MK5 Golf GTI

General => Random Chat => Topic started by: mvb12 on July 11, 2012, 10:40:28 am

Title: water butts
Post by: mvb12 on July 11, 2012, 10:40:28 am
With all this rain i think its time i made a smart investment and purchase a water butt.  :happy2:

So my questions are....

What is the best brand to go for?
What size would be suitable for my needs (main use will be the weekly car wash  :happy2: and a wee bit of gardening duties to sweeten the deal with the Mrs  :sad1:)

Also do any have built in pumps (asume i will need a pump)?

so where do i start?  :popcornsoda:
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: ianv5 on July 11, 2012, 10:42:39 am
Try your local Water authority.

I got mine from Anglia Water, cheaper than anywhere else :happy2:
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: gazon69 on July 11, 2012, 10:51:51 am
Wont need a pump. They usually come with a tap on the bottom. You can buy a base stand for them which will give you enough room to get a bucket under. Get a 250l about £40 from bnq
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: Apollo on July 11, 2012, 10:56:20 am
With all this rain i think its time i made a smart investment and purchase a water butt.  :happy2:

So my questions are....

What is the best brand to go for?
What size would be suitable for my needs (main use will be the weekly car wash  :happy2: and a wee bit of gardening duties to sweeten the deal with the Mrs  :sad1:)

Also do any have built in pumps (asume i will need a pump)?

so where do i start?  :popcornsoda:

Would you really use rainwater to clean your car............ :scared:
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: Tortaruga on July 11, 2012, 10:59:37 am
Would you really use rainwater to clean your car............ :scared:

Yes! Lovely soft water where I live :smiley:
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: mvb12 on July 11, 2012, 11:04:14 am
Would you really use rainwater to clean your car............ :scared:

 :stupid: can i asume rain water never touches your car?  :stupid:

 :popcornsoda:
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: ianv5 on July 11, 2012, 11:07:32 am
Would you really use rainwater to clean your car............ :scared:
:stupid:



Used water from my waterbutt during the hose pie ban!

No probs whatsoever.
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: rich83 on July 11, 2012, 11:08:01 am
With all this rain i think its time i made a smart investment and purchase a water butt.  :happy2:

So my questions are....

What is the best brand to go for?
What size would be suitable for my needs (main use will be the weekly car wash  :happy2: and a wee bit of gardening duties to sweeten the deal with the Mrs  :sad1:)

Also do any have built in pumps (asume i will need a pump)?

so where do i start?  :popcornsoda:

Would you really use rainwater to clean your car............ :scared:

And why not? It rains on my car every week!  :confused:
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: mvb12 on July 11, 2012, 11:20:41 am
just check my local water supplier and they have some good deals going on.

so in the world of water butts, do we not have a leading brand to go with or any butt will do?
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: Gene Hunt on July 11, 2012, 11:22:22 am
With all this rain i think its time i made a smart investment and purchase a water butt.  :happy2:

So my questions are....

What is the best brand to go for?
What size would be suitable for my needs (main use will be the weekly car wash  :happy2: and a wee bit of gardening duties to sweeten the deal with the Mrs  :sad1:)

Also do any have built in pumps (asume i will need a pump)?

so where do i start?  :popcornsoda:

Would you really use rainwater to clean your car............ :scared:

And why not? It rains on my car every week!  :confused:
..........what about  the grit & rubbish washed off the roof/guttering & then going into the water butt?.
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: MC71 on July 11, 2012, 11:23:10 am
Got mine, think its about 200ltr, from Wickes, cost around £40 and is more than big enough for what you need.

Am also happy using rain water on the car!  :happy2:
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: Apollo on July 11, 2012, 11:34:31 am
With all this rain i think its time i made a smart investment and purchase a water butt.  :happy2:

So my questions are....

What is the best brand to go for?
What size would be suitable for my needs (main use will be the weekly car wash  :happy2: and a wee bit of gardening duties to sweeten the deal with the Mrs  :sad1:)

Also do any have built in pumps (asume i will need a pump)?

so where do i start?  :popcornsoda:

Would you really use rainwater to clean your car............ :scared:

And why not? It rains on my car every week!  :confused:

Because rain is not clean water or am I missing the obvious here?

Rain collects so much crap on its way through the atmosphere.
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: ianv5 on July 11, 2012, 11:39:35 am
With all this rain i think its time i made a smart investment and purchase a water butt.  :happy2:

So my questions are....

What is the best brand to go for?
What size would be suitable for my needs (main use will be the weekly car wash  :happy2: and a wee bit of gardening duties to sweeten the deal with the Mrs  :sad1:)

Also do any have built in pumps (asume i will need a pump)?

so where do i start?  :popcornsoda:

Would you really use rainwater to clean your car............ :scared:

And why not? It rains on my car every week!  :confused:
..........what about  the grit & rubbish washed off the roof/guttering & then going into the water butt?.

Not problem with my jetwash and its inline filter :happy2:
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: ianv5 on July 11, 2012, 11:40:47 am
With all this rain i think its time i made a smart investment and purchase a water butt.  :happy2:

So my questions are....

