A drain tap on the rain barrel is particularly useful when emptying. However, the construction is only usable if it is completely tight. You should therefore seal your outlet tap well when installing it. If this precaution presents you with a challenge, you will find valuable tips on this page that will make sealing the tap child's play.
How can you seal a tap on the rain barrel?
To seal a tap on the rain barrel, drill a hole, push the tap through the hole and tighten. If there are leaks, use reducing sleeves and, for metal barrels, also use a hemp braid. Wrap hemp strands around the thread and screw the tap tight.
Attach the tap
A lot can go wrong when installing a tap on the rain barrel. You often have to seal inaccurate holes. First of all, instructions on how to mount the tap on the rain barrel:
- Drill a hole in the bottom of the rain barrel.
- On some models you will find a pre-cut marking.
- Push the tap and screw connection through the hole.
- Tighten the structure with the pipe wrench.
If the tap fills the hole precisely, you can use your rain barrel straight away. Unfortunately, this is the case in very rare cases. Small inaccuracies often result in leaks at the edge of the hole. Seal these as follows:
Seal gaps
- Use reducing sleeves (€17.00 at Amazon) from the hardware store.
- If your rain barrel is made of metal, you will also need a hemp braid.
- Take a few strands from the hemp braid and wrap them around the thread of the tap.
- Screw the tap and the strands into the reducer.
- Tighten the structure again with the pipe wrench.
- Now all you have to do is screw together the utensils that transport the water into the tap.
- You can then start a test run.
- If no water comes out of the edge of the tap, your rain barrel is functional.
Note: Hemp braids have a very intense, unpleasant smell when you remove the package. However, this disappears after a while.
