I recently installed a 55 gallon water barrel at my parents house. I disguised the installation as a "fathers day present", but really, I thought this would come in handy for them in the big earthquake. Here is an illustrated guide to my installation.
I ordered a new barrel from Baytec Containers in Texas. It cost $99.99 (free shipping) and the best part was that they will install a faucet fitting at the bottom (see picture above) for an additional $7. Having a hose bibb at the base facilitates changing the water out, which is supposed to be done every 6 months.
I ordered the "sink faucet" from Baytec, but what came was a cheesy plastic hose bibb. As an upgrade, I bought a brass bibb from the my local hardware store for ~$8 (see picture above). This will be much more reliable than the plastic jobbie. Make sure to use plenty of Teflon Tape for a good seal.
I made a base out of redwood, some of it I had on hand, but I had to buy a bit more at the lumber yard. The top is 2x6 and the frame is 2x4. A good size for the base is 23"x23". If you need more vertical height to facilitate drainage, it is east you add 4x4 posts at the corners. At our house, I raised my platform about 20" to help the barrel drain by gravity, since we live on pretty flat lot.
I also picked up water heater straps and a food grade supply hose at the hardware store. The barrels are pretty strong, but it would be pretty sad for the water barrel to go flying in an earthquake and crack in half. Sad, or ironic, depending on your point of view.
The holes on the top of the barrel are called "bung holes" and you need a special wrench to open them. I fabricated a bung wrench from some angle iron I had laying around, but you can buy them on Amazon for $13 if you aren't a cheapskate like me.
Here is the water barrel installed at my parents house. Notice the bung wrench hanging nearby - no way for it to get lost in the shuffle! The straps are connected to the foundation with wedge anchors.
If you have any questions about this project, please let me know!
-Raza
