There are some great people reading the frugal living blog! Thanks so some comments on one of my earlier blogs, I learned a little about the existence of grey water diverters.
A grey water diverter or grey water system is used to save water around your home by reusing it for your garden. This makes great sense from both a frugal and ecological standpoint. Grey water is any water from sinks, baths, showers and washing machines that has been already used. When you take a shower for example, the water normally goes down the drain and into your septic or sewer system. A diverter system takes that water and sends it off to water your garden instead.
A grey water diver system can be as simple as a long water outflow hose from your washer that drains outside to your garden instead of into a utility sink drain. You can also make use of diverter valves and simple diverter kits to capture the water from other parts of the house.
It is not recommended that grey water be used for anything other than gardening, because of the potential for bacteria, pathogens and other nasties that could be living in the water. Water purifying systems do exist, but the chemicals and energy output of most of these systems typically outweighs any benefits you would get from reusing the grey water in the first place.
Salt and heavy grease in the grey water can be damaging to your garden, so using a detergent that is low in sodium is a good idea when using a diverter system. Powdered detergents contain more salt than do liquid detergents.
Kitchen water is generally not a good idea to reuse as grey water for a garden, because it generally very dirty and greasy. Shower and bath water is perfect for reuse in a garden, since the soaps and shampoos we use are generally mild and well-diluted.
If you are frugal minded, you may already be using your own form of grey water system. Do you ever water your house plants with water from a glass of water someone didn’t finish? What are some of the ways you reuse or save water?
Grey water diverters can be found at some larger home improvement stores or online.
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