RHow do you get the water OUT of a rain barrel?

How do you get the water OUT of a rain barrel? Two ways: Let gravity do it or pump it out.

For gravity to work the barrel's outlet has to be somewhat above the garden, the higher it is the more pressure you get. To reach 10 PSI the barrel's got to be about 23 feet higher.

Now, a gallon of H two O weighs about 8.3 pounds. Fifty gallons, plus the barrel itself, and there's almost a quarter of a ton. If you're thinking of constructing a platform to hold it up, on 4 square feet (two feet by two feet square) that's over 100 pounds dead weight per square foot. For comparison, a typical spec for building a deck is 10 lbs dead weight plus 40 lbs live weight.

To me that means something engineered with cinder blocks rather than 2x4's in most cases.

Alternatively, you can install a small, relatively inexpensive, low volume electric pump- the kind used for fishponds or other landscape water features.

El Viejo