water butts - cost effective?

Savannah02K

Hello all, I'm working on my retirement plan (hope to finish December 2015) and want to start growing some of my own veggies next year and then gradually increase the amount of these I grow as I start to get more time (winding down at work).

When I've grown veggies before I've always watered them from tap in the garage but obviously now looking at being more cost cutting, I was thinking of getting a couple of butts for the back garden and maybe even some of the decorative ones for the front garden. I'd have to pay someone to install these as I'm on my own and not a confident DIYer so my question is, by the time I've bought the butts and paid someone to fix them in, would it be cheaper to actually just keep on taking water from the tap? How long would it take me to recoup my costs do you think? Thanks all.

Cally_Smart

If you could find some on freecycle or somebody you know were getting rid of some you will be quids in.I think they just need placing at the end of gutters & redirecting the water into it.

wellused

My allotment association had some plastic drums for £3 each and having water on the plot which I can run a hose from saves time, the only problem is that during times of prolonged drought when you really need water the butt soon runs dry. Most people on the allotment swear by the rule of letting plants find their own water.

trollopscarletwoman

Some councils have discount schemes for purchases of water butts/compost, dalek style bins/et al.

Might be worth a check.

ampersand

There's absolutely no need to 'pay someone to install these as I'm on my own and not a confident DIYer '
I'm a petite woman, older than you and do all of this and much more. Look for deals at local garden centres or national chains. All the How To's are online, loads on youtube - plenty of good, clear advice. Major outlets also print leaflets on basic jobs such as this. Go into a store and ask an older chap to explain everything. They love doing so.

Davesnave

We had this thread a while ago:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4754467

My advice: Forget water butts for now. Enrol on a course offering basic DIY skills and spend your retirement bonus on a good set of tools. They will pay for themselves over and over again.