Rain Barrels 101: Ohio Rebate Spurs Local Installations

The Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District's new stormwater fee includes a rebate program for homeowners that install rain barrels or rain gardens on their property to offset impervious surfacing. Residents participating in rain barrel workshops offered by the area conservation district are finding out why, where and how rain barrels are a useful addition for homeowners and local stormwater management.

Homeowners in Northeastern Ohio have rain barrels on their minds. Installing the water savers could help to reduce a new stormwater fee residents will begin paying later this year.

The Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District's new fee – around $5 a month for most homeowners, and more for businesses – will be based on a property's impervious surfaces, which include driveways, roofs and patios. Qualifying homeowners can get a 25 percent reduction in the stormwater fee by installing a rain barrel or plant a rain garden; however, several criteria apply. At least half of the home's roof area must be connected to the barrels, and the barrels must be completely drained no more than four days after a rain.

"You can tell it's spring when people start calling about rain barrels," Dan Donaldson, district administrator with the Lake Soil and Water Conservation District, told participants at a rain barrel-making workshop in Willoughby, Ohio, according to The Plain Dealer.

Donaldson explained the benefits of installing a rain barrel, including the availability of mineral-free water for irrigation and outdoor washing, decreasing the amount of runoff reaching streams and storm drains, and controlling the amount of water flowing around your home's foundation.

"[The barrels are] only 55 gallons, but every little bit helps," Donaldson said.

Tips for proper rain barrel installation include:

- Careful, level placement of the rain barrel in the yard.
   • A standard barrel will weigh about 300 pounds when full, and Donaldson recommended building a platform for the barrel if space allows. "Once it's full of water, you're not going to move it," he warned.

- Barrels should be uphill, but not too far away, from the area to be watered. Of course, it must be close to a downspout.

- If the barrel sits on the ground, be sure to leave enough room under the spigot to place a bucket.

- Maintain a tight barrel lid to keep out mosquitoes and dirt.

- Collected water is OK for watering vegetables but not drinking; it may contain contaminants from the roof.

- Drained plastic rain barrels in winter to prevent frozen water from cracking them.

- Multiple rain barrels can be installed and linked together if space allows. Installing the water collection hoses near the bottom of each barrel will allow each one to fill and drain evenly.

More information on the stormwater fee rebate and rain barrel workshops is available at the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District's website.