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WHAT IS GREYWATER? According to Sydney Water, "Approximately 61 per cent of the total wastewater produced by an average household can be used as grey water. Kitchen wastewater is not usually included in this amount."
The table below, reproduced courtesy of Sydney Water, indicates the total amount of wastewater and grey water produced in your home. We have, in fact, removed 44 litres a day coming from the kitchen shown on the Sydney Water table. We believe that kitchen water should not be used as grey water for the toilet or garden recycling, because of the fats and solids involved.
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Wastewater source |
Total wastewater |
Total grey water | ||
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|
% Total |
Litres/day |
% Total |
Litres/day |
|
Toilet |
32 |
186 |
- |
- |
|
Hand basin |
5 |
28 |
8 |
28 |
|
Bath/shower |
33 |
193 |
54 |
193 |
|
Kitchen |
7 |
44 |
- |
- |
|
Laundry |
23 |
135 |
38 |
135 |
|
Total |
100 |
586 |
100 |
356 |
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What about the water from my bathroom for garden use? On average, a two to three person household generates 185 litres of greywater per day from the hand basin, shower and bath. The chemical constituents of bathroom greywater include soap, shampoo, hair dyes, toothpaste and cleaning chemicals. Greywater from hand basins is more polluted than bath or shower greywater, but is much lower in volume. If hair dyes and cleaning chemicals are being utilised, divert the greywater to the wastewater rather than the garden.
I get asked quite often how the
use of soaps and shampoos will impact the quality of greywater used for
garden irrigation, and the short answer is "we don't know". Generally
speaking, the amount of soap and shampoo used in the shower is quite
minimal, and pretty well diluted by the time it gets out to the garden.
Most of it is biodegradable, and is unlikely to have any significant
long-
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