When you have a garden or a balcony

Outdoors, you can set up a tank to collect rainwater. Connected to the gutters of your house and equipped with a filter, you can find them in different sizes ranging from 100 to 500 liters. This type of tank is sufficient for watering plants and washing cars/bikes.

Similarly, in an apartment, if you have a balcony and if you are a bit of a handyman, you can also use this principle of the tank presented above but in a small format. However, be careful of the weight that rainwater recovery could involve if you have a suspended balcony. The standard concerning the weight on a terrace is 350kg/m2. After this check, you could choose a container of a size adequate to your needs. The method is therefore the same as outdoors. Then, you must connect your container to the gutter. This is often vertical and generally has a removable joint. If this is the case, simply dismantle it and install a PVC elbow. with the correct diameter. And above all, don't forget to ask your landlord for permission, if you are a tenant.

On the other hand, for the less handy among you, you can use rain chains which are aesthetic and very ingenious.

Be careful though  : when your container is full, it is important to be able to redirect rainwater to avoid water damage.

When you don't have an outside space

If you are not lucky enough to have a balcony, here is another rainwater harvesting tip  : install a planter on your windowsill. Drill a hole in the window and connect a simple hose to a watering can, for example. The rainwater will be directly accessible in your watering can, ready to use.

So, now that you know the benefits of watering your plants with rainwater, you would be wrong to deprive yourself of it.