• Post Reply Bookmark Topic Watch Topic
  • New Topic
permaculture forums growies critters building homesteading energy monies kitchen purity ungarbage community wilderness fiber arts art permaculture artisans regional education skip experiences global resources cider press projects digital market permies.com pie forums private forums all forums
this forum made possible by our volunteer staff, including ...
master stewards:
  • paul wheaton
  • Anne Miller
  • Carla Burke
  • Nancy Reading
  • John F Dean
  • Timothy Norton
  • Jay Angler
stewards:
  • r ransom
  • Pearl Sutton
  • Tereza Okava
master gardeners:
  • Christopher Weeks
gardeners:
  • M Ljin
  • Megan Palmer
  • Kate Downham

Very new here-- basic question about greywater

 
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Hello!  I am very new here and just starting with the basics.

I would like to reroute my greywater from my showers, hand sinks and kitchen sink into a storage tank for irrigation.

I have absolutely no plumbing experience!

I am the kind of person who usually never tries anything new for fear of breaking it beyond repair.  However, I am determined to accomplish this specific goal come hell or high water!  With the advent of AI and the imminent threat to water supplies worldwide, I consider this not only prudent, but a societal duty.
I have been plugging my showers and scooping out the water into jugs, but the process takes about 30 min and is not really practical when I am trying to get out the door and go to work in the morning.

How do I even begin this project?

Any and all advice is appreciated.
 
master gardener
Posts: 6994
Location: Carlton County, Minnesota, USA: 3b; Dfb; sandy loam; in the woods
4425
8
forest garden trees books chicken food preservation cooking fiber arts seed woodworking homestead ungarbage
  • Likes 3
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Does it freeze where you live? Are your bathroom and kitchen adjacent? what's under the floor where the drain goes currently? Do you own the house? Do you care about the law?
 
master steward
Posts: 19740
Location: USDA Zone 8a
4954
dog hunting food preservation cooking bee greening the desert
  • Likes 3
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Some folks consider the water from the kitchen sink black water due to the oils and scraps in dish water, especially if there is a garbage disposal.

Sending that to a irrigation tank could add oil/scrap to that storage tank causing future problems.

Can you filter that out? I don't know.
 
out to pasture
Posts: 13450
Location: Portugal
4691
goat dog duck forest garden books wofati bee solar rocket stoves greening the desert
  • Likes 3
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
I've always considered it to be black water if it's stored for more than 24 hours.

Mine is a very simple system - just a wide hose-pipe collecting it from the shower, wash basin and washing machine that carries it to whichever fruit tree seems to need it most at the time. No storage involved. But I am very fussy about what soaps are used!
 
Posts: 39
9
  • Likes 9
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
+1 what people are saying about especially the kitchen sink. I'd make that one black water.

That said the actual plumbing and storing is pretty simple. Modern residential plumbing is very easy with plastic (PEX) tubing. Drains are also not that complicated although it's different, PVC pipe with PVC "cement" for glueing it all together. For storage I've used an IBC tote (those big 250 gallon plastic containers with the metal grate around them). They can be had for free or for little money in many locations because farmers just want to get rid of them.

Like people are saying one big concern is freezing: if there's any standing water in it, it needs to be frost proof. For pipes that means burying them, if you have an outdoor storage container you'll need to insulate & possibly heat it. (Or bury it underground I guess?)

I did all of this last summer and while it's like 2-3 skillsets you need to learn, none of them are very difficult. This is all solved stuff and very approachable. It's more about not knowing what you don't know.
 
pollinator
Posts: 6315
Location: Bendigo , Australia
603
plumbing earthworks bee building homestead greening the desert
  • Likes 3
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
We need good understanding of the plumbing details of your house.
- Des the house have stumps
- Is there enough space to reach pipes
- what will you hod the water in
- is the land sloped
- will you use a pump
- where will the water be used
- distance between source and use
 
The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts -Marcus Aurelius ... think about this tiny ad:
a new overhaul of the freeheat page - need feedbacks for world domination
https://permies.com/t/389799/overhaul-freeheat-page-feedbacks-world
reply
    Bookmark Topic Watch Topic
  • New Topic