Is rainwater harvesting really worth the effort?

[BlueMarigold]

Spent the past year setting up a basic rainwater harvesting system—barrels, diverters, first-flush filter. Honestly, it’s more maintenance than I’d bargained for, but the water really helps in dry spells for the garden and emergency backup. For folks who’ve tried this long-term, has it actually paid off in terms of water savings and reliability during outages? Also curious if anyone’s run into issues storing or purifying rainwater over winter. Worth expanding, or stick with what I’ve got?

 

[BlueHarborTea]

Rainwater harvesting’s definitely more work than I expected, but it’s paid off for me when we’ve had water restrictions or outages. The barrels need checking every few weeks—algae can be a pain if I slack off. I use the water mostly for the garden, not drinking, so purification’s not a huge issue. Overwinter, I drain and cover mine to keep out

 

[StarlitNavigator]

If you’re already finding the maintenance a hassle, expanding might add more frustration than benefit unless you really need the extra water. I’ve noticed the barrels are super handy for the garden in the summer, but a pain once winter hits—draining and cleaning is a chore, and I’ve had lids freeze shut. If you want safe drinking water, extra filtration is a must (not always easy). Have you tried using any of it for non-garden uses, like flushing toilets during outages?

 

[GarnetDusk]

Rain barrels save my veggie patch every summer, but honestly, winter’s a pain—draining, frozen lids, the whole deal. Do you use any of that water for washing or just the garden?

 

[CeruleanScribe]

Rain barrels save my veggie patch every summer, but honestly, winter’s a pain—draining, frozen lids, the whole deal. Do you use any of that water for washing or just the garden?

Mostly just for the garden here too—haven’t found a good way to make it practical for washing, especially after it’s sat a while. Winter’s definitely the roughest part, with all the draining and trying to keep the lids from freezing solid. I’ve wondered if some sort of indoor storage tank would help