Water Conservation Question

[ckhagen]

I was going to suggest the on-demand heater, they're awesome!
Isn't grey-water reclamation illegal in some areas? Just wondering, I think it's a great thing, but I remember a friend whose husband worked for a city water dept, saying that reclaiming grey water was illegal in their town.

eta: I might be thinking of a different kind of grey water reclamation...

 

[greenroomsurfer]

Sorry Nohall. I will however take Mosquito's over Yellow Flies any day of the week. It's all Mrs. Greenrooms brothers fault. He bought this big ars obnoxious boat and since then Lake Lanier has been going down. First time out on that lake he ran hard aground a screwed it up big time.

 

[greenroomsurfer]

I was going to suggest the on-demand heater, they're awesome!
Isn't grey-water reclamation illegal in some areas? Just wondering, I think it's a great thing, but I remember a friend whose husband worked for a city water dept, saying that reclaiming grey water was illegal in their town.

Totally illegal but the phosphates are like steroids for plants!!!!

 

[ckhagen]

So... why is it illegal. I mean, it makes perfect sense from a layman perspective, but what would be so scary about it that it would be proposed as illegal? I'm all for doing illegal stuff if it makes sense though

 

[NoHall]

So... why is it illegal. I mean, it makes perfect sense from a layman perspective, but what would be so scary about it that it would be proposed as illegal? I'm all for doing illegal stuff if it makes sense though

If you let it sit and collect for any length of time, it becomes a nasty bacterial soup.

But if, for instance, your washing machine hose runs out into a place where it can soak into the ground and water your plants, it would not collect and stagnate.

You don't want to use it to water lawns, though. The soap residue on the blades of grass does more harm than good.

 

[ckhagen]

Ah, makes sense. We don't use many scary chems and soaps in this house (no SLS's, no bleach, no phosphates, etc...) so sometimes I forget how dangerous semi-used water can be. But using it to flush my toilets makes total sense, watering the plants, maybe not.

 

[Sand Angel]

So... why is it illegal. I mean, it makes perfect sense from a layman perspective, but what would be so scary about it that it would be proposed as illegal? I'm all for doing illegal stuff if it makes sense though

The current public health laws are largely based on levels of fecal coliforms & e. coli present in gray water, particularly a problem with waste water from bathtubs & washing machines. The laws are in place to reduce exposure to these harmful bacteria.

 

[ASH]

Get an On Demand water heater gas or electric. I have even put them on a toilet if you can believe that. This crazy lady wanted hot water to run through the toilet to sanitize it.

Greenroomsurfer, be careful with hot water in a toilet. Do you know what seals the toilet to the floor? A wax ring that hot water will melt.
And yes, I did learn this the hard way many years ago when I had frozen pipes back in MN. Poured scalding hot water down the toilets hoping to warm up the pipes headed to the septic system and ended up making a quick trip to town for three new wax rings.

Great ideas on catching the water and using on plants. We are implementing this one today. Thanks

 

[Mermaid]

I grew up with an artesian well in the yard so we never ever wasted water! If you google "how to save water in your house" you will come up with several ideas, like these:

1. 
   Don?t leave the tap running while you brush your teeth (or shave, wash your face, etc). Turning off the water during teeth-brushing can save up to two gallons of water every time you brush.
3. Fix leaks ? this can save up to 10 gallons of water a day from one faucet. Fixing a leaky toilet can save about 200 gallons of water daily.
5. Install low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators. This can save both hot and cold water (aerators can save up to 40%).
7. Take showers instead of baths. A bath typically requires 70 gallons of water, while a five-minute shower uses 10 to 25 gallons.
9. When you need to run the washing machine or dishwasher, make sure the machines are full (and when you need to replace them, go for high efficiency).
11. When you need to water your lawn or garden, do not water between 6 a.m. or 6 p.m. Some estimates say that more than 50 percent of landscape water is wasted through evaporation or runoff caused by over-watering.
13. If you pour yourself a glass of water and don?t finish it, instead of pouring it down the drain, find another use for it such as watering a plant.
15. Avoid flushing the toilet when you don?t have to ? throw tissues, insects, and dental floss away in the trash instead of the toilet.
17. When you wash dishes by hand, fill one sink/basin with soapy water followed by a quick rinse under a mild drip from the faucet.
18. 
19. Don?t wait for the water from the faucet get warm before you wash your hands.
21. Instead of waiting for the tap to run cold when you want a glass of water, store a pitcher of drinking water in the refrigerator.
23. Don?t use running water to thaw frozen food. Defrost food overnight in the refrigerator or use your microwave?s defrost setting.
25. Don?t pre-wash dishes before you put them into the dishwasher. Scrape off residual food but then load them directly into the washer.

 

[greenroomsurfer]

I didn't make that mistake, I surf and we use wax for traction. Not all toilets have wax rings. Some work on vacuum systems and the big money ones have totally different connections like bodays ( spelling ?) and they have hot and cold running water. I lived over seas till I was 16 and the US is way behind when it comes to house hold engineering ( France, Germany and Japan made it an art form) They have had on demand water heaters for 30+ years. Believe it or not in Seville Spain there is an Old Roman archaeologist site called Italica they had flushing toilets and running water 3000 years ago and the town there now doesn't even have that. Oh yea and paved roads an aqueducts. maybe we should learn from the past Romans.