How to create your own rainwater harvesting bin

In this video Elle shows you how to make your own rainwater harvesting bin for watering your garden.

Steps

Before we start work on the bin, a raised wooden base is needed for the DIY rain harvesting bin, as this helps to get easy access to the tap which will be situated close to the bottom of the bin. To do this you can make a stand out of pallet wood pieces cut to size. For this project multiple pallet wood lengths of 500mm were cut and screwed together with long wood screws and a power drill.
On to the bin… Drill multiple “drainage” holes using the spade drill bit, in the lid of the plastic bin. When the lid is flipped and placed on the bin, the lid now acts as a funnel to help collect and drain the rainwater into the bin.
Next, decide where you want to position the tap and use a spade drill bit (inserted in a drill) to make the hole.

Top Tip: for this project a spade bit that is slightly smaller in size compared to the diameter of the tap’s end was used to ensure a snug and tight fit. The back end of the tap was gently Screwed into the hole made.

Use washers when inserting the tap, make use of a fitting to secure the other end inside the bin and apply some silicone to make sure everything is water tight and to avoid water leakage.
To stop mosquitoes and other insects from entering the rain bin, make use of an insect net and waterproof duct tape. Cut the insect net to the size of the bin’s rim, and secure to the rim with strips of waterproof duct tape. Place the lid on top of the netted opening.
Place the rainwater harvesting bin on top of the raised pallet wood base and secure the bin to the base using a bungee cord on either side of the bin. attached to the handles and to the wood at base. This ensures that the bin won’t fall over in unpredictable weather or winds when the barrel is empty.