high capacity overflow
options for dispersing or utilizing excess collected rain water

Utillizing Spruce Creek Rainsaver Overflow

Your Spruce Creek Rainsaver arrives fully assembled with the included 6 foot overflow hose. This high volume 1 & 1/4 inch capacity overflow is about 6 times the volume of most rainbarrel garden hose overflows and enables water to exit the rain barrel quickly once it is completely full. Since (once full) intake water can only enter the barrel at the same volume that it is able to exit, overflow capacity is an important feature to consider. Common rain barrels utilize a simple garden hose overflow which severely limits the exit (and intake) volume of rain water once barrel is full. This situation will cause water to back up the downspout from the house, or create excessive spilling over the top and near the barrel.

The high volume overflow of the Spruce Creek Rainsaver enables water to exit the barrel quickly and provides opportunities for alternate watering. By connecting longer lengths of common sump pump hose to the overflow fitting, you can extend your watering resource to soak gardens, beds, trees or shrubs. You also can divert excess water to a designated water garden or soak area where water can restore groundwater resources.

Available in lengths of 25 to 100 feet, simply connect 1 1/4 inch sump pump hose to the overflow fitting at the back of your Spruce Creek rain barrel. Place hose along a path that you would like to water, then drill multiple holes into the hose at areas that you wish the most volume of water to disperse. You now have turned your overflow hose into a high capacity soaker hose. If you don't wish to dispense along a path, simply place the exit end of the hose near trees, shrubs, or garden where a good soaking is desired. When replacing the hose with longer lengths, we suggest exchanging the insect screen to the exit end of the hose and keeping it in place with a small rubber band.

Some users wish to connect multiple rainbarrels together to optimize water storage from a single downspout. This can be done by replacing the assembled "L" connection of the 2nd overflow barrel with a "T" connector available from Spruce Creek Co. This fitting allows you to connect any number of barrel in series through the overflow located on the back of each barrel. The exit overflow of the last barrel will remain available to disperse any excess rain water once all the barrels are full. The "T" connector and linking instructions are both available below.

Although connecting barrels is a useful tool, we do suggest that rain barrel users should consider utilizing multiple downspouts on their home to maximize the catchment volume their roof can provide.

linking barrels with "overflow T connector" Two or more barrels can be connected together by replacing the overflow fitting on Barrel 2 with a special T Connector. 1. Locate 1st barrel in position desired under downspout. 2. Position 2nd barrel next to it, preferably less than 1 foot away. 3. Remove the overflow hose and fitting from barrel 2. (unscrew) 4. Thread the new T connector into the second barrel (and turn until the two open ends are horizontally parallel to ground). 5. Now attach overflow hose from Barrel 1 to closest side of the T connector on Barrel 2. Cut hose as necessary to prevent unnecessary slack between barrels. 6. Take the original overflow hose removed from barrel 2, and connect to the other side of the T connector. Please note that there is a small screen that is located between the original ‘L’ fitting and the overflow hose that was on barrel 2. Remove this screen and insert between hose and T connector (exit side) to prevent insect and animal entry into the barrel from the overflow. 7. Turn the T connector on barrel 2 so that it is slightly higher on the exit side than it is on the entry side. By doing this, water will flow into the 2nd barrel (until full) rather than flowing straight through the connection.

T-Connector for Linking 2 Rain Barrels $15.00 Works only with Spruce Creek Rainsaver Includes Shipping anywhere in the Contiguous US