Grey Water Rules and Regulations

Grey water (sometimes known as gray water)is defined as water from baths, showers, hand basins and clothes washing machines or the laundry. Any water from any other source ( toilet water, and from kitchen and bidet’s) is considered black water, and must be allowed to proceed to the sewer, and be treated by some sort of sewerage treatment works.

A bath uses 120 litres and a shower 80 litres of water. When used, that water is called grey water. You pay for it, and then it all goes down the drain. Water Rhapsody Grey Water System uses this grey water to immediately irrigate your garden, saving you a substantial portion of your water bill.

Grey water is the biggest contributor to wastage of water and though knowledge of this very useful source is growing generally, this knowledge is still woeful.  At best 33% of water consumed in the home is normally thrown away, and at worst perhaps 50%. It is preposterous that any municipality allows this precious source of good water to be thrown away. Grey water is very useful for two purposes, re-used for toilet flushing or for irrigation purposes.

Rules of Grey Water

There are several rules for the re-use of grey water and these are:

1. Thou shalt not store grey water: This is the first law and may not be changed: the problem is that grey water has temperature and food value for anaerobic bacteria to breed and produce methane and hydrogen sulphide, the stuff that smells so badly. Any talk of a “tank” into which grey water is fed and used for any purpose whatsoever is simply not possible. Any “tank” will build up sludge, and this is quite unacceptable.

2. Do not let grey water pool: sending water to flood irrigate gardens on a regular basis means that a bacteria will clog the soil, preventing penetration of water into the soil, that needs to be overcome by some sort of cultivation.

3. Grey water must be sprayed under very low pressure that does not exceed 6 metres head at the sprinkler. This will prevent any atomizing of the sprayed water particles. Grey water contains bacteria of many types, and the particles of water must land on the soil, and not float down wind to be breathed in downwind. Spraying means that the likelihood of polluting groundwater is eliminated. Grey water is dirty water and may not be fed into any irrigation system; this includes drip irrigation, because all irrigation systems require clean water and high pressure.

4. Perhaps the most important aspect to the re-use of grey water for irrigation purposes is what to use for washing powders. The use of any phosphate rich washing powder will poison your soil over the long term. There are phosphate free washing powders on the market, and these must be used.

5.  There are no by laws regarding grey water use for irrigation in South Africa.  In fact, many municipalities encourage its reuse as this saves them money when it comes to expensive infrastructure upgrades because of the reduced sewerage effluent leaving our homes.  In addition to this important aspect, Grey Water reuse for irrigation is desirable because of the positive impact it has on your pocket.  You save on your water bill whilst being able to maintain a green garden all year round.

Water Rhapsody has installed thousands of Grey Water Systems throughout Cape Town and South Africa.  Our system is our flagship product and is currently one of the most reliable and robust systems on the market.  With our Grey Water System in place you will see an immediate drop in your water bill.  Our system provides a remarkably unique solution to the large volume of sewerage effluent which is untreatable due to lack of infrastructure.  South Africa is a growing country with urban development shaping our cities everywhere we turn.  When reusing your grey water for irrigation you are helping to conserve our fresh water and you are reducing the effluent entering into our rivers and oceans.  The situation is a win win in the both the environmental and economical sense. Contact your nearest dealer today for some advice on how you can best save water.