Last Sunday I happened to catch a program on C4 called Scrapheap
Challenge in which 2 teams had to construct a fire engine. During this
they 'found' in the scrapyard a number of big (4 or 5 foot cubes?)
plastic tanks which set me thinking, hmmm THEY would be useful for
collecting rainwater. The rainbarrels normally sold for such purposes
always overflow when we get too much rain and run out too quickly when
we dont get enough.
Do any urglers know if such items can be found anywhere? Free would be
best but Id be happy to buy if the price was reasonable and ideally
close enough to NE Wales for me to pick up.

Mark
'You dont ask, you dont get'

"Mark Fawcett" wrote in message
om...
Last Sunday I happened to catch a program on C4 called Scrapheap
Challenge in which 2 teams had to construct a fire engine. During this
they 'found' in the scrapyard a number of big (4 or 5 foot cubes?)
plastic tanks which set me thinking, hmmm THEY would be useful for
collecting rainwater. The rainbarrels normally sold for such purposes
always overflow when we get too much rain and run out too quickly when
we dont get enough.
Do any urglers know if such items can be found anywhere? Free would be
best but Id be happy to buy if the price was reasonable and ideally
close enough to NE Wales for me to pick up.

Mark
'You dont ask, you dont get'

Had you thought of a multiple instalation of water butts? We have 5 across
the back of the garage, coupled together as low down as I could reach at the
time, and draw water off the end one. Backing up to the butts is the garden
shed which is also fed into the butts. I don't think we have ever run out.
We do have another at the house fed by a down pipe.

I am also involved in designing and resurrecting an old football ground
which will have a building to serve as grandstand, changing rooms, community
and social rooms. We intend to have a basement which will be tanks for
conserving rain water, to water the football pitch, bowls green and
ornimental flower and shrub beds :-))

So could you dig a tank into the ground? Pumps would be required, but how
much water do you want to conserve?

And, are you on metered water as well? :-(((

Mike


--
Royal Naval Reunion Shanklin I.of Wight (Inc Ferry Fare) 30th Jan - 1st Feb
H.M.S.Andromeda Association Reunion Coventry Feb 27th - 29th
Federation of Naval Associations Reunion Hayling Island March 5th - 8th.
H.M.S.Loch Fada Association Reunion Scarborough April 2nd - 5th

Mark Fawcett wrote:

... The rainbarrels normally sold for such purposes
always overflow when we get too much rain and run out too quickly
when we dont get enough.

A friend of mine has half a dozen or so barrels connected in series
along the side of his garage. As soon as one is full, it overflows
into the next.
--
Nick Wagg

"Nick Wagg" wrote in message
...
Mark Fawcett wrote:

... The rainbarrels normally sold for such purposes
always overflow when we get too much rain and run out too quickly
when we dont get enough.

A friend of mine has half a dozen or so barrels connected in series
along the side of his garage. As soon as one is full, it overflows
into the next.
--
Nick Wagg

This is basically what I do, with seven water butts in total, free ads are
your friends !!!, they all link together with the thick form of the plastic
irrigation kits, simply drill a hole and put the plug with hole in oneside
and the pipe in the other. Works a treat.

My sister has four waterbutts mounted about 2 foot off the ground, with a
very fancy brass manifold linking all four together, and a hosepipe running
out of the manifold. This way she can just lie the hose pipe on the ground
and it syphons water out, pretty cool when you want to do a lot of watering.

As for the tanks, my father used to have several old water tanks from lofts,
these were all the very large galvanised rectangle kind, about 4x2 foot by 3
foot high, excellent they were, but I've never seen any of those being sold
at a reasonable cost. Though I do keep checking scrapyards and tips etc.

Duncan

"Mike" wrote in message
...
"Mark Fawcett" wrote in message
om...
Last Sunday I happened to catch a program on C4 called Scrapheap
Challenge in which 2 teams had to construct a fire engine. During this
they 'found' in the scrapyard a number of big (4 or 5 foot cubes?)
plastic tanks which set me thinking, hmmm THEY would be useful for
collecting rainwater. The rainbarrels normally sold for such purposes
always overflow when we get too much rain and run out too quickly when
we dont get enough.
Do any urglers know if such items can be found anywhere? Free would be
best but Id be happy to buy if the price was reasonable and ideally
close enough to NE Wales for me to pick up.

Mark
'You dont ask, you dont get'

Had you thought of a multiple instalation of water butts? We have 5 across
the back of the garage, coupled together as low down as I could reach at
the
time, and draw water off the end one. Backing up to the butts is the
garden
shed which is also fed into the butts. I don't think we have ever run out.
We do have another at the house fed by a down pipe.

I am also involved in designing and resurrecting an old football ground
which will have a building to serve as grandstand, changing rooms,
community
and social rooms. We intend to have a basement which will be tanks for
conserving rain water, to water the football pitch, bowls green and
ornimental flower and shrub beds :-))


As I'm told they do at old trafford. Big big tanks beneath the pitch
apparently, and when it's on TV you can see the curvature at the edges of
the pitch. So apparently not always enough water even in M/cr, contrary to
popular rumour :~))

Steve

"Mark Fawcett" wrote in message
om...

