• Salesarepre-paidonly.Noon-sitecashorchecksales.RainbarrelscanonlybepurchasedonlineattheMWRDwebsite(www.mwrd.org)withacreditordebitcard.

• Youmustprovideyourpre-paidreceiptforpickup.• Thereisalimitoftwobarrelsperhousehold.• Pleasedonotarriveearly.Policewillaskyoutoleave.

NoparkingisallowedalongMWRDfacilityfencesorpropertylines.

MAINTAINING YOUR RAIN BARREL• Keepyourrainbarrelspigotclosedwhenyouarenot

usingthewater.Overflowwaterwillspillfromtheventonthetopandtheholeonthesidenearthetop.

• Regularlycheckyourgutters,downspouts,rainbarrelwaterintakescreen,rainbarrelmosquitoscreenandrainbarrelspigotforleaks,obstructionsordebris.

• Keepyourrainbarrellidsealed.• Drainyourbarrelbeforetemperaturesdrop

belowfreezing.• Inwinter,keepyourrainbarrelspigotopensowater

doesnotaccumulateintherainbarrelandfreeze.Youcanalsoturnitupside-downorbringitinsidetoensurenowateraccumulatesinthebarrel.

• Lubricatethemetallockingringwithhouseholdoil.

PREVENTING MOSQUITOESYourrainbarrelcomeswithamosquito-proofscreenunderthelid.Whenthemosquitonettingisintact,andtherearenoleakswheremosquitoescanenterthebarrel,yourrainbarrelshouldbemosquito-free

• Placeyourbarrelonaperviouslandscapedsurfacesothatoverflowwatersoaksintothegroundinsteadofpoolingonpavedsurfaces.

• Keepyourrainbarrellidsealed.• Keepyourbarrelfreeoforganicmaterial.• Removeaccumulatedwaterfromthetopofthebarrel every3-4daysduringtherainyseason.Mosquitosneed

atleast4daysofstandingwatertodeveloplarva.• Ifyoubelievemosquitoesmaybebreedinginyourrain

barrel,emptyitcompletely,tokillallmosquitolarvaethatmaybeinyourbarrel.

DISCLAIMERWithproperinstallation,maintenanceanduse,yourrainbarrelshouldfunctionproperly.TheMetropolitanWaterReclamationDistrictofGreaterChicagoassumesnoliabilityfortheinstallation,maintenanceoruseofyourrainbarrel.Wearenotresponsibleforanyrainbarrelmalfunction;propertydamageorinjuryassociatedwithyourrainbarrelmalfunction;propertydamage,orinjuryassociatedwithyourrainbarrel,itsaccessoriesorcontents.

110207jb

METROPOLITANWATERRECLAMATIONDISTRICTof GREATERCHICAGO

BOARD of COMMISSIONERS

Terrence J. O’BrienPresident

Barbara J. McGowanVice President

Cynthia M. SantosChairman of FinanceMichael A. Alvarez

Frank AvilaPatricia Horton

Kathleen Therese MeanyDebra Shore

Mariyana T. Spyropoulos

Kevin J. FitzpatrickActing Executive Director

Installation, Placement and Purchasing GuideMetropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago

RAIN BARRELS

FOR MORE INFORMATIONContacttheMWRDOfficeofPublicAffairsat312.751.6633oremailpublicaffairsinfo@mwrd.org.

RAIN BARRELS

Buy a Rain Barrel TheMetropolitanWaterReclamationDistrictofGreaterChicagoprovidesrainbarrelstoourconstitu-entsatcost,foronly$51each.Tobuyarainbarrel:

Rain barrels are availalable for pick up at four locations. Check the scheduled pick up dates and times on our website when you place your order.

Ridgeland Avenue Solids Management Area119thStreetandRidgelandAvenue,Worth

Stickney Water Reclamation Plant6001W.PershingRoad,Cicero

North Side Water Reclamation Plant3500W.HowardStreet,Skokie

Egan Water Reclamation Plant550S.Meacham,Schaumburg

1 Gotowww.mwrd.organdpayfortherainbarrelwithacreditordebitcard.Setyourbrowsertoallowpopupsforthesitetoworkcorrectly.Printyourreceipt.

2 TakeyourprintedreceipttothenearestMWRDrainbarrelpickuplocation.

Scanthiscodewithyourweb-enabledsmartphonetogetmorerainbarrelinformationandtoplaceanorder.

