rain barrel

[wheelhorse]

I have a barrel that collects all the rain from the roof it is a perfect setup (free)
The problem is I know the water is a breeding ground for insects and I have to empty it and clean it to often. I use this water in my garden but was thinking about putting a cap full of bleach in every now and then
I could put an air bubbler in but that takes hydro thanks for any imput

[oldgaredneck]

a friend of mine actually put goldfish in his - they eat the mosquito larvae, plus "fertilize" the water.....

[gone-a-milkin]

The goldfish really do work!

[Christiaan]

Goldfish or BT donuts work equally well. Goldfish will also keep algae down if that is a problem. BT donuts are very effective with a wide variety of insects.

[Abe R Crombie]

If you paint the barrel a dark color it will slow down the algea growth inside.Keep the sunlight out.......
Abe

[MELOC]

put a little veggie oil in there. it will form a skim on the top and mosquito larvae will die.

[cathryn]

I put veggie oil in too. I have not seen anything living in it yet this season.

cathryn

[The Paw]

To stop the bugs put a screen over the top.

To slow algae, use an opaque barrel with lid, hole in lid for your downspout.

To do both, put screen over the hole in the lid for your downspout...

[Forty Acres]

My dad was raised in a home that used a cistern as a water source. They would not collect any water in the months that did not include an "r" in the month (may, june, july and august). Dad said if they caught water during these months the cistern would soon have wiggletails.

[Michael W. Smith]

Yep, go the goldfish route. Alot of times you can buy cheap "feeder" fish for 5 for $1.00 or something like that. They take care of the mosquito larvae preventing hoards of mosquitos, the mosquito larvae feed the fish which then produces fertilizer in the water. $1.00 or $2.00 worth of fish would take you through a season, and at the end of the season you can try to winter them over inside, put them in your pond, or just let them croak a natural death when their water freezes solid. Come next spring, another $1.00 or $2.00 will start the process over again.

In addition to the fertilizer they provide for you, you might get some entertainment watching them as you get water from the barrel!

[CSA again]

some of my gold fish have lived 3 years in my rain barrel even when frozen in the winter.

[Jan Doling]

And the fish fertilize the water for the garden. I'll have to put a screen over my barrel or the birds will eat my fish.

[littlebird]

Or you could get a cat to eat the birds that eat the fish that eat the mosquito larvae. :baby04: The fish sound like a great idea, though. I'm going to try it myself!

[wizzard]

i use 3-5 goldfish and 1 pleco per barrel. never seen larvea in there, and my potted plants love the water. i even had 45 goldfish in 1 at some point in the past.... my plants REALY loved that water, but i had to drain it every week

[wheelhorse]

Thanks for the info I will go with the fish that will entertain my cat and kids I guess you have to feed them a bit each day (never had fish before )