Talk to me about gray water please

[Dace]

Ok, so what type of gray water would be suitable? Maybe from the shower? We don't use soap, just BS and ACV to wash our hair and bodies. Same with the laundry.

We're moving to AZ so I'm really brainstorming as many water conservation methods to integrate as possible.

I could be wrong but I recall reading that laundry and shower greywater tends to contain feces as shown in random testing. So keep that in mind when planning your greywater usage.....count me in as one of the ignorant germaphobes ...just sharing what I have read. I do want to encourage you to find a way to make greywater reclamation successful, but be sure you do your research

 

[greenrootsmama]

I just found a nifty website that I am going to peruse when I have more than five minutes to sit down and read through it. I don't know if it's selling a product or not - I'll find out soon enough.

http://www.oasisdesign.net/greywater/

 

[enjoy the ride]

I once read an article in the Old Organic Gardening magazine about a retired university professor who had basically his own sewer treatment system without a septic system.
It's hard to remember details now but it seems it was a 80 foot long trench that ended up in a pond. It was planted with a series of different types of plants that did different levels of cleaning as the waste water past through. The density of the plants resricted the flow, giving the plants and bacteria time to work the magic and by the time the water reached the pond , it was as clean or cleaner than the pond water.
He did live in Florida if I remember right so that he could treat the water all year long- there was a dicussion about stopping the process in places where the winter force dormancy on plants, etc.
But with various Hepatitis so common in our society, I would be hesitant to use graywater except maybe from the sink or dishwasher, in any place where the plants were directly edible. Even a shower or a washing machine can send bacteria into the ground. You would probably luck out and nothing would happen but I would be very careful being what the previous poster termed an "ignorant germaphobe."
If it is a matter of not overusing a septic system rather than conservation of water, then runnng graywater through a long stretch of fairly dense wild areas probably would filter the water pretty well.
Also you could look at the Arcata Marsh in California- the whole city of Arcata uses a marsh system in Humboldt Bay as their final cleaning from their severage treatment plant. It's pretty famous for it's combination of wild life and water purification. Although it is not perfect- there have been occasional problems, it really is a good way to reduce pollution into waterways.

 

[Wifezilla]

I grew up swimming in ponds, rivers and lakes as well as public swimming pools. Ain't nothing in water coming out of the rinse in my laundry or the shower any worse than that. In fact, it would probably be cleaner than some of the ponds we used to play in

For those paranoid about fecal matter....

Q: If I flush the toilet, does bacterial really get on my toothbrush?
A: In episode 12 of Mythbusters (see http://dsc.discovery.com/.../episode_08.html )they did a study of tooth brushes in the bathroom, about 50 toothbrushes hung at varying distances from the toilet. As a control, they put one toothbrush in a glass in the breakroom (about 50') from the bathroom, and covered it with a glass. Each toothbrush, they would wet with warm water each day for 2 weeks. At the end of it, they had the toothbrushes checked for a specific bacteria found in fecies. *Every* one of the tooth brushes, including the controls in the break room, showed evidence of the bacteria.

Turns out that the bacterium is so ubiquitous that it didn't matter how far the toothbrushes were away from the toilet. (Or is the toilet is closed, I presume.)

 

[nightshade]

I learned to swim in the creek behind my house. Never liked swimming in public or private swimming pools, I don't like the chlorine smell it leaves me with for days even after I wash my hair ect.

Also I use my water from my duck pond to irrigate my blueberries. And frankly I can not imagine there being more bacteria in my shower water or laundry water then there is in a tub of duck water. I am not saying that you should spray it on your veggies or your fruit but for underground irrigation I think it would be okay.

I know I am trying to figure out how to use some of the gray water at the new farm. I figure that it will be more cost effective to do it when you are starting from scratch then when you have an existing set up and are trying to add a gray water system.

 

[Dace]

I grew up swimming in ponds, rivers and lakes as well as public swimming pools. Ain't nothing in water coming out of the rinse in my laundry or the shower any worse than that. In fact, it would probably be cleaner than some of the ponds we used to play in

For those paranoid about fecal matter....

Q: If I flush the toilet, does bacterial really get on my toothbrush?
A: In episode 12 of Mythbusters (see http://dsc.discovery.com/.../episode_08.html )they did a study of tooth brushes in the bathroom, about 50 toothbrushes hung at varying distances from the toilet. As a control, they put one toothbrush in a glass in the breakroom (about 50') from the bathroom, and covered it with a glass. Each toothbrush, they would wet with warm water each day for 2 weeks. At the end of it, they had the toothbrushes checked for a specific bacteria found in fecies. *Every* one of the tooth brushes, including the controls in the break room, showed evidence of the bacteria.

Turns out that the bacterium is so ubiquitous that it didn't matter how far the toothbrushes were away from the toilet. (Or is the toilet is closed, I presume.)

Well my point is that as underwear is spun thru the wash and as various body parts are washed and rinsed in the shower...you will have fecal matter going out with the greywater. I am not suggesting that it can not safely be used, but I am suggesting that thorough research and careful planning go into the implementation

 

[greenrootsmama]

I was poking around online today and found some ideas for filtering the gray water that were pretty simple. You divert the water into a sand filter tank (that you can easily make yourself) and then through a contained planter. By the time it comes out of the planter it's usable for irrigation.

I'm going to keep searching for simple but effective ideas for this until I am satisfied that it's something that will work and then I can implement it into our farm.

 

[Beekissed]

I see nothing wrong whatsoever with using your gray water to irrigate your garden. I wouldn't pipe it directly into your garden rows, not necessarily out of concern for bacteria, but the detergents. If your soil is sandy and not too much clay content, I would divert to a holding tank~just dig a deep hole, or even a trench, in the ground and let the natural seep of this water be purified just like any other kind of ground water. As you have already stated, you don't use heavy, commercial detergents, so this won't change the soil culture very much at all. Sort of like folks who have a septic with a leach bed.



Heck, we used to give our dish water to the pigs and chickens...the oldsters felt that it helped with de-worming. Probably had a significant surfactant action, so they could have been right.

 

[MrDirtyBoots]

We reuse all our grey water.

The washing machine water (no chemicals involved, we use eco balls) is directed to a big barrel and we use it to water plants and veg in the early stages.

It is essential to wash your hands thoroughly though after using.

We also filter the bathroom sink and shower through a barrel and in to a reed pond. This makes it super clear and clean looking. We simply then dip for the water and use it to water loads of stuff.

All I would say is keep the grey water covered if it has not been filtered and use it regular so it is not standing as sludge will build up quickly.

 

[sylvie]

We reuse all our grey water.

The washing machine water (no chemicals involved, we use eco balls) is directed to a big barrel and we use it to water plants and veg in the early stages.

It is essential to wash your hands thoroughly though after using.

We also filter the bathroom sink and shower through a barrel and in to a reed pond. This makes it super clear and clean looking. We simply then dip for the water and use it to water loads of stuff.

All I would say is keep the grey water covered if it has not been filtered and use it regular so it is not standing as sludge will build up quickly.

What is a reed pond and is it easily constructed?