Rain barrels and cisterns are legal in Berks County — Pennsylvania places no restriction on collecting rainwater. The county encourages it as a stormwater best-management practice. Any plumbing tie-in follows the state UCC plumbing code.
Pennsylvania does not regulate or prohibit residential rainwater harvesting, and Berks County imposes no permit for a rain barrel or downspout cistern. Capturing roof runoff is actively promoted as a stormwater and erosion best-management practice; the Berks County Conservation District and PA DEP endorse rain barrels and rain gardens to reduce runoff. No permit is needed for a simple barrel used for irrigation. If harvested water is plumbed into a building's potable or gray-water system, that connection must meet the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code plumbing provisions and any local backflow-prevention rules. Larger stormwater capture in a land-development project falls under municipal stormwater ordinances and Ch. 102.
No penalty for rain barrels. Improper cross-connection to potable plumbing can bring a UCC/plumbing code violation from the local code office.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Reading, PA
Every swimming pool in Reading must be enclosed by a permanent barrier or fence at least four feet in height with no opening larger than four inches, and the...
Reading, PA
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Reading, PA
Reading's zoning code does not require neighbor consent for a boundary fence under § 600-1301, but Pennsylvania's partition-fence statute (53 P.S. § 46202) a...
Reading, PA
Reading Zoning Code § 600-1301 requires a permit from the Zoning Administrator for any fence, wall, or similar structure greater than three feet in height. F...
Reading, PA
Reading Code Section 141-220 effectively caps a household at six dogs and/or cats combined. Owning more than six requires a permit from the Reading Animal Co...
Reading, PA
Propane (LP-gas) storage in Reading is regulated through the 2018 International Fire Code Chapter 61 (Liquefied Petroleum Gases), adopted by Reading Chapter ...
See how Reading's rainwater harvesting rules stack up against other locations.
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