"If I put a 60 gallon rain barrel out in my field, how many inches of rain do I need to fill it?"

Asked by bonstu 32 months ago

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The opening is approx 30 inches and will have a screen on it and it will not be near anything that will block the top, i.e. buildings.


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"This website provides all the calculations"
 by newbie1749098 on Jun 03 2007 (32 months ago)
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Based on this website, it appears that 93.75 inches will result in 60 gallons of water over a 30 inch hole.

1 square foot with 1.6 inches of rain yields 1 galon or rain 30 square inches is 2.5 square feet or .64 gallons per inch..
Sources: http://wildbackyard.wordpress.com/2006/07/30/how-much-water-inches-of-rain-vs-gallons/
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"You need just under 20 inches of rain to fill the barrel"
 by newbie2470781 on Jun 04 2007 (32 months ago)
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Assuming the barrel is circular and the diameter of the opening is 30 inches
Therefore radius = 1/2 * 30 inches = 15 inches
Pi * (15in)^squared = 706.86 sq inch surface
1 gallon = 231 cubic inches
60 gallons = 13860 cubic inches
13860 cubic inches / 706.86 sq inches = 19.61 inches

19.61 inches is the total depth required to contain 60 gallons if the diameter of the container is 30 inches.
Sources: http://www.ilpi.com/msds/ref/volumeunits.html
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"There is more to this question than meets the eye!"
 by eevilx on Jun 06 2007 (32 months ago)
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Bonstu,
One thing you might think about, too, is how often you get rain.  If it's a while between storms, then some of the rain collected might evaporate off in the meantime.  Think about it:  Puddles on concrete dry up between storms, and I don't think too much of that has to do with water seeping into the concrete. (It would also depend on how humid it is where you live.  More humidity means less would likely evaporate from your barrel.  In Hawaii, it might only number of inches of rain equal to the height of your barrel, but in Arizona, you might never fill it because after every rain, the water would evaporate away!)
Those are my thoughts on the matter.
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"13,860 cubic inches"
 by Spaceman_Spiff on Jun 01 2007 (32 months ago)
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1 gallon = 231 cubic inches

60 gallons = 13,860 cubic inches of rain to actually pass through the screen and into the barrel.
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Latest post on this question's discussion board:

Usually there is a place on the roof where the water runns off. Would that help? How far is it? By the by - my answer is "about 60 inches of rain."
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