Update Oct. 12: All discounted rain barrels available for the Nov. 7 event have been ordered. Information about additional promotions will be posted when available.
By now you’ve probably heard that El Nino is coming. And, that it might just be bringing bucketfuls of rain with it.
So maybe you could use a rain bucket — or a rain barrel — of your own to help you take advantage of whatever El Nino delivers.
After all, rain barrels can let you “harvest” the rain that runs off your roof, keep your gardens and trees green, cut your water costs and even help protect our beaches by preventing excess rain from carrying pollution down our streets and to the ocean.
Well, from now through Nov. 1, county residents can get a discount on top-of-the-line, 50-gallon rain barrels by ordering them online, thanks to the County of San Diego’s Watershed Protection Program and the Solana Center.
In addition, water customers can apply for a $75 rebate from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California that could bring the cost of their new rain barrel down to just $10!
The process is simple. Order your $85 Ivy rain barrel (normally sold at $129) online at the County/Solana Center website. Just click on the “add to cart” link and pay by credit card. The deadline for ordering is 11 p.m. Nov. 1.
Your rain barrel will NOT be mailed to you. Instead, everyone will pick up their rain barrels between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 7 at the Water Conservation Garden at Cuyamaca College in El Cajon, located at 12122 Cuyamaca College Drive West. Just print out the confirmation email that will be sent to you when you order your barrel and bring it with you. Your barrel should fit easily in the back seat of a four-door sedan or hatchback.
A couple other things to remember: You must pay for your barrel ahead of time. You can’t order and pay when you pick it up. You need to pick up your barrel at the Nov. 7 event (we cannot guarantee holding your barrel to be picked up later).
To apply for a $75-per-barrel rebate (up to four barrels per person) at the Metropolitan Water District’s SoCal Water$mart Web page. Residents interested in applying for this rebate should check with the agency for program details before purchase. You may be required to install your barrel before applying.
Each Ivy rain barrel is made of 100 percent recycled materials — so it’s doubly environmentally friendly — and comes with everything you need to start harvesting the rain off your roof, including lids with screens to keep mosquitoes out, overflow hoses to keep them from spilling over, and spigots to attach irrigation hoses to.
You can see the rain barrels on display during the normal business hours at these locations:
- Lakeside Community Center: 9841 Vine St, Lakeside
- The Water Conservation Garden: 12122 Cuyamaca College Drive West, El Cajon. (Near Cuyamaca College)
- San Diego County Operations Center: 5510 Overland Ave, San Diego (first floor lobby)
- Valley Center Library: 29200 Cole Grade Rd, Valley Center
- Fallbrook Community Center: 341 Heald Lane, Fallbrook
- Solana Center: 137 N El Camino Real, Encinitas
For more information, go to the Solana Center/County Rain Barrel Program Web page.
