Barrel

Table of contents for Rain water collection

It has rained since the last rain water collection remodel, and so we noticed a problem with our upgraded design. Once the barrels reach a certain water level, the barbed adapters started leaking due to the increased water pressure. We had assumed that they would be ok because the silcock is connected this way and does not leak. However, this is not the case for the barrel to barrel connectors.

We thought about just placing silicon around the barbed adapters to seal them, but this was not a permanent solution and would never hold up to any kind of mechanical strain. We decided that we needed a much sturdier fitting at the bottom of the barrel because twisting or prying would loosen any silicon sealing. With this goal in mind, we decided to try to screw a metal pipe flange to the base in order to give the connection more stability.

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This is the connection type that we thought would work last time, however; it proved us wrong. It is hard to see it in this picture, but the connection was actually leaking here.

Materials:

3/4″ metal pipe flange
Aquarium silicon sealant
PTFE Pipe thread tape
3/4″ by 1″ steel water pipe nipples threaded on both ends
1/4″ by 1″ stainless steel lag screws
Sand paper
Drill and 1/8″ drill bit
Pipe wrench
Crescent wrench
Pipe clamps

Steps:

First, the pilot holes for the flange are drilled into the barrel with the drill and 1/8″ drill bit.
Sand the paint off the side of the barrel.
Place the PTFE pipe thread tape on one end of the 3/4″ by 1″ pipe segments.
Screw the 3/4″ by 1″ steel pipes into the pipe flange. Use the pipe wrench to tighten firmly.
Use the aquarium silicon sealant to completely cover the back of the pipe flange. You want enough on there so that it squishes out the side when it is screwed down.
Get a crescent wrench and tighten the screws to hold the flange on. Make sure it is snug but don’t over tighten or you will strip the screw holes out.
Put the aquarium silicon sealant on the end of the pipe that is screwed into the flange you just put on the barrel. Get the vinyl tube from the last build and place it over the pipe until it completely covers the entire exposed length of piping.
Put a pipe clamp on the vinyl tube to secure it to the pipe and prevent any leaks.
Redo all the steps for as many connections as you want and wait 24 hours for the silicon sealant to dry.
Done!

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6	7	8	9	10

Now that we have these flanges on the barrels, we are really hoping that it rains sometime soon so that we can test out this system. We are pretty confident that this will be the final fix because the connection feels really solid. Here are some pictures of the finished connections.

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