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Need advise on how to build 6’ high shelf for water barrels.

 
pollinator
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I was hoping someone with experience could tell me if this plan makes sense or if there’s a better way to do it. I just built a 12x20 greenhouse that I had hoped to water off an IBC tote 50 feet away. The tote is 3’ higher than the ground in the greenhouse but it’s still not enough to get water out of the rain barrel soaker hose I bought which specifically uses so-called zero psi rain barrel applications.

The seller told me the hose is really meant for rain barrels that are 6’ higher.  So I was going to build a shelf in my greenhouse to support one or two barrels 6’ high.

Even if you disagree with this solving my situation I would still be interested in a shelf for barrels to act as thermal mass in the fall and spring.
 
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A barrel raised 6' inside your greenhouse means you have 10' headroom somewhere, at the end wall I guess. Perhaps 2 IBC's stacked on 3 others could provide a foundation?...if cost effective.
 
steward
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Might it just be easier to raise the IBC tote 3-4'?  
 
pollinator
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You can stack IBC totes are made to be stack at least 4 levels high, so just buy some more. and use them either inside the greenhouse or at the existing location that is 50ft away.
 
Mike Haasl
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If the "shelf" has to be in the greenhouse, I'd highly encourage building a ground supported structure/platform for them to sit on and attach it (and the barrels) to a sturdy wall.  55 gallons is around 440 lbs which can leave a bruise if it falls on your foot.  An IBC tote would be north of 2200 lbs.
 
S. Marshall
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Burl Smith wrote:A barrel raised 6' inside your greenhouse means you have 10' headroom somewhere, at the end wall I guess.

forgive me but I’m confused by this. Where is this calculation from?  10’ headroom?

Thanks everyone. I guess I originally thought with a shelf I could still garden underneath the barrel.

If I stacked IBC totes the bottom one won’t have much a purpose until fall and spring when I can fill it for thermal mass.  It would take up a good amount of space compared to one layer of barrels. But I will definitely consider it.
 
pollinator
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S. Marshall wrote:

Burl Smith wrote:A barrel raised 6' inside your greenhouse means you have 10' headroom somewhere, at the end wall I guess.

forgive me but I’m confused by this. Where is this calculation from?  10’ headroom?

Thanks everyone. I guess I originally thought with a shelf I could still garden underneath the barrel.

If I stacked IBC totes the bottom one won’t have much a purpose until fall and spring when I can fill it for thermal mass.  It would take up a good amount of space compared to one layer of barrels. But I will definitely consider it.



If you want the barrel 6' high, they are roughly 3' tall and you need some space at the top to get water into the barrel, so I would think 10' would be the minimum.  As an aside, 2.31' only gives 1 psi, so 6' gets you barely over 2 psi.  When the barrel is full, you'll get a little more, but I would be surprised if that works much better in the soaker hose.  I'm guessing though, I've never tried it..
 
Burl Smith
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Trace wrote: "2.31' only gives 1 psi, so 6' gets you barely over 2 psi.  When the barrel is full, you'll get a little more, but I would be surprised if that works much better in the soaker hose.  I'm guessing though, I've never tried it.."-

A solar powered water pump then will increase pressure and allow minimal height.

 
S. Marshall
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Trace Oswald wrote:
If you want the barrel 6' high, they are roughly 3' tall and you need some space at the top to get water into the barrel, so I would think 10' would be the minimum.  As an aside, 2.31' only gives 1 psi, so 6' gets you barely over 2 psi.  When the barrel is full, you'll get a little more, but I would be surprised if that works much better in the soaker hose.



Oh!  Now I see what you were getting at.  Thanks for elaborating.

Burl Smith wrote:

A solar powered water pump then will increase pressure and allow minimal height.



I never thought of that!  A search on Amazon shows birdbath style solar pumps.  Do you know something that would work for a garden hose in my application?

Thanks for everyone's replies.  They're all good food for thought.  I tucked the IBC tote 50' away under my home's chimney, and there really isn't another spot for it.  But all these ideas are excellent to consider.
 
Burl Smith
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