Colorado
Why are rain barrels illegal? It’s one of the most common questions we get. The good news is, the question has an easy answer: they’re not!
But Colorado has a special story. Until recently, Colorado was one of the only states in the nation that had widespread bans on rain barrels. That all changed in 2016 with the passing of HB16-1005, legalizing two rain barrels per household – for a maximum storage capacity of 110 gallons.
Rain Barrels Colorado is a popular search these days, with homeowners clamoring to be the first on the block to legally collect some of the water that falls from the sky for free.
The “Colorado Special:” A 2-barrel BlueBarrel Rainwater Catchment System™ – made from locally sourced recycled barrels. The bottom-draining design gives the user easy access to every last drop of stored water.
With an arid mountain climate, Colorado’s most eco-conscious understand that collecting rainwater has many environmental benefits; among them water conservation, drought mitigation, stormwater runoff reduction, and watershed protection. With uncertainties related to climate change, emergency preparedness is another benefit to storing rainwater on site.
Prior fears that collecting rain would impact flows in the Colorado River are unfounded from an environmental perspective. Urban and agricultural developments hurt hydrologic health by increasing runoff volumes, and adding pollutant loads at the same time. Counterintuitive as it may be, collecting rainwater from rooftops actually helps to mitigate the negative impacts that those roofs have in the first place. It helps to reduce runoff and increase infiltration, which is actually the key part of the hydrologic cycle that maintains healthy base flows in rivers.
For more information about the environmental case for rain barrels in Colorado, click here.
Rain Barrels Colorado
How can Colorado residents get started? BlueBarrel offers a one-of-a-kind solution for a multi-barrel rainwater catchment system, made from locally-sourced recycled barrels. We work with food manufacturers and barrel recyclers all over the state to make barrels available in Denver, Boulder County, Mead, and Colorado Springs.
Double-down on your commitment to the environment by conserving water using recycled materials. Our unique system design is plumbed from underneath, allowing you to maximize Colorado’s 110-gallon limit. (Most rain barrels are tapped 6 – 12″ off the bottom, limiting your access to stored water – our design allows you to drain every last drop with ease!)
Start at BlueBarrelSystems.com and use our sizing and siting tools to plan out your multi-barrel system. Then enter our Online Store and follow the prompts to find your nearest source of recycled barrels (choose Denver, Lafayette, Mead, or Durango). Our interactive online store will also walk you through a few simple steps to customize a “RainKit” with all the parts for building your two-barrel rain collection system.
Ready to Get Started?
Rain Barrels Colorado.
