posted 2 years ago
Most washing machine drain pumps don't do well with back pressure. On top of that, if your drain hose looks like that one in the photo, it won't hold pressure at all (mine is cracked just from sitting there for a few years with a u-shaped carrier supporting it from below).
So, if you're going to attach the drain to a grey water system, you need to use a more durable hose for starters. Then you need to make sure that the system is as free-flowing as possible. I had a top-loader in Tucson that I plumbed into a 3-way valve that diverted the wash water to the drain and the rinse water to a 1" line leading to the fruit trees. That worked pretty well, mostly because the line ran just above grade until the outlet, so it was self emptying. I really did not want water pooling anywhere in the system.
Also, it's important that in a failure mode the valve does not shut from the pump's perspective. That will kill the pump quickly.