Those pesky mosquitos are causing more then just an itch.  The mild winter and our recent rains have given them the perfect breeding conditions.

Now is a good time for all the Water Keeper users out there to check your insect screens.  Make sure they are secure and have no rips or holes.

If they do please be a responsible Water Keeper and repair them right away.  A quick trip to the hardware store for some insect screen and small tube of silicone is all you need.

As an added precaution you can use the “mosquito dunks” that are also sold at most hardware stores and float one in your barrel.  They are harmless to anything but mosquito larve.  Cool huh?  No need to spray if we stay on top of standing water issues.

Contact us if you have any questions about repairs… Rain is coming so let’s get our barrels full!

Upon looking at Home Improvement stores and other web sites that offer rain barrels in the area, I thought I’d share some important quality differences with our Water Keeper Rain Barrels vs. the competition.

Ours are made from recycled food grade containers.  What does this mean?  They have never had chemicals stored in them, they are durable container because they were designed to be stacked in a warehouse so the sides are thick enough to take the weight of the water in them and also help to insulate the water once inside.  Many of the Home Improvement stores use very thin walled containers which after time with the weight of the water and temperature changes, will tend to crack.

We use a special fitting to attach your brass spigot to our tanks.  Why?  If the spigots are threaded directly into the barrel, after a period of time turning the handle on and off, the spigot will tend to spin out of the hole and leak if they don’t have the special fitting.   These cost more for us to use in the building of our barrels, but we want you to have a product that will last for many years.

Ours has secure insect screening to insure that you will not breed insects in your tank.  Some on the market have screens that are not as secure.

Our barrel tops come completely off so it’s easy for you to rinse out and clean at the end of the season.  Some on the market have very small holes which make this process more difficult.

Shop around, once you notice the difference and check our prices, we know you’ll be back!

Since we are not participating in any farmer’s markets at the present time, please know that we are a local Plano company and are available for you to come by and see our barrels where they’re made.   We also deliver!   Please email us with any questions you may have regarding how to use or install these 55 gallon rain collection beauties!  They may not be the prettiest feature of your garden, but what they accomplish is beautiful!!!  Saving our water…

Residents of Plano, Allen, Fairview don’t forget to take advantage of your rebates your respective cities are offering!!!   Email us if you have any questions about your rebates.

Wanted to thank those of you who came out to the Collin Co. Master Gardeners show in March and purchased or learned more about rain barrels!

Even with the recent rains, we need to be conscious of our consumption.  We don’t yet know what this summer will bring.  I’m happy though that we are making a large collective effort to conserve and protect our precious water one barrel at a time!!!

If you are in Mc Kinney Sat, please consider coming to the Heard Wildlife Museum’s Celebrate Nature event.  It is a great place to walk around and learn all about the animals, bugs, plants and other creatures that live right here in North Texas.  The event starts at 9 and goes until 5:00pm

We will be there with our rain barrels, so please stop by and visit!

Come visit us Saturday April 14th 9:00-5:00  at the Heard Wildlife center’s great spring event in Mc Kinney  and learn how easy it is to save free rain water.

Stage 3 restrictions most likely will remain as we enter into the hot summer months.  Help keep our lakes full for our drinking water source by using a rain barrel to help water your landscape and keep your plants, trees and flowers alive through this rough time.

The average home uses about half of their total water outdoors.  Your plants much prefer the natural rain water versus the treated drinking quality water that we currently pump out of our sprinkler systems.

Visit www.heardmuseum.org for more information about their activity packed day April 14.

Mention this blog post at the Heard when you visit our booth and receive a discount of 15.00 off of your rain barrel purchase!

Hello to all those gardeners out there who I’m sure are happy we’ve had ample rain thus far.  Please visit us at the

Collin County Master Gardener’s Garden Show this weekend March 24 and 25 at the Meyers Event Center in Mc Kinney.

There is going to be great vendors with all kinds of information on how to garden successfully and with less water in our hot Texas climate.

Many of our vendor friends will be there, Greenling.com, honey vendors, Eat Green DFW,  are but just a few.

The weather is expected to be beautiful, come let us show you how to capture this free rain we’ve had lately and store it for the

dry season that’s sure to come.

For more info go to www.ccmgatx.org/thegardenshow

The cities of Plano, Mc Kinney, Allen, Richardson and others are on stage 3 water restrictions.  What does this mean for your plants and garden?

It means you only can water your landscape 2 times a month.

How can you help your plants and gardens survive as well as plan for stage 4?

Start collecting FREE rain water.

Many of our customers have also received rebates from their cities for installing a rain barrel.  Plano and Allen credit 25.00 toward your water bill for up to two rain barrels.  That’s 50.00!

If we go to Stage 4 the only type of water you will be able to use is rain water so don’t delay get yours installed now and start collecting!!

Did you see the article last Thurs in the Dallas Morning News?  Glad that rain barrels are finally getting the attention they deserve.  Thank you to the Morning News for a great article.

Rain is coming again next week, don’t miss out on collecting your share.  Contact us for your barrel today!

The storm the other night brought 3.5 inches to my rain gauge.   All of my barrels are full and will be watering our fall/winter gardens this winter. Yeah!

Remember is doesn’t take 3.5″ of rain to fill a barrel.  Every little bit counts. 

We are trying to save water 55 gallons at a time mulitply that by the number of homes, BIG Impact!!

Wasn’t the rain last week just awesome!  Thank you to those who purchased a barrel recently and have told us that they are already full!  That’s what it’s all about.  Just think if every household had just one barrel how much it would add up to in total water conservation.   Remember 55 gallons is enough water to flush a toilet aprox 27 times with the newer 1.6 gallon low flow toilets.  If you don’t have those in your home, check with your city many are offering rebates for installing one.  Consider the “offsets” using rain in your garden provides your home.  Typical domestic daily per capita water use for toilets is 11.2%.  Wow. 

And on the subject of rebates, also check your city for rebates on installing rain barrels.  Plano and Allen offer 25.00 off your water bill for installing one.  We have the paperwork or you can find them on the city’s web sites.

Hope to see you at the Farmer’s Market in Richardson on Sat.  Check our market page for more info.

Kari