Collecting rainwater is one of the easiest things you can do to reduce water consumption. While you shouldn’t collect rainwater for drinking purposes, rainwater is acceptable for use in your landscaping and gardening endeavors.
There are many different types of rain barrels
available. You can even resort to using old garbage cans or buckets. But these are not ideal. Most commercially available rain barrels have several features that make them much more desirable and easy to use than that old garbage can you have standing around. And we all know, if it’s easier to use you are more likely to use it. Since water conservation is the name of the game these days…
Today we will be reviewing the Algreen 81001 Cascata Rain Water Collection and Storage System in the 65 Gallons size. The 81001 is twenty pounds, 25 inches wide and 43 inches tall. It is made from molded plastic that won’t crack, chip, or fade. It is double walled for extra strength and durability. It comes with a corrosion proof screen guard and removable crown planter, meaning you can put a plant on top so it doesn’t just look like an empty pot. And it has brass spigot and hook to hang your garden hose.
Personally, I would not consider a rain barrel that didn’t have a spigot and hose attachment at the bottom. This makes getting to your collected rainwater so much easier. Instead of having to slop around in your rain barrel (and this gets quite messy once you’re near the bottom of the barrel, not to mention the waste from all the spillage) you can simply flip the spigot and collect water into a watering can, or use a hose to water your plants directly from the barrel.
This unit is really attractive. In fact, it is one of the most attractive rain barrels out there. It looks like a large terra cotta planter and you can put in a beautiful flowering plant. It is also very easy to assemble.
I did not mention the hose that comes with it above when I was describing the product. That is because is should be replaced.
And my one negative is that, while it has an overflow spout, this does not come with a hose. Even if there was a hose available the spigot is not large enough to handle a heavy downpour and the resultant overflow. This is easily remedied however, by using a rain barrel diverter.
Overall, this is a really beautiful and well made product. I highly recommend the Algreen 81001.
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User Reviews
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| Algreen 81001 Cascata Rain Water Collection and Storage System, 65 Gallons |
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| Manufacturer: Algreen |
| Customer Rating: |
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| List Price: $149.99 |
| Sale Price: $149.99 |
| Availibility: Usually ships in 1 to 2 days |
 Free Shipping Available |
| Buy Now |
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Product Description |
| Algreen Rain Barrels combine the timeless aesthetic elegance of ceramics with the enduring longevity of modern plastics. The Cascata is made of a roto molded plastic that is able to withstand extreme temperature and will not chip, crack or fade. The rain barrel features a double walled crown planter that is easily removed, a corrosion proof screen guard, brass spigot, overflow valve, elbow fitting for hose attachment, hook for hanging garden hose a 6-foot garden hose with shut-off nozzle. |
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Product Details |
- 65-gallon rain barrel with timeless looks and extreme durability
- Made from roto molded plastic that won¿t chip, crack, or fade
- Double-walled for extra strength and durability
- Comes with screen guard and removable crown planter
- Measures 24 x 46 inches
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Video Reviews |
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Customer Reviews |
 Beautiful and Easy to use |
| Review Date: May 16, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Lee Rhys, |
| I received my rain barrel in just 3 days. It is HUGE. Unlike the ugly recycled plastic rain barrels for sale elsewhere, this is a beautiful piece that adds to the aesthetics of my garden. It looks like a terra cotta planter. I planted strawberries in the top, so they can hang down the sides but not take over the garden. I bought a 1/2" boiler drain spigot, sprayed it with WD40, and inserted it into the overflow tube. Very tight fit. Then I attached a length of garden hose to the spigot and ran it away from the house. This solved most of the overflow problem. However, the overflow tube is not big enough to drain fast enough during a really hard, long rain. Water will escape by flowing between the top of the barrel and the crown planter. Prepare the foundation accordingly and do not place the barrel in a place where your basement may be easily flooded. |
Worth every cent!
