Slightly used water offers a kind of conservation.
Gray water is water that's been used washing dishes or clothes. You can't drink it, but there are still ways it can be useful. That's not the case, however; most gray water goes down the drain after one use.
But not always. Some people are trying to figure out how to get another few uses out of gray water before it's gone.
One group isn't just working on the problem, they're doing it.
They call themselves the Greywater Guerrillas. They're based in Oakland, California, one of a number of states where it's okay to use gray water. (California was the first state to make that possible, in 1994.) But right now that's tightly controlled, and the Greywater Guerrillas are eager to experiment, practice and get something cheap that works rather than fill out forms and pass inspections. Right now, a state-approved gray water system costs about $7,000 for a single-family house. And even some of the people installing them are wondering if the guerrilla route might be a smarter way.
TJ
There is some great information in this article and it's got me thinking about another aspect of conservation I never knew existed. I skimmed through the article and the graywater.net website and I'm wondering about the safety of some of the systems these people are using. Obviously petroleum based products should not be dumped in the household water system, so that leads me to ask what replacements are available for petroleum based cleaners. What alternatives to petroleum based cleaners should be used will go together with the Graywater Guerrilla projects.
Lora Bruncke
We have been putting sewage into our lakes and oceans for years. Boat engines dump petrol into lakes, which ends up in someones drinking water eventually. Lets go along with a basic need of a civilized society; everybody gets clean air and clean water out of a tap, not out of bottles. Of course we should be using graywater. It is an easy modification to existing homes. Just don't use toxic cleaners. Go back to nature made. Certain soaps are natural insect repellents. Could going organic be that simple! Go Graywater Guerrillas!