Ann from The 'GREEN' Garage Store.com I started my own company in April called The 'GREEN' Garage Store in Avon Ohio. I spent months this past winter researching and searching for the 'PERFECT RAIN BARREL' and found it dosn't exist, so I created one and I now sell a completely assembed CLOSED system rain barrel with a RainReserve Diverter to divert only the clean water in the barrel,while the debris and overflow return back in your downspout. No Mosquitos & No Algae and best of all NO MAINTENANCE!! I have a 30 gallon Water Stone for those who don't like or cannot have a conventional rain barrel. I also have available 55 gallon plasic barrels in Black, Gray, Blue and Terra Cotta. These barrels are food grade and previously held ONLY food or juice. The diverter is made by RainReserve, for which I am the Ohio distributor. The RainReserve Diverter is freeze proof and UV proof, has a one year guarantee and best of all....it is MADE IN THE USA with 100% recycled material. You can't get GREENER than that!! For those 'DO IT YOU-SELF-ERS' I can provide you with barrels, high flow spigots, connections, hoses....anything you need to make your life easier and GREENER!! And one of my satisfied customers built an electic pump for your barrel, spays 43' in the air so you can use your rain water just like your hose!! You can check out my web site and call me for any questions or to place an order. www.theGREENgarageStore.com

I have about 75 rain barrels....most are all ready to go ...all you need is to come and pick them up...they sell for $50.00 for the rain barrel and spigot installed and $65 for the barrel ready to be installed....please call me 216-355-0113 thanks

We are planning on having a demonstration of making your own Rain Barrel on Saturday May 10 at an Earthly Friendly Fest we are sponsoring in North Olmsted. I think someone is bringing sets of hardware to sell so you can make your own at home. For details on the event - here is the flyer.

bluewaterohio.com is the place for rain barrels in Cleveland. As seen in the Plain Dealer and Channel 5 over the past 2 years, we fill the gap for people who can't attend a local seminar or buld their own. Kits and installs are available on our web site or at 216-382-0585. Thanks David George

In August, South Euclid's Ward 4 Councilwoman Jane Goodman proposed legislation that would allow homeowners to attach rain barrels to the downspout of their house, or even let rain  flow from downspouts into a rain garden. Goodman blogged about the proposal here, offering a list of benefits such as relieving already stressed storm and sewer systems, and saving homeowners money on their water bill. 

When I got this question I thought, “What a great softball question. I’ll kick this one out in no time.” Actually, I don’t talk like that in my head, it actually went something like, “Awesome, this will be easy, and then I can leave early.”

But much to my surprise, finding a rain barrel in Northeast Ohio is no small feat. I started like any good consumer with calls to local home and garden centers and quite often got the “What’s-a-rain-barrel?” response.

From there I had the awkward task of explaining that in fact a rain barrel is a barrel that collects rain. At least once we got that far I was able to espouse all the benefits of a rain barrel like: using a rain barrel lowers water bills, decreases water demand and is better for plants and vegetables (less chlorine and fluoride).

From that I would often get a “huh” or “cool” — I could almost hear the gears moving in their heads thinking, “That’s not a bad idea, perhaps we should carry rain barrels?” Or at least that’s what I hoped.

Back to where one can find these simple yet ecologically brilliant tools—in my well-meaning but not exhaustive search of local and big box retailers I found a very few that either have or plan on having rain barrels in time for the planting season, including the Home Depot (Cleveland Heights only). More and more mom-and-pop operations are springing up (see the comments above) in the area fashioning rain barrels out of used 55-gal. food containers.

Of course, if you are so inclined there are a plenty of Internet sites that offer rain barrels of every size, shape and cost.

http://www.thecomposter.com, http://www.sprucecreekrainsaver.com, http://www.watertanks.com, http://www.watersavers.com, http://www.envirolet.com, http://www.rainbarrelsandmore.com, http://www.bayteccontainers.com

For those who feel like something as simple as ‘a barrel that collect rain’ should be well within reach of constructing on your own, you can make your own rain barrel using a large trashcan, agricultural supply container, or other food-safe container.

As you can guess there are a host of how-to-manuals and even local workshops on rain barrel construction. Most supplies can be purchased at a local hardware stores and it’s worth checking grocery stores or the Internet for reusable barrels. Installation simply involves disconnecting and then cutting off a portion of the downspout redirecting it into the top of the barrel.

As residential irrigation accounts for 40 percent of domestic water consumption and a simple 10 percent improvement in efficiency of water delivery could conserve enough water to double the global amount available for drinking—I suggest calling your favorite garden center and providing a gentle push to include rain barrels with the array of lawn chairs and electric fountains.