My rain barrel setup cracked in the freeze last week

I put in a 55 gallon rain barrel back in October to water my garden. Thought it would be fine over winter. We had that cold snap in Chicago last Tuesday, got down to 10 degrees. Went out Wednesday morning and found a huge crack down the side. Water everywhere, ice all over the patio. I had to drain it and drag the broken barrel to the curb. Total waste of all the water I saved. I guess I didn't empty it soon enough. What do you all do with your rain collection systems when it gets cold? Just empty them out every fall?

2 comments

2 Comments

dylan_thompson1mo ago

Ten degrees in Chicago is just brutal.

schmidt.eva1mo ago

Yeah I had to deal with that last week. I just layered up like crazy, thermal leggings under my jeans and a big scarf over my face. The hand warmers in my gloves were a lifesaver, honestly. Still sucked walking to the train but it made it bearable.