Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: diggerjoe on April 24, 2009, 16:23
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Has anyone any tips about keep water clean in water butts .I keep a lid on the one by the shed on the plot but as my runners this year will be at the far end, I have got hold of two opaque plastic containers 9 each holds 6 gallons that I intend to fill and collect rain water in to save the trek to the taps. Being opaque I reckon the water could end up green. I know you can get additives but is there anything else i can use?
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A cheap solution could be to put the containers in either a bin liner or old compost bag to exclude the light.
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paint the outside of the containers?
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some of the boys on ours have painted theirs black with gloss to deter fungus! hope that helps..... :D
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A layer of charcoal in the bottom of the water butt will prevent water from going green and foul smelling and helps keep "grey" (used) water fresh.
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Also if you have a problem with mosquitoes place a single drop of cooking oil on the surface of the water which will change the surface tension of the water. This will prevent mosquito larvae from floating under the surface, causing them to die. Check each month to see if you need to add another drop of oil in
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You can also keep a goldfish in a water butt to keep the insect population down.
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not sure if this would work for you,, on my old lottie I used a wheelie bin!! basically the bins given to us by the council for recycling plastic bottles and newspapers anyway if you have a large family you can apply for an extra bin which i did but then took it to the lottie, but it where my water but was and then just wheeled it around my plot,, i still use it to wheel the water from the gutters aroundmy sheds to my polytunnel,,
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Great ideas folks think I will paint them black and the idea of the wheelie bin has given me an idea for a wheeled container of some sort - anything to save the trek with watering cans
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Checked my butt's contents earlier and it looks like soup with a green film/crust :(
How long is the collected water viable before it becomes an actual hazard to plants or of no benefit?
Two things can help. Make a filter for the downpipe to keep out any particles. I made one from a milk container turned upside down, with a hole cut in the bottom to fit the pipe. Fit a length of pipe to what was the top of the container to support the filter. The pipe rests on the bottom of the butt. Cut some coarse slots in the bottom of the pipe, or drill some large holes near the bottom.
You will need to cut a flap in the side of the milk container so you can put some coarse pieces charcoal to support a piece of coarse sponge. On top of the sponge put a layer of finer charcoal, and a fine sponge on top of that.
The filter keeps out the particles, and the pipe from the filter to the bottom of the tank means that new water goes to the bottom of the tank, so provides oxygen and circulation to the bottom.
The other thing is to make sure the butt is light proof and keep it as cool as possible.
AFAIK you only need to throw the water out when it smells of rotten eggs. Caused by getting crud in the bottom of the butt.
Greenhouse seedlings are suffering enough with greening compost tops - surely watering with this will only make it worse?
Fine charcoal about 1/4" deep round the seedlings will keep the top of trays clean.
We completely stopped Basil damping off by doing this, and it was stood continuously in a water tray. Again with charcoal in the tray.
You will need to get British made charcoal, as most imported product is too dense.
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Diggerjoe- you have nothing to worry about. Two 6 gallon containers will never remain full long enough to go green, if you are watering runner beans.