Subject: (fwd) Grey Water

From: [email-masked]
Date: Sun, 11 Feb 2001 12:05:23 -0500

On Sun, 11 Feb 2001 12:38:30 +1100, in alt.permaculture "Paul"
<[email-masked]> wrote:

Hi all.

I live in Canberra Australia, and want to use sand traps, reed beds
etc to
have a large water feature in our yard.  I envisage using grey water
from
the shower, bath basin and washing machine.  I am not sure what sort
of
primary filters etc to use.  I do not  want to use toilet or dish
washing
water.

I would like several ponds cascading down our back yard with a pump to
feed
back to the top.  I will have an over flow which will allow excess to
flow
into the stormwater or sewer, when the system is replenished by water
from
the house.

Has anyone had any experience with one of these, and what problems did
they
have, especially with the authorities?  The water people here are
pretty
good but I haven't approached them yet, as I would like to go in with
some
decent plans and ideas.

Thanks,

Paul

<><><><>
<><><><>

On 11 Feb 2001 20:18:16 +1000, in alt.permaculture [email-masked]
(David Moss) wrote:

[email-masked] (Paul) wrote in <[email-masked]>:

>I would like several ponds cascading down our back yard with a pump to
>feed back to the top.  I will have an over flow which will allow excess
>to flow into the stormwater or sewer, when the system is replenished by
>water from the house.

If you are going to use wastewater of any kind I can't see them
letting you 
connect it to stormwater.

If you are going to use rainwater of any kind I can't see them letting
you 
connect it to sewage.

In the former case you would end up raising the biochemical oxygen
demand 
of whatever river or stream the stormwater ends up in, even if you
just use 
washing and showering waste.

In the second, if everyone added stormwater to the sewage the system
would 
not cope and it would end up raising the BOD of the Molongalo and 
Murrumbidgee Rivers.

BTW I suggest you take a geko at a tertiery treatment pond in a sewage
works before you go ahead with this idea. I did a tour as part of 
Engineering Science at DDIAE some years back. The secondary treatment
pond 
looked much like any lake you see around here, fairly clear water,
fish, 
waterbirds and frogs etc. Then they filtered it into another pond and 
bubbled air through it. What a mess! They sell the brown crap that 
precipitates out on day 2 as feritliser and burn the gas thats given
off to 
generate power.

I wish you luck, what you propose would probably work well with a bit
of 
land. See that the Mt Stromlo Obsevatory do with their grey waste for
an 
example. In the suburbs though, I don't know.

David Moss
personal opinion only

---

From: Robyn Francis <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 13 Feb 2001 22:59:27 +1100

I have Council approved reed bed treatment systems here at Djanbung Gardens
one is for grey water
The grey water goes through a simple grease trap then into the reed beds - ferrous
cement beds 500mm deep filled with
12-15mm gravel planted with Phragmites Australis (2m2 per person surface area is
acceptable to health authorities. The treated water goes into an open holding pond
planted with water lilies, iris and other aquatic plants
Southern Cross University, Lismore has further info

Robyn Francis

[email-masked] wrote:

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