water rights issues and laws up here...streams and rivers through private property are in fact "private property." This creates a whole lot of issues for businesses like river rafting companies who can't go through certain parts of rivers b/c they are trespassing and can be given a ticket.
I know this has nothing to do with rain barrels, but it's just another example of how apparently in CO we are a little weird about the water!
It was disappointing to me..and our family as I watched the snow melt off our roof and just waste away!