The article presents a method of designing single-chamber rectangular detention reservoirs based on nomographs connecting the parameters and the shape of the inflow with the reservoir hydrograph (triangular, described by the power function and described by the gamma distribution) as well as the hydraulic characteristics of the accumulation chamber and the orifice. The preparation of nomographs involved using the SWMM (Storm Water Management Model) program with the application of numerical calculations’ results of a differential equation for the stormwater volume balance. The performed analyses confirm a high level of similarity between the results of calculating the reservoir volume obtained by using the above mentioned program and using the developed nomographs. The examples of calculations presented in the paper confirm the application aspects of the discussed method of designing the detention reservoir. Moreover, based on the conducted analyses it was concluded that the inflow hydrograph described by the gamma distribution has the greatest impact on the reservoir’s storage volume, whereas the hydrograph whose shape in the rise and recession phases is described by the power function has the smallest effect.