PLACING YOUR RAIN BARREL

• Placeyourrainbarrelbyyourhouseorgarageinanareaclosetotheplantsandgardenthatyouwatermost.Otherdownspoutscanbedisconnectedanddirectedintoyouryard.

• Pickaspotwhereyourbarrel’soverflowwillsoakintoyourownyard,andnotyourneighbors’property.

• Puttherainbarrelonapervioussurface(e.g.landscapedsurfacethatallowsoverflowfromyourrainbarreltosoakintotheground),otherwiserainbarrelwateroverflowduringheavyrainscouldpoolorseepintoyourhouseorgaragefoundation.

• Placetherainbarreluponconcreteblockstoallowgravitytoincreasetheflowandsoawateringcanwillfitunderneaththespigot.

INSTALLING YOUR RAIN BARREL

Tools: Hacksaw. For aluminun downspouts: 6 screws and a screwdriver. For PVC down-spouts: PVC cement.

1.Placeyourbarrelnearthedownspoutyouselectedtoplanhowtodirectthedownspout.

2.Disconnectyourdownspoutbysawingthedown-spoutabovewherethetopoftherainbarrelwillbe.Leaveroomfortheelbowtobeattached.

3.Attachadownspoutelbowtotheendofyourdownspout,directingtherainthroughtheplasticscreenventontop.Foranaluminumdownspout,se-cureittotheelbowwithscrews.ForaPVCdown-spout,secureittotheelbowwithPVCcement.

4.Optional:Attachahosetothespigot,and/ortotheoverflowholeonthetopsideofthebarrel.Makesurethatthattheoverflowisdirectedintoyourownyard.

What is a rain barrel?Th eMWRD’s55gallonrainbarrelisafrost-proof,durableplasticresincontainerthatcollectsandstoresrainwaterfromyourrooftop(viayourhome’sdisconnect-eddownspout)forlateruseonyourlawnorgarden,orotheroutdooruses.

Will my barrel over� ow when it rains?Probably.A1,000squarefootroofrunsoffapproximately310gallonsofwaterinahalf-inchrain.Iftheroofhas4downspoutseachacceptingroughlythesameamountofwater,75gallonswillrunintoonedown-spout,causingthebarreltooverflowby20gallons.

What should I do with the over� ow?Makesureoverflowdoesnotcausefloodingorflowintoaneighbor’sproperty.Someoptionsforoverflow:

• Connecttheoverflowingbarreltoasecondrainbarrel.

• Ensurethereisenoughpervioussurfacearoundthebarreltosoakupoverflow.Treesandplantswithdeeprootsaregoodabsorb-ers.Concreteandasphaltarenotacceptable.

• Directoverflowbackintothesewerwithadownspoutdiverter(availableonlineatvariouswebsites).

Why would I want a rain barrel in my yard?Rainbarrelsareprimarilyusedasawaterconservationtool,butcanalsobehelpfulinmanagingstormwater.UsedinconjunctionwithotherstormwaterBestManagementPracticesthroughoutyourneighborhood,theycanimprovewaterqualityinourrivers.Lawnandgardenwateringcanuseupto40percentofyourhouseholdwaterdur-ingsummermonths.Youcansignificantlyreducetheamountofwateryouconsumebyusingrainwaterinsteadoftapwater.Th ebarrel’sspigotisthreadedsoyoucanattachagardenhosedirectlytothebarrel.Watercollectedinyourbarrelcanbeusedforwa-teringyourgardenandlawn,washingyourcarorbike,cleaningworkbootsandtools,orwateringpottedplants.

Is a rain barrel right for my house?Arainbarrelmaybeagoodideaforyou:

1.Ifyouusetherainwatercollectedoftenafterrains(i.e.weekly).

2.Ifyoucanplaceyourbarrelunderneathadisconnecteddownspout.

3.Ifthelandsurroundingtherainbarrelslopesawayfromyourhouseandsur-roundinghomes.

4.Iftheareasurroundingtherainbarrelhasenoughpervious(water-absorbing)surfacetosoakupexcesswaterfromoverflows.

Downspout

Downspout elbow - attached with screws (if you have an aluminum downspout) or PVC cement (for PVC downspouts).

concrete blocks

DownspoutCut here to allow the downspout elbow to direct water to the rain barrel.

Pervious (water absorbing) surface