Live better. Collect rainwater.

And now, do it without big tanks or barrels. From 65 gallons to 4,000+ gallons, you can build rainwater collection right into your outdoor living space. We’ve been doing it since 2008 with these exact kits. You can, too.

Example 1:  A 65 gallon cedar rain bench.

Example 2 (below)  L-shaped outdoor seating area stores 600 gallons of rainwater. As seen on the TV show ‘Tiny House Nation‘.  Except it’s totally hidden.

What if…

  1. You could follow some DIY instructions to build 2 Cedar Rain Benches, and they fill up with the next 1″ rain,*
  2. You water your 10’x10′ garden with this stored rain for 2 months straight without ANY more rainfall.*
  3. You now have equal to 11 rain barrels (without the barrels) and beautiful outdoor seating…

* this is what can happen right now if your house has at least a 25′ x 40′ roof and you build the cedar rainwater collection benches shown above.  (600 gallons, applied at 1″ of water per week to a garden, 10 gallons/day for 60 days)

That’d be good, right?  It gets better:  Your city might pay for your rainwater collection and your patio seating.

Yep, that just happened. San Diego, L.A., Austin, and a growing number of cities around the country provide water rebates for rainwater harvesting systems.  Yes, these DIY kits qualify, and most will even pay for lumber you buy locally according to our shopping list. More details here:  Limited Time, Rebates = Free Rain Benches!

The designs are only getting better…

Below, Scott builds one of the original 65 gallon rain bench designs with 1 sheet of plywood (in less than a minute…)

This bench uses one sheet of T1-11 plywood and a few sticks of lumber. Total cost of a DIY kit and lumber as shown: around $110. Cedar will cost more, but then you don’t have to treat it because cedar is naturally rot resistant.  Bottom line: you get what you pay for.

The new standard Rain Bench DIY kit can hold up to 140 gallons, for the same price. See? Told you the designs are getting better.

Note:  Cedar is hard to find in some areas, so regular or treated lumber will work — you just have to stain and seal it inside and out.

Why is all this stuff DIY?

Simply this: We think shipping tons of materials all across the country is unnecessary when you can do it with stuff in your own backyard.

That said, this can get pretty advanced DIY.  You need basic carpentry and plumbing skills and tools.

If you decide to build your own Rain Bench, the first step is building a box. Then attach 2 small ‘liner locks’ inside that the liner mounts onto. You can make or buy these along with a DIY liner kit. Once you do that, you can build longer Rain Benches and get all fancy.

Will you ship me a complete rain bench?

Sure we can, but really this stuff is only intimidating if you haven’t done it yet. We’ve been building and improving these designs for almost a decade now, so our instructions take away much of the difficulty. If you can’t build it yourself, chances are you know someone who owns a cordless screwdriver and a skill saw, or you could even hire a handyman to build it for you…

If you are a handyman or contractor and would like to be listed as someone who can build Rain Benches for your local customers, please contact us.  We’ll hook you up!

We can ship ready to assemble kits by request, built to order, but getting local materials will save you serious $$.

Click here to learn more about the Cedar Rain Bench® on Tiny House Nation

 Nothing against rain barrels, they’re just not as easy to sit on…

“Wait a minute,” you say, “Why do I want a rainwater collection system?”

1. it’s free.  Use as much of it as you want.  (unless it’s illegal, then make sure it’s well hidden 😉  Did I type that out loud?

2. it’s easy.

3. your city or county will probably pay you to do it.

4. if your well pump or public supply is lost, you still have water.

5. it’s soft, good for washing and appliances (with filtration)

Do it for Sienna.  She loves rainwater baths.

6.  Plants grow better with rainwater.  Way better.

a nice addition to any garden

Just a few things to keep in mind:

  • Use care when storing rainwater on a deck.  It must be strong enough to hold a hot tub; water weighs a lot!

So after years of testing, tweaking and proving our DIY Rain Bench® kits, we are updating this site and adding a plethora of new designs in spring, so check back in, and feel free to mosey around a bit.  Give us a call or email if you have any questions at all…

Ready to Get Started?

Feel free to look around, check out some blog posts (we’re constantly working on fun new projects – and not just about collecting rainwater!), or head over to the store and see some DIY kits we already put together for your next rainwater harvesting adventure…