Have you heard of grey water systems? What is it all about, exactly, and how does it function? Why you should have it? And what are the benefits? Let’s find out.
Many American home builders have already installed and are now enjoying their grey water system. If you don’t have it yet, and are completely unaware of this, don’t worry. Let’s talk about it for you to have a better understanding. Soon, you too might consider installing it at home.
Grey water system deals with the efficient and productive treatment of grey water. But what is grey water in the first place? It is a generic term for household waste water that has no serious contaminants. This includes water from the showers, sinks, and laundry tubs. Water coming from the toilets and kitchen sinks with food wastes are not included due to their high organic loading. Estimates show that more than half of the total household water can be recycled as grey water. That is tantamount to hundreds of liters of water savings daily. Isn’t that a valid reason itself for having a grey water system? Just imagine the potential amount of money you could have saved and could be saving. Isn’t it ridiculous to just throw away that amount of waste water when you can actually reuse it for other purposes and save money in the long run?
This is the main reason for having a grey water system. But how does it work? The water received from the showers, sinks, and laundry tubs will be filtered. The system then uses a physical filtration to drop debris particles. It also uses ultra violet light and ionization to eradicate bacteria. There are four stages in the physical filtration and each has an aggressive filter media which ensures complete elimination of fragments. Its disinfection system rids the water of bacteria and at the same time, control the odor too.
With proper installation of a grey water system, there will be less need for fresh water. Such reduction on fresh water use means lower water bills too. In addition to these benefits, you will also be able to help the community, as demands for public water supply will be reduced. Another community advantage is the decreased amount of waste water entering the sewers or on-site treatment systems.
Now that the grey water has undergone proper treatment, it is to reuse for other purposes such as toilet flushing and landscape irrigation. The treated grey water is now safe for irrigating both food and non-food producing plants. This is a great way to enrich these plants as the grey water contains nutrients such as phosphorus and nitrogen that are excellent food source for them.
Using the untreated grey water on your garden is not recommended. Your plants will be exposed to disease-causing pathogens and the damaging salts and chemicals could kill them and ruin the soil. Also, the overspill could go beyond your boundaries and create problems in the neighborhood.
Given these factors to consider, installing a grey water system is just the right thing to do. There may be installation costs and regular maintenance involved but think of the advantages. Over time, you’ll find out that the acquisition cost and inevitable maintenance cost are nothing compared to the benefits that a grey water system gives. Safe reusable water beneficial to your plants and potential savings in the long run are reasonable enough for having a grey water system. Have one today and see for yourself how it works and how much you’ll save along the way.
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