What is the best brand to go for?
What size would be suitable for my needs (main use will be the weekly car wash  :happy2: and a wee bit of gardening duties to sweeten the deal with the Mrs  :sad1:)

Also do any have built in pumps (asume i will need a pump)?

so where do i start?  :popcornsoda:

Would you really use rainwater to clean your car............ :scared:

And why not? It rains on my car every week!  :confused:

Because rain is not clean water or am I missing the obvious here?

Rain collects so much crap on its way through the atmosphere.

Doesn't leave white marks left by treated water straight from the tap!
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: rich83 on July 11, 2012, 11:45:34 am
With all this rain i think its time i made a smart investment and purchase a water butt.  :happy2:

So my questions are....

What is the best brand to go for?
What size would be suitable for my needs (main use will be the weekly car wash  :happy2: and a wee bit of gardening duties to sweeten the deal with the Mrs  :sad1:)

Also do any have built in pumps (asume i will need a pump)?

so where do i start?  :popcornsoda:

Would you really use rainwater to clean your car............ :scared:

And why not? It rains on my car every week!  :confused:
..........what about  the grit & rubbish washed off the roof/guttering & then going into the water butt?.

You buy and inline filter that goes on the end of your hosepipe. Also most pressure washes have a coarse filter so it will be fine. :-)
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: Apollo on July 11, 2012, 11:47:02 am
I can understand the filter bit but surely the actual acid and other chemical content of rainwater would make it a poor choice to wash your car with?
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: Tamiyoman on July 11, 2012, 12:01:09 pm
I use water from teh water butts when rinsing my car off after washing, no streaks and no water marks, it has a built in filter between the downpipe and water butt, the filter needs cleaning out about once every 3 months as it does collect some sand (Live 150yds from beach) and other debris.

No worries rinsing my car with water from it at all, regards "Acid Rain" is it any worse for your car that it sitting the rain anyway?  :grin:, it wont be an issue unless your car NEVER goes out in the rain or is permanently in the garage (in which case why bother having a car)  :signLOL:
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: gazon69 on July 11, 2012, 06:05:00 pm
I can understand the filter bit but surely the actual acid and other chemical content of rainwater would make it a poor choice to wash your car with?
Rain water is actully better to wash your car with as it has a p.h of around 5.5 which is rather neutral. Water that comes out of the tap has a p.h of around 6.8 and can be as high as 7.8 depending on the area you are in,which means it has a higher alkalinity content. Hope that helps.
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: rich83 on July 11, 2012, 06:19:46 pm
I can understand the filter bit but surely the actual acid and other chemical content of rainwater would make it a poor choice to wash your car with?

But why.... rain is failing on my car right this second... is it damaging it? Nope!!

Now..... i never use rainwater to wash my car, but i would do if i had the room for a big enough BUTT!!!  :signLOL:
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: Eccie on July 11, 2012, 07:21:36 pm
I can understand the filter bit but surely the actual acid and other chemical content of rainwater would make it a poor choice to wash your car with?

But why.... rain is failing on my car right this second... is it damaging it? Nope!!

Now..... i never use rainwater to wash my car, but i would do if i had the room for a big enough BUTT!!!  :signLOL:


Cue the 'cheeky' photos"..........
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: RedRobin on July 11, 2012, 07:27:43 pm

..........what about the grit & rubbish washed off the roof/guttering & then going into the water butt?.


....And also the drowned snails and other organisms which develop in standing rainwater.

I only use my butt's water for watering my sunflowers and topping up my wildlife pond occasionally.
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: DFish on July 11, 2012, 07:35:13 pm
The butts should have nice lids on them to stop those pesky snails and other rubbish. The TV ad's that karcher have been running showing that they can now use water from the butts was more for the hose pipe ban, nothing more. I'm running a 2 butt system.

First from the gutter downpipe which then filters/overfills into the second. The second is used for the car as all the crap from the roof settles in the first. Only floating debris is in the second butt which doesn't get picked up.

In the second butt I have a cheap lift pump pushing water down the hose to the pressure washer out the front. This gives good pressure and also has a built in filter.

The first butt with all the crap in gets used for the plants. :)

MVB, if you're about on Sunday for the Grasshopper meet pop round before and I'll show you the setup.

Fish
Title: Re: water butts
Post by: gazon69 on July 11, 2012, 07:50:48 pm
The butts should have nice lids on them to stop those pesky snails and other rubbish. The TV ad's that karcher have been running showing that they can now use water from the butts was more for the hose pipe ban, nothing more. I'm running a 2 butt system.

First from the gutter downpipe which then filters/overfills into the second. The second is used for the car as all the crap from the roof settles in the first. Only floating debris is in the second butt which doesn't get picked up.

In the second butt I have a cheap lift pump pushing water down the hose to the pressure washer out the front. This gives good pressure and also has a built in filter.

The first butt with all the crap in gets used for the plants. :)

MVB, if you're about on Sunday for the Grasshopper meet pop round before and I'll show you the setup.

Fish
+1.  :congrats: