(RainRouters are available in our online store as well). But again, for a small system, there is such a thing as too-much/too-fast, so the RainRouter Selector Valve on the bottom diverter allows the user to send excess water through a hose to direct it elsewhere. The lower diverter will catch overflow from the higher one in heavy rains. With two diverters collecting the same downspout, one is installed higher than the other. The picture below shows another creative approach. Our interactive online store allows you to choose all kinds of customizations, including extra diverters, so you can feed a single system from multiple downspouts. The BlueBarrel System is very flexible in this way. For example, the system above collects from two separate downspouts: one at each end of the system. Otherwise you will create backup issues.īut there are many ways to increase inflow without creating overflow issues. While there are some creative ways to increase the rate of transfer between barrels, in a standard setup, the most sound approach is to match the inflow rate to the rate at which the system can fill. First, just remember a multi-barrel system like the BlueBarrel System can't fill any faster than water can get through the connection lines. That said, we do have a few suggestions for how to increase inflow for faster fill. It is also your best bet for minimizing the chances of damage caused by uncontrolled overflow. This increases your ability to infiltrate this water onsite, which is what you really want for the best ecological design. Excess water will overflow regardless, so by optimizing the inflow rate, overflow exits at lower rates over a longer period of time. Your storage tanks have the ability to collect a certain amount of water. balanced inflow) allows inflow and overflow to be more balanced throughout the season. We don't think so! Simultaneous overflow (a.k.a. This adds major convenience-you don't even need to think about system overflow! While there are plenty of ecological overflow solutions you can pursue when you have time, rest assured that you will not be creating any new drainage problems when you install a BlueBarrel Rainwater Catchment System™. Once the water column starts rising in the downspout, excess flow falls down that hole in the middle to exit your downspout as it normally would. When installed correctly (with the inlet hose completely level), a full barrel will cause excess water to back up in the hose. This is an easy and automatic way to keep barrels topping up even as you use the water throughout the seasons. When they are full, it will flow down as if they weren't there. If your barrels have any capacity at all, water will flow in. It’s a true set-it-and-forget-it solution. Because of that hole, this is all possible with no on-and-off switch. The most brilliant thing about this diverter is that it optimizes inflow to fill rate, and handles system overflow automatically. “But what about that big hole in the middle?”Īh, there’s another common question. This has environmental benefits both in terms of water conservation and stormwater mitigation. Rain barrels allow you to divert this water and store it as a free source of the highest quality irrigation water. Without rain barrels, this water usually makes its way into a storm drain, or is piped away from the building onto the landscape. Then, water courses through a number of downspouts, the vertical elements that carry stormwater to the ground. On the average building, rainwater cascades down the roof and into gutters, which run horizontally to capture water from the roofline. "What if the standard solution won't work for me?” A quick breakdown: We'll also cover some alternatives, for those who are thinking: This article covers our standard downspout diverter, demystifying how it works. The BlueBarrel Rainwater Catchment System ™ provides a top-to-bottom (roof to barrel to garden, that is) solution for harvesting and storing rainwater, and then irrigating with it. Just how do you get water from your roof into a rain barrel (or a series of them), anyway? As a rainwater catchment company, we answer lots of questions about the downspout diverter for rain barrels.
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