The rains are gone and we become more aware of saving water. Consider this: 70% of water used at home could be saved as grey water for as little as $1.50.
Greywater comes from baths, basins, showers and washing machines and is reused on the garden and lawns (lawn? does anyone have one of those still!). The Savewater! alliance says that your average household uses 140l per person per day – yikes. If you captured 98l as grey water, you could feel smug instead of guilty…..
For only $1.50 you can invest in the “bucket method” – pop a plastic bucket under the shower and give it to your potted plants. The next level up is a diversion system. You redirect the water without storage or treatment. Flow is activated through a switch which sends greywater back to the sewer during wet weather. Alternatively, if you’re up for automation and ease, the gold standard is a plumbed in system with pump, treatment plant, underground irrigation and auto-shut off (for when it rains) for around $10 000.
Council approval is usually only required if you are storing and treating water but its important to speak with them first. There are some overarching do’s and don’ts:
- don’t allow grey water to stagnate
- ensure it is not confused with drinkable water
- don’t allow it to flow into a stormwater drain (stormwater is for rain water only)
- don’t water your vege garden with it if you are going to eat the veges raw
- do use below ground irrigation for your garden
You’ll need Pipe Perfection plumbing’s help if you are going to harvest your grey water in Sydney if you are going to divert or store and treat your grey water. Call us on 1300 00 7473 if you’d like to ask some questions.
Useful sources of further information:
http://www.water.nsw.gov.au/urban-water/recycling-water
http://www.health.nsw.gov.au/PublicHealth/environment/water/wastewater.asp
http://www.savewater.com.au/how-to-save-water/in-the-home/greysmart
Council’s grey water pages:
http://www.marrickville.nsw.gov.au/action/NOTEMPLATE?s=0,pURL=safe_greywater_use,
http://www.northsydney.nsw.gov.au/www/html/5296-grey-water-re-use.asp