Vent: my rain barrel project turned into a real mess last spring

I was setting up a 50 gallon rain barrel at my place in Portland, thought I had it all figured out. The downspout diverter kit I got from the hardware store just would not seal right, water kept leaking everywhere behind the barrel. After three tries with different pipe tape and a lot of swearing, I finally used a rubber gasket from an old plumbing repair kit I had. Has anyone else dealt with diverter kits that just don't fit standard downspouts?

3 comments

3 Comments

charlie_roberts871mo agoMost Upvoted

That "after three tries with different pipe tape and a lot of swearing" line really got me. I went through the exact same circus with my gutter setup last year. Those cheap diverter kits are the worst, they're designed for some imaginary "standard" downspout that doesn't match anything in the real world. Did you have to cut your downspout to get that rubber gasket in place, or did you manage to squeeze it in there without chopping things up? I ended up just ditching the diverter entirely and cutting a hole in my downspout with a hole saw, then jamming a hose adapter in with silicone. It's ugly but it hasn't leaked in two years.

ryanburns26d ago

Saw a YouTube video where a guy used a flexible rubber coupling instead of those diverter kits.

mason_jackson1mo ago

Maybe check if your downspout is actually standard size, some older Portland houses use weird dimensions.