Anyone have idea on installing a drain valve on rain barrel?

lloydguy

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As per title, my uncle has a plastic 45 G rain barrel he takes down to the lake
to fill with water for garden,Im trying to come up with a way for him to drain it
without tipping it over everytime.
Idea 1
Would ABS glue bond a abs fitting to the plastic? I was thinking of drilling a 1 1/2"
hole, thread and glue in a 1 1/2 x 1 1/4 abs reducer then thread a 1 1/4" ball valve
into it.
Idea 2
Some sort of plumbing fitting with a rubber washer on each side and a nut that could be installed on the inside to tighten the assembly together?
Anyone done something like this, or have an idea on how to do it?
Thank's
 

arff

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UFA has the fitting for tanks.
You drill a hole in the side and install fitting it has 2 rubber gaskets and a nut on the inside.

I am guessing barrel has no top.
 

rzrgade

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Any male to female screw together coupling with rubber washers will do it ...
sounfs abit porno I know....but it will work!
 

CS989

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65dfcabc43b3c3d7aafcdb2c15b10041.jpg


Made a few barrels with drains, ufa has a whole bunch of sizes. Works real well


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lloydguy

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UFA has the fitting for tanks.
You drill a hole in the side and install fitting it has 2 rubber gaskets and a nut on the inside.

I am guessing barrel has no top.

Yes. the barrel has a sealed top with a 4" removable bung.It will be a bugger to get a nut
of some sort on the inside I know, but I think it can be done.IE- drop ratchet in barrel
and use a 3' x 1/2" black pipe on ratchet handle.

Does anyone know if the ABS glue idea would work?
 

CS989

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Cant you just get it through the hole and put the nut on the outside. Both ends are typically threaded so it should not matter what side the nut is on


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camoJoe

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I Used a Ball valve, a 1" threaded nipple and a reducer on the inside, and yes , some rubber washers, been holding now for a couple of years, added silicone for good measure, fun part was holding the reducer on the inside of the barrel..
 

lloydguy

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Cant you just get it through the hole and put the nut on the outside. Both ends are typically threaded so it should not matter what side the nut is on


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With the gadget you posted the pic of, yes the way to do it would be drop the main piece in the barrel
and by whatever means get the threaded shaft through the hole, then nut in outside. I assume they
are npt thread's so any valve of the correct size would thread onto the stub sticking out.
No UFA store here though, only bulk fuel.
Do you know what is is called so I can look around locally?
Thank's for the pic and info.
 

TROLLCAT

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drill hole for bulk head fitting thread rope down threw lid and out of drilled hole, use rope as a guide for fitting placement so thread pop out of barrel

hope that made sense :confused:
 

rzrgade

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Yes. the barrel has a sealed top with a 4" removable bung.It will be a bugger to get a nut
of some sort on the inside I know, but I think it can be done.IE- drop ratchet in barrel
and use a 3' x 1/2" black pipe on ratchet handle.

Does anyone know if the ABS glue idea would work?
No glue ...simply screw an elbow to the inside piece and hold it until outside is tight , then unscrew the long piece...
 

lloydguy

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I Used a Ball valve, a 1" threaded nipple and a reducer on the inside, and yes , some rubber washers, been holding now for a couple of years, added silicone for good measure, fun part was holding the reducer on the inside of the barrel..

So, you made your own rubber washer's? If I understand, you drilled the hole for the OD of the 1" closed nipple
then held the reducer on the inside,threaded 1/2 of the closed nipple into the reducer and the other half into the
ball valve? that made the "sandwich".
 

mbmb

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Hey lloydguy, back in the day I worked for Greif Containers in Lloyd, now its known as Great West Container. We produced thousands of plastic drums. Still have a few at home not being used today. We would cut half of the top off and put two hinges on so you have a semicircle opening lid. Makes it easy to access the inside plus clean out as debris always plugs the drain valve. I drilled a 3/4 hole and hand threaded a brass ball valve in, no gaskets/glue/silicone, that was 30 years ago and the drum still works good to this day.
 

camoJoe

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So, you made your own rubber washer's? If I understand, you drilled the hole for the OD of the 1" closed nipple
then held the reducer on the inside,threaded 1/2 of the closed nipple into the reducer and the other half into the
ball valve? that made the "sandwich".


Thats, correct, use rubber washers and flatwashers to hold, but instead of a reducer use an elbow, and ad a long piece of pipe on inside to hold while u screw everything on from the outside, remove pipe after your done
that is a better way as rzrgade described !!
 
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woody_tobius_jr

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Lee Valley has brass taps that you can install on the side of barrels. I installed a couple, and they work really well. About 3 years old now and no leakage around the tap


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polarice

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ive done at least twenty barrels with a regular 1/2 thread tap and a 5/8 socket( confirm your size ) heat the socket up and set it into the plastic and melt the whole through it.... this will give you a hole the perfect size for the tap ... screw the tap in while the plastic is still warm when it cools it forms a tight seal around the threads .....
As per title, my uncle has a plastic 45 G rain barrel he takes down to the lake
to fill with water for garden,Im trying to come up with a way for him to drain it
without tipping it over everytime.
Idea 1
Would ABS glue bond a abs fitting to the plastic? I was thinking of drilling a 1 1/2"
hole, thread and glue in a 1 1/2 x 1 1/4 abs reducer then thread a 1 1/4" ball valve
into it.
Idea 2
Some sort of plumbing fitting with a rubber washer on each side and a nut that could be installed on the inside to tighten the assembly together?
Anyone done something like this, or have an idea on how to do it?
Thank's
 
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lloydguy

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Thats, correct, use rubber washers and flatwashers to hold, but instead of a reducer use an elbow, and ad a long piece of pipe on inside to hold while u screw everything on from the outside, remove pipe after your done
that is a better way as rzrgade described !!

I didn't have a clue what rz was saying earlier, but the way you described it, it makes total sence now.
Thank's.
 
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