It will take a long time to fill it without a gutter and drainpipe. The lid is useful to stop the water going green.

Rainwater can generally be stored for long-periods without problems and there are products that can be added to water butts to ensure no odour and bacterial build-up. Some people encounter mosquito problems with water butts, this can be solved by fitting a lid or placing a layer of polystyrene balls on top of the water. Alternatively a thin layer of vegetable oil seems to do the same job. You can also get rain diverter kits so that it does not overflow when full and goes down a drain. However, you may be disappointed as don't forget hardly any rain at times when you most need it and you will quickly use up any winter rain! Very slow way to collect water, an outside tap can be fitted if a bathroom or kitchen is near by

I don't think that there is much point in buying a rain butt unless you have a down spout to fit it to. Even in Scotland, the average rainfall is about 1.6m in a whole year. So, even if you can catch it all in the open it will not give you very much water to use in the garden.

Wont bother then, just get a tap fitted. Kitched sink backs onto garden so will get a plumber to make a hole in the wall and put one on.

Thanks.

Thats a better solution Cam

Another reason to have lids: my neighbour found two squirrels in hers......

how much will the plumer charge you ,and they do not usualy dril holes in wals,, and your tap water is treated so there is nothing in it for your plants, so lets talk a bit of sense, no ofence intended but it will cost you a lot of money for warter that is no were near as good as rain water for your plants, go to B&Q for about seven pounds you can bie a fitting for your gutter down pipe , then talk to a mail nabour and ask him to cut about two inches out of your down pipe the instructions on the part from B&Q will tell you the right amount ,when he has dun that he will just slip the part in ,it has a flexi pipe on it either to put in to the hole provided in the water but or to drop in to a barel, the whole thing takes about ten minuates and cost about seven pounds,, then you can make a small sack and put some of that horse muck in and hang it in the water but and you have loads of llicuid manure.

My outside water tap is through a hole drilled in my kitchen wall Cliffo.

Cliffo, thanks for the idea of liquid manure, it will be quicker than waiting for compost, although I will probably end up doing both as I just finished re-reading my self sufficiency book and dont think I will ever put anything in the dustbin again. Will the liquid fertiliser from fresh pony muck not be too strong? Will add a tap as well in case it doesnt rain THIS year.

Watch for flies then lol

What? Where?

I would have thought if you put horse manure in the water it would smell and attract flies?

You may be right. Where pony lives the owner of the house doesnt pick it up in the field but leaves it to get washed in by the rain. It is always covered with flies in the heat of summer. Luckily they just use one area as a toilet. I may be better off burrying it next to the plants and not putting any in the water butt.

I think that sounds a better idea because if its collecting water from a down pipe its beside the house?

what are we talking about hear,flys, you have what 40-50 galens with a smal sack holding at most a couple of pounds of horse manure which if I rember right is hardly lquid'' and every time it rains an water is taken out making it even weeker, ,so gone are the flys and I think you have the answer to your question will it be to strong, the lady next door said exatly the same as you when I put her water butt in she was going to give it a start, from the tap it rained that night and she woke to a full butt, you will be surprised just how much water goes down that pipe and rember there is only about a third goes in to your butt.I would not be without one just an other point besides the nightergen in rain water , it is allways the same tempture as your garden, have I solde you one ? lol

by the way Drc so is mine but I did it myself,plumers do pipes and tiles, some will dril your 9inch but charge you for it,

I love the smell of horse muck and the cats could chase the flies, their favourite hobby. It woud be next to either kitchen or bedroom windows, but neighbours kitchen and bedroom windows are on top of mine. I have ground floor, she has top. Something to try in a bucket first without a lid and see how much it smells, if it doesnt then it can only be less with a lid on. If she wants it moved to other part of garden will just take lid off on rainy days/nights. Plenty of that the last few years. So will probably end up with both and water butt with or without 'contents'. Thanks for the different views helps with the pros and cons. On the horsey sites they just fight if they have different views to the point of having threads locked or even being thrown off the site. Seems to be a different set of people on here completely. Maybe it is because animal care is a very emotive subject for some as we all tend to treat our pets as our belated kids.

I ashore you the only time you will smell it, if atall ' is when you turn the tap to fill your watering can , I have a lady living above me that has a verry bad chest, she canot even have fresh flowers in her flat, and I used mine all last summer, and checked a few times with her, and the lady next door who helps me in the garden lives on the first floor and i have put hers under her kitchen window ,and nither her or the lady on the ground floor can smell anything,stop making things hard for your self I am in the same position as you except ,I have been there X

If you have a way to collect rain from a down pipe then a rain butt is the best thing. If you are not able to do this then the only solution is tap water. Depending on where you live this may be heavily or lightly treated. We live in an area where there is very little treatment of the water and have no worries bout using on any of our plants in the garden. We also have large rain butt that we use to water plants and bulbs in the greenhouse - when it isn't frozen :-)

I wouldn't be without my 2 waterbutts .I have one either side of the shed,and
we installed guttering and the rain diverter kits for both.we also added a length of piping for an overflow,which goes into shrub borders when they are full,which,to be honest doesn't take that long,and they soon seem to get full.We also have an outside tap,so use that when butts are empty..We are on a water meter,so very careful to save as much water as we can.In the winter,when not needed for the garden,we use the rain water for washing the car,or patio,etc.Hope this helps you decideWe have never had any nasties in our Butts so far,so fingers crossed......

I have two old plastic dustbins which I used as water butts - one is now full of compost but the other one doesn't take long to fill when the lid is off and I also leave a couple of buckets out in the rain to fill it. I thought the idea was to conserve water and not keep using the tap all the time. My seedlings, pots and baskets always seem to thrive better on rain water as opposed to tap water.