Prepper Recon

Make Your Own Rain Catch System

Today’s post is a classic from when Prepper Recon first got started. As we generally had only 10 or 20 hits a day back then, only a fist full of folks read it. We now have more than 1000 hits on some days, so I wanted to repost it for all of the people who have started following us since.

Water is one of  the most important commodities to survival, second only to air. It is said you can survive about 3 minutes without air, 3 days without water and 3 weeks without food. It is also  very susceptible to disruption. Chemical spills, power outages, sewer leaks, and terror attacks are all potential disruptions to our water supply. A fortunate few live on land that has its own water source. The vast majority of us do not and are highly dependent on a municipal government to provide water for us.

Storing water for such instances is quite prudent. Having the capacity to store large amounts of water presents a problem for many people. It may be very easy for you to store 20 or 30 gallons, but two people would go through that in 10 days if they would only us it for drinking, cooking and brushing teeth. If you have the space and desire to put in an above ground pool, this is an excellent method to store water although it will require a lot of maintenance as you will need to keep chlorine levels good and keep up a pump system. Another possibility is to dig a well and install a hand pump. This option will cost quite a bit up front.

For prepping on a budget, building your own rain catch system can be done for less than $100. Simply run a length of gutter in an area that will catch a lot of rain and won’t be to unsightly for the neighbors. Many cities do not allow rain catch systems, so keep this in mind when you decide if this option is right for you. Be sure to put a gutter filter over the gutter to keep out leaves and debris.  Attach a down spout and feed it into a 50 gallon food grade bucket that you can likely find on Craigslist. If you feel handy, you can drill out a small hole at the bottom of the bucket and install a spigot for a few bucks more. If you decide to, place tight fitting rubber washers around the inside and outside of the spigot pipe and screw on an open threaded connector cap tightly on the inside of your water barrel to prevent leaks. To cover your rain catch system, you can use thick plastic sheeting and a bungee cord. This won’t make your rain catch system air tight, but it will keep out most critters.

Here is my set up:

Painting them to match your home will make them less conspicuous if you are concerned with Op Sec, but not necessary if you don’t care.

Between now and TEOTWAWKI, I use the water to keep my garden well watered. I rarely use the hose for the garden since I put in this rain catch system.

I think I paid $25 for each barrel, $14 for 20 feet of gutter, another $10 for the down spouts, $4 for a 20′ roll of gutter guard, $10 for the spigot and washers, and $5 for 2 heavy duty bungee cords. The plastic sheeting I had laying around. That totals to $93.

Let us know what you do to be prepared for a water service disruption.

Happy prepping!

MDG