santa  fe  rain  barrels

For any readers that were planning to go to the Oshara Village Flea Market tomorrow, the 30th of May, to purchase our rain barrels, we apologize for any inconvenience but the fundraiser we had planned for will not be taking place.  There is still a possibility that the fundraiser will be held on a later date.  Despite there being no fundraiser tomorrow, we are still available with a large supply of barrels and other water harvesting systems, and can arrange for a delivery or pickup.

Water harvesting systems have grown tremendously in popularity in Santa Fe and other areas in Northern New Mexico.  Driving around Santa Fe during the day, one can see the tremendous amount of water harvesting systems in the homes of many of the city's residents.  Terra cotta rain barrels compliment the stucco colored houses throughout the city, and large tanks can be hard to miss standing firmly in the yard of some homes, many having a capacity of up to 4000 gallons!  Both rain barrels and tanks/cisterns are good ways to harvest water in the high desert that we live in.  However, for those that are wanting to have even less dependence on city water water, harvesting systems using tanks and cisterns are recommended.  These large water harvesting systems can be incredibly efficient and sustainable.  Some of them collect only rain water, which is directed into the tank or cistern with tubes coming from the canales.  Other water harvesting systems collect gray water from the household, which gets recycled back into the earth when plants are watered. 

The number of ways to design an effective water harvesting system is very large, and more creative ways are coming to be as sustainable living is more recognized for its importance in our lives.  However, no matter what particular method a person employs to collect water, it will always contribute to a more sustainable lifestyle.  Rather than using the limited supply of water that comes shooting out of our faucets, water harvesting systems allow us to consciously harvest the water that comes as rain.  By collecting the rain, we can replenish it back into the earth, and in so doing allow for less of a dependence on outside resources for survival.  As we continue to live more sustainable lifestyles we will have a more positive effect on the earth that we live on, and be able to replenish some of the resources that we have used up out of ignorance.

May we all live more sustainable lives!

The dawn of the year 2000 had many expectations leading up to it. Will it be the end of the world? Will it be the end of technology? Is it the beginning of a new era and consciousness? Similar to today´s 2012 doomsday speculations, the meaning and significance of Y2K had everyone around the world asking questions. People didn´t know what to think. Many people were afraid while others claimed that it was all just a big myth. As the time drew nearer to January 1st, however, the rumors got louder and those listening to them got prepared.

People driving by the back of our house off the main road of Eldorado in the year 1999 were occasionally greeted by a sign that read `Y2K Storage Barrels`, with a large amount of terra cotta barrels waiting to be sold, and my hopeful dad attending the many intrigued drivers that stopped by to have a look. The corner of our yard was stacked higher than the level of our fence with barrels, which we had unloaded from a full-sized semi despite the scrutiny from neighbors. Aside from that, the barrels smelled (and continue to smell) like garlic or peppers before getting washed out. We had hope that it would be worth all the trouble.

Needless to say, we didn´t have to send all the barrels back to where they came. People were buying them. Some for food. Some for water. Some to put pillows in and turn into a doghouse. Anything you could imagine. The Y2K hype was really working!

After the ball dropped and the parties died down, and people began forgetting about the Y2K new world which had been the only thing on their minds the night before, life went back to normal. It was only then that we really started to sell rain barrels as a way to store the water coming off people´s roofs. As the business started to grow, the city of Santa Fe got involved and granted us the right to give customers $30 dollar rebates on their water bill for buying barrels. We soon found ourselves delivering barrels to places outside of Santa Fe, and I became busier and busier getting orders ready for wholesale. The business spread to Albuquerque, and our methods of selling evolved with the number of barrels we were selling. It wasn´t as easy anymore to keep up with orders, so we were forced to find better and more efficient ways of preparing the barrels to be sold.

Today, after 10 years of selling barrels, the business has seen many changes. We now have a distribution in Las Cruces, NM, as well as the one we have had in Altanta, GA. We have many different sizes of tanks and cisterns, and they are all of various types and prices. The more people buy, the less limits we have in selling the barrels, and we encourage anyone interested, no matter where from or what is needed, to contact us.

The city of Albuquerque, although already big for NM, is continuing to increase in size and population. As the number of people using water increases, the level of Albuquerque´s ground water decreases at an even faster rate, signifying that water conservation must grow to match the demand for water. The earlier people conserve water, the more secure the future of our water supply will be, and we will be more prepared for any water-related problems to come. Rain barrels for Albuquerque and Santa Fe are always available to interested clients. As the demand for water increases, we hope to meet that demand with a reliable supply of barrels.

Hope we can continue to serve you, and happy 10th anniversary of Santa Fe rain barrels!

For those of you trying to conserve cash, we have a number of $45 "dirty" barrels. These barrels have nothing wrong with them, they're just not as clean. If you don't care about the appearance, it's a good way to save a few bucks on your water catchment system. They can also be cleaned up if you have a good arm and some degrease soap and a scrubber.

We also recently got a shipment of 50 gallon Terra Cotta barrels, which we were low on previously. They are selling for $55 a piece, with the brown colored ones for $60. The 60 gallon brown barrels are $65 dollars, and all other 60 gallon barrels are $60. For a limited time we are also selling 55 gallon "wide mouth" barrels, which tend to be cleaner and nicer in appearance than the other barrels. They are 65 dollars.

If you are not already aware of this, we deliver any number of barrels for a cost of $15 dollars per delivery. Of course that depends on where you live. Santa Fe and Eldorado tend to be ok. Call first in order to set a time to meet. During the course of the summer we have also been selling on the side of highway 285 near the first entrance to Eldorado. We have been there on Saturdays, but might not be there again until next summer, depending on how busy it looks.

Take advantage of all the recent rain, and fill up one of our Santa Fe rain barrels! It's a good chance to conserve water and save some money on your water bill.