$1300 is a lot of money but it should pay for itself over the span of yrs. I was just considering a water harvest system myself, the 1/2acre that we bought, has 4 45 gallon drums for water, that I have had stored away as I wasn't using them, but have hauled themout and was going to make some mesquito screens over them...I also saw an ad on craigslist for a 250gal tank for 100. Hmmm, wonder if I could use it off my shed? DH is always on about the water bill, and so this might help my poor garden from his shutting off the watering system just cuz there's a trickle of rain...hmmm. It's certainly worth it to me, I put a lot of hrs into my flower garden, just to see it die of thirst!!! I envy my neighbors down the road, they have a well that they use for just their gardens, and use municipal water for their home...ahhh, their gardens are like walking into a dream!!!! I am recently giving my yard another TOTAL makeover as I had to put deer fencing up so I could have some plants!!! Now I am rethinking the previous owners style of layout and coming up with my own, so this is a great topic for me...thanks for posting!

It certainly is a hefty price tag, but what appeals to me is the ability to use a hose - effectively! My other rain barrel was neglected, bec it was simply easier to use a hose (I didn't mind using a watering can for my herbs in containers, but.....)

I agree about not letting hardwork die of thirst :) I dream of an irrigation system....beautiful hardscaping....gorgeous plants....sigh....

Just out of curiosity, how tall does a deer fence need to be? We're under attack by a shorter animal - bunnies. Awfully cute, surprising appetites...!

Another thing to consider is how far 214 gallons will go. If you plan on watering your lawn it will not go far if you consider 1" of water per week of irrigation to be necessary as is often the number used. 214 gallons is 28.6 cubic feet which would cover 343.3 sf (about 34'by 10').

You have to value this for your personal environmental reasons rather than for practical economic reasons or you will be very disappointed if you are not in an arid area or one with extreme watering limitations.

Also make sure you take into consideration you roof material as per this article - http://selfsufficientsteward.com/?p=279

Good article nbreau! I will stick to my barrels for now and gravity feed from them, they will be out in the open and catch water just by themselves, not from a roof. My deer fence will only be 6ft high, but they usually say 8ft...but I have a weird property which is built up so have a slope around most of it which means they/deer would have a 2ft and 3ft disadvantage to start with!lol! PLUS it will keep out bunnies and other critters cuz it's a 2inch wire mesh and even smaller at the bottom!!! So it will keep my free range chickens...aka: 8lb chihuahua and 6lb yorkie/maltese in the yard!!! They think 1/2acre isn't big enough for them!! They have become quite the deer chasers too! A long story but here is a pic of one of my dogs...can you imagine seeing this yapping and bounding towards you?!!! lol!

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:18111}}

That's quite the handsome pup! Certainly the colour alone should give the deer a good scare (and bunnies too)!

Thanks everyone for the advice - I think that I'll use my existing barrel for now (for veggies and herbs) and maybe consider having an irrigation systems built into the garden (I hate dragging a hose around a yard and I'm too lazy to water a lawn - grass just isn't pretty enough in my opinion!)

Deer fence needs to be 8 feet high. Bunnies are a pain...I've had some success with dried blood. The plants love it (pure nitrogen) and the rabbits think one of their buddies bought the farm in the area and don't hang around.

Down side...one has to re-apply after rain. And sometimes raccoons and dogs dig...

Hi
here's what I've done over the years about the water problem. i built an above ground garden pool5x10x3 feet lined with fiberglass made of stacked 4x4's. Holds 1200 gallons of water Cost to startup was under 400 bucks
Used it mainly for watering the shadehouse but couldn't resist turning it into a water garden had to keeep fish anyway to control mosquitoes. Put the downspouts underground entering the bottom so have a self cleaning water garden, Overflow goes into the marsh garden so it's constantly renewed also. I use a drop in pump for running the sprinlers of course i can't run it too low because of the plants and fish
two years ago I added heating system to keep more delicate fish and plants and to power the water fall in the shadehouse. Hoping this will work out as a temporary heat source for the shadehouse during winter. Jury still out on that. pump broke down during coldest day in 15 years lol.
The main problem has been the incessant drought. If we had anywhere near normal rainfall would be marvelous.
Anyway maybe an idea for you??? gary

You know as mention above 214 gallon won't go far watering in ground. Believe me you'l be more than just dissapointed. In a few years that garden you envy will be gone for the very reason yor DH mentioned. Cost. Not to mention changing weather patterns. We're going to have to have a whole new mind set about water and how we use it. Go to the Container Gardening section and look at the past posts for The Dark Garden. There's a method there showing you how to water 80 and that's no type- o, 80 plants on just 2 1/2 gallons of water a day. Or just search under my screen name. And just for a laugh ask your DH how would he like to save 50% on his water bill and he doesn't have to buy or make anything.