Here are five questions to help you decide how big your rain barrel should be. If you can collect rain water from 1000 square feet of roof and a typical rainfall is one inch then a 623 gallon barrel will capture most of the typical rainfall. (1000SF x 1/12 feet = 83.3 cubic feet or 623 gallons). Here are five questions you should ask before installing a rain barrel.
Best Time to Water. The best time of day to water your lawn is in the early morning, from 6:00 to 8:00 a.m. Watering in the morning gives wet blades of grass time to dry out over the course of the day, reducing the possibility of fungal problems. Morning is also the coolest and least windy time of day, which means that the water you apply is less likely to be lost to evaporation.
Grass is Thicker than Water. Believe it or not, chlorine is not known to have a damaging effect on grass. The resiliency of the soil is fixed so that it can withstand chlorine at high acid levels. Grass blades are selective about the nutrients that they allow into their systems. In fact, using your excess pool water on your lawn is one of the best ways you can help conserve water in your neighborhood. Now, of course, flooding you grass with pool water is never a good idea. If you have excess pool water, give a good coating to your lawn, and then run the rest down an approved drainage pipe.