Do any urglers know if such items can be found anywhere? Free would be
best but Id be happy to buy if the price was reasonable and ideally
close enough to NE Wales for me to pick up.

Many years ago when I was myself resident in Wales I was able to buy quite
easily and at reasonable cost the big plastic barrels that are used for
fruit pulp concentrate transport, I think but I'm not sure they actually
came from Cheshire but further memories are clouded by time.

--
Chris Thomas
West Cork
Ireland

The message
from (Mark Fawcett) contains these words:

/snip/
Do any urglers know if such items can be found anywhere? Free would be
best but Id be happy to buy if the price was reasonable and ideally
close enough to NE Wales for me to pick up.

Look for a company which uses fruit concentrate. This often comes in
1,000 gallon cylindrical plastic containers with a rather large
screwtop.

Round here (Esat Anglia) they can be had fo ten quid or upwards.

--
Rusty Hinge
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/

"Jaques d'Alltrades" wrote in message
...
The message
from (Mark Fawcett) contains these words:

/snip/
Do any urglers know if such items can be found anywhere? Free would be
best but Id be happy to buy if the price was reasonable and ideally
close enough to NE Wales for me to pick up.

Look for a company which uses fruit concentrate. This often comes in
1,000 gallon cylindrical plastic containers with a rather large
screwtop.

Round here (Esat Anglia) they can be had fo ten quid or upwards.

--
Rusty Hinge
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/

This is what ours are and they come complete with a tap :-)))
Some did smell nice when we fetched them :-)))

Mike


--
Royal Naval Reunion Shanklin I.of Wight (Inc Ferry Fare) 30th Jan - 1st Feb
H.M.S.Andromeda Association Reunion Coventry Feb 27th - 29th
Federation of Naval Associations Reunion Hayling Island March 5th - 8th.
H.M.S.Loch Fada Association Reunion Scarborough April 2nd - 5th

Jaques d'Alltrades wrote:

Look for a company which uses fruit concentrate. This often comes in
1,000 gallon cylindrical plastic containers with a rather large
screwtop.

How big is that roughly. A 5'6" cube?
Weighing 4-5 tons when full? Phew.

Round here (Esat Anglia) they can be had fo ten quid or upwards.

Anywhere in the vicinity of Cambridge?
What sort of companies have them?
--
Nick Wagg

The message
from (Mark Fawcett) contains these words:

Last Sunday I happened to catch a program on C4 called Scrapheap
Challenge in which 2 teams had to construct a fire engine. During this
they 'found' in the scrapyard a number of big (4 or 5 foot cubes?)
plastic tanks which set me thinking, hmmm THEY would be useful for
collecting rainwater. The rainbarrels normally sold for such purposes
always overflow when we get too much rain and run out too quickly when
we dont get enough.
Do any urglers know if such items can be found anywhere? Free would be
best but Id be happy to buy if the price was reasonable and ideally
close enough to NE Wales for me to pick up.

Try your local farming newspaper, they often have second hand tanks
advertised. Failing that, Exchange and Mart mag.

Janet

The message
from Nick Wagg contains these words:

Round here (Esat Anglia) they can be had fo ten quid or upwards.

Anywhere in the vicinity of Cambridge?
What sort of companies have them?

Atlantic near Bungay (Suffolk) often have them, but they aren't cheap.
The local auction sometimes has one/some too. (Thos. Wm. Gaze & Son,
Diss Auction Room (And field - Ed.) 01379 650306.

You can bid by phone, or it's safe to leave a commission bid with them.
Also, if you ask them to, they will notify you when they have one/any.

Since most people either want only one, or lots and lots of them, you
can sometimes pick up a bargain.

--
Rusty Hinge
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/

In article , Mark
Fawcett writes
Last Sunday I happened to catch a program on C4 called Scrapheap
Challenge in which 2 teams had to construct a fire engine. During this
they 'found' in the scrapyard a number of big (4 or 5 foot cubes?)
plastic tanks which set me thinking, hmmm THEY would be useful for
collecting rainwater. The rainbarrels normally sold for such purposes
always overflow when we get too much rain and run out too quickly when
we dont get enough.

If you do a proper analysis of the costs it would take years to recoup
the cost of even a barrel when you work out how much per gallon you pay
for tap water.

Do any urglers know if such items can be found anywhere? Free would be
best but Id be happy to buy if the price was reasonable and ideally
close enough to NE Wales for me to pick up.

The ones shown on Scrapheap Challenge look like the ones sold by the
Tank Exchange at Barnsley. They will deliver if you want.

John
--
John Rouse

We have a rather mottley collection of water butts from an office furnature manufacturer (old glue butts, I think), a lettuce farm and even some that came to the UK full of mango chutney (the smell never washes out though!)

If there's a local farm sale of any kind, try going there. I sell shrubs at York Livestock Centre and often see the big square tanks go very cheaply indeed. Wheelie bins are also often available at sales and they make great water stores.