![]() ![]() Use it to wash your car, top off the pool, clean your gardening tools, and flush your toilet. And finally, make sure to keep your barrel clean throughout the season.įeeling not so lucky? That’s OK too – you can find loads of other uses for that water. You might also consider installing a “first flush” feature that diverts the first few gallons from any rain into a separate barrel, as these are the most likely to contain troublesome additives (though other research casts doubts on this system’s efficacy, too). Always, always wash your veggies thoroughly with potable water before you eat them. Water in the morning to allow for drying and UV light disinfection, and don’t use rainwater close to harvest time. Water the veggies and herbs with a drip or trickle irrigator rather than pouring on the plants themselves this minimizes direct contact and harnesses the filtration power of the soil. ![]() If not, though, you must decide for yourself.įeeling lucky? It’s smart to take some precautions. You should definitely skip it if your roof is copper or has been treated with chromated copper arsenate or zinc (used to prevent algal growth). Experts can tell you the risk is minimal, but the practice is not entirely without peril. ![]() I can tell you that plenty of gardeners do dip into the rain barrel to water their veggies. What we’re left with then, Ron, is your personal tolerance for risk. It is possible to have your runoff tested for contaminants at a local health department or well-water testing facility – but experts at Rutgers say testing thoroughly enough for meaningful results is likely impractical and expensive for home gardens. The water harbored no PAHs and little heavy metals, and most (but not all) samples were also low in bacteria. One 2013 study from Rutgers examined rain-barrel water for lead, zinc, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and E. I hate to rain on your parade, but there’s not a lot of research out there to provide a definitive answer. Might those rooftop nasties make you sick? So while using the water to irrigate trees, shrubs, and flowers is universally smiled upon, some people get a little queasy about putting it on plants they’ll eventually be eating. Everything from roof-treatment chemicals to airborne heavy-metal pollutants to mold to the poop from roosting birds or squirrels may be swept into your clean-looking barrel. Once it hits your roof, a raindrop may run over and collect a number of contaminants. But you’re not the only one wondering about using that manna from heaven on your veggie garden, Ron. Simple systems designed to funnel rainwater from your roof into storage tanks, rain barrels relieve pressure on stormwater systems, reduce the energy used to treat and transport water, and save you roughly 1,300 gallons of tap water per summer. Rain barrels in general are unequivocally healthy for the planet. Both water sources may look clear, pure, and unequivocally healthy, but you never know what invisible intruders lurk within. By which I mean – and if you’ve ever had the misfortune of experiencing what I’ll call “the wilderness two-step” after indulging in the latter, you’ll know this already – proceed with caution. Using sweet rainwater to nourish your burgeoning salad ingredients is just like a refreshing drink straight from a mountain stream. To support our nonprofit environmental journalism, please consider disabling your ad-blocker to allow ads on Grist.
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