about us

The founder of Catch the Rain, LLC., Beth Mortenson, has been catching rainwater and composting for several years. She is drawn to these types of activities because of her respect for the recycling process. Someone once said that a true sign of ingenuity is not so much found in the ability to invent, but instead it is found in the ability to find new uses for old things. In other words, the recycling process!

Beth was on-board the instant her city in North Texas began its recycling program. She was thrilled with each addition of an item on the list of recycled items. Soon, her recycling barrel had more solid waste in it every week than the trash barrel.
This recycling enthusiasm led her to investigate composting. She soon realized that much of what was going down a garbage disposal and much of the paper and cardboard that was going into a recycling bin could be recycled right into her garden. She now has 2 composting bins, several worm bins and a NatureMill Automatic Indoor Composter, and there is no need to purchase compost -- and the garden is thriving!

In contrast, she discovered rainwater collection quite by accident. She had placed a vegetable garden close to the house. The roof in that area did not have guttering, and during a heavy rain the water that gushed down from the roof formed large divots in the garden bed, which she corrected by installing a short run of guttering to direct the water away. It was amazing to see how much water ran out of the side of the guttering. Why not use that water for the garden on a dry day, she wondered, and so she put out a barrel and used the collected water to irrigate the gardens. Today, she has several barrels and uses the captured water to irrigate many of her landscaped areas.

Drip irrigation came next. In most instances, people will run out of rain barrel capacity before they run out of rain. So now that she had a couple of barrels full with rainwater, what should she do with it? Putting a watering can under the barrel’s spigot is one way to deliver the collected water to the garden and it was satisfying using this method for a good while. She wondered, however, if there could be a way to deliver this water more simply. Water has natural principles that make drip irrigation a perfect solution. A simple system uses no electricity and no pumps; the water does all the work. However, Texas insists that anyone who designs an irrigation system have a license, so she studied, sat for the test, and became a licensed Texas irrigator.

Texas (and other areas of the country) has been suffering from serious drought and severe water restrictions have been placed upon its residents. Homeowners are restricted to when and how they irrigate their landscapes. These restrictions do not apply to captured rainwater, and so there is a strong interest developing in the rainwater collection field.

Sorting through all of the material on rainwater harvesting and all of the products that are available from the many different vendors can be dizzying. Catch the Rain has been developed as a business in an effort to offer clear advice and tried and true products. We will continue to look at new products as they come on to the market and, when necessary, develop our own as we have already done, in a few cases. If they prove to be excellent, you can look for them here.

Thanks for visiting!
Beth Mortenson, Chief Rainmaker
Catch the Rain, LLC
Texas Irrigation License #: L10015762
Download PDF Copy of License