You need to place the barrel down through the "smithing" menu accessible on right click if you read the correct books

You need a book to use a rain barrel? Not intuitive I think. There is no mention of this anywhere else either.

Edit: So I had a look and it appears you are wrong about the book. You can place them without it.

Originally posted by » Amcue:

You need a book to use a rain barrel? Not intuitive I think. There is no mention of this anywhere else either.

Edit: So I had a look and it appears you are wrong about the book. You can place them without it.

How'd you do it bro?

I clicked on the take barrel option, and have no option to "place" it. I tried the drop option, but it just turns into a 2d sprite.

Originally posted by Merky:

Originally posted by » Amcue:

You need a book to use a rain barrel? Not intuitive I think. There is no mention of this anywhere else either.

Edit: So I had a look and it appears you are wrong about the book. You can place them without it.

How'd you do it bro?

I clicked on the take barrel option, and have no option to "place" it. I tried the drop option, but it just turns into a 2d sprite.

Merky: You're correct - once the Metal Drum hits your inventory, it becomes an item that cannot be placed using the "Right-Click the Item" menu. Etcheberry is correct about using the "Right-Click the Floor" menu to place it through the Smithing option, but I can't vouch for whether you need to read "The Smither's Backyard" to do so, since I read that magazine long before I even had 15 Stones for the Furnace (I'm still 1 Stone short, btw).

Amcue: I think Etcheberry is referring to "The Smither's Backyard," which I think you might have to read in order to access the Smithing option in the "Right-Click the Floor" menu. That's where the option to place the Metal Drum can be found.
If that's correct, I think it's done this way because you need to read that magazine to know how to use the Metal Drum for making Charcoal, even though it can also be used as a rain collector.