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| Review Date: March 31, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Donna S. Brown, Portsmouth, VA USA |
| I ordered three of these guys, and thanks to Amazon Prime, they came in 2 days for NO CHARGE! Assembly was super easy, just needed a flat-headed screwdriver to tighten one screw. I have them in place, they look great with our contemporary house, and they are half full already. I came back today to order two more, but Amazon won't let me! (Maybe they figured out the shipping outweighed their profit?) |
video of an Algreen 81001 Cascata Cascata Rain Water Collection and Storage System installed
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| Review Date: June 8, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Jack of All Trades, Everywhere |
Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R3UG58DXFD1F5A Very quickly I wanted to point out the goods & the bads:
excuse the mess still under construction.
Goods:
lightweight when empty.
very realistic looking plastic terracotta.
overflow valve for attaching another rain barrel (higher capacity).
spigot in front for dispensing water.
screen trap to prevent leaves ext. from entering your barrel.
hose on the side for dispensing water.
room on top for hanging plant or pot.
Bads:
scratched up during shipment poorly wrapped (shrink wrap).
glue seams on bottom and spigot (see video).
water pressure relies on gravity so it needs to be full of water.
the lid does not drain so you will need to drill a hole in the middle.
if you have one downspout like I do you get higher rain volume so you need to attach a hose to the overflow valve and redirect the overflow (if you watch the video that is why I have a downspout right behind the rain barrel)or you can buy two and increase your storage capacity. Anyway hope this helps with your decision.
Overall I am very satisfied |
Cascata Rain Barrel
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| Review Date: June 14, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Moose, Bville NY |
The Cascata Rain Water Collection and Storage System is an excellent product that has many of the features I was looking for in a rain water system for waterig my flower and vegtable garden. I have this conneted to a small 12x12 ft shed that will fill this barrel at the rate of a little less that 1 inch of rain fall.
The features this product has that I could not find in other rain barrel designs are:
1. Color: color and texture are very close to teracota pot color and texture. I really looks like a large clay urn.
2. Shape: The location for this barrel is at the corner of a shed between a vegetable garden and a flower garden. I didn't want a big blue plastic barrel here because it would trask up my back yard. This product actually added to the astectics of my back yard.
3. Mesquito control: The Cascata barrel has a plastic perforated plate that fits under the removable top. It would be very diffucult for a mesquito to fly into the space between the removable top and the screen to even lay eggs that might fall through the screen and into the water. Other rain barrel designs have an open screen on the top that might allow for mesquito breeding even though the screen is in place.
4. Removable Top Planter: The removable top can be used as a planter. This feature again adds to the astectics and allows this product to blend into the shed garden area.
5. Hose and valve: There is a nice brass valve about 14 inches from the bottom for filling watering cans. There is a hose connected to the bottom with a valve on the end of the hose. This can be conected to a drip or soaker system or fill watering cans when the water level goes below the brass valve level.
6. Overflow port: Overflow port is located oposite the brass valve and is hidden from view when showing the brass valve side.
I plan to purchase another Cascata Rain Collection and Storage System and plan to place it on my patio for watering plants closer to my house. |
Best-looking rain barrel available today
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| Review Date: August 24, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Natter, North Carolina, USA |
We ordered 3 of these from another site, and are very pleased. As others have said, they are huge, but a few days of good rain can fill the 65 gallons pretty easily. This product has the lovely aesthetics of ceramic, and the compliments started immediately with the UPS driver who unloaded them from his truck. He took away the parts list and ordered two of his own.
As has been mentioned, the hose appears to be durable, but crimps, and while an overflow spout is incorporated into the design, a hose to redirect the water would be a good purchase.
An additional plus (for me) is that they are made in Canada. The manufacturing conglomerate, Algranti, was considering a move overseas "due to rising oil prices, poor currency exchange, and the sagging US economy" (from: http://www.prlog.org/10078285-new-environmentally-friendly-rain-barrel-boost-canadian-manufacturer-fortunes.html), but the demand for these barrels has resulted in the company boosting production. Good news for those of us who are concerned about North American manufacturing losses.
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Tags: 81001, algreen, cascata, collection, gallons, rain, rain barrel, rain water collection, rain water collection system, storage, system
