WHAT IT COSTS

YOUR GUIDE TO GOING GREY

The looming water crisis is forcing South Africans to get inventive when it comes to recycling water – so go on, do your bit! “A grey-water system can be very simple and cheap – for instance you can use a bucket to carry your bathroom water outside and water your plants,” Van Staden says. But this is inconvenient, she adds, and you should ideally keep contact with grey water to a minimum due to the bacteria it’s likely to contain.

SSSSThe most important rule is not to store grey water for longer than 24 hours before reusing. Grey water contains bacteria from skin and after 24 hours the bacteria start to multiply and cause the water to smell. Grey water must originate from your residence and shouldn’t leave your property’s boundaries so don’t let grey water flow into a neighbouring property. Don’t allow the grey water to form ponds or pools as this could encourage fly or mosquito breeding and bad smells. You also can’t use an irrigation system that sprays a fine mist as the water might contain skin cells or hair that can spread bacteria and disease.

SSSSSSS“We all need to be aware of how precious water really is and we should be mindful how we use it,” says Barbara Mueller from Philadelphia near Cape Town. Barbara built her own impressive grey-water system with plumbing pipes that drip water into the furrows of her vegetable garden.

“The grey water doesn’t come into direct contact with the plants or their leaves so it’s very safe. It drips into the ground and I’ve created furrows for the water to travel down to the end so it’s spread around. You don’t want it to pool in one spot.”

If you’re not as practical as Barbara, there are a number of companies that can install a grey-water system for you.

“There are many options available and the level of sophistication depends on how much you’re prepared to pay,” Van Staden says.

Commercial systems – which cost anything from R12 000 to R18 000 for a top-of-the-range one – intercept the grey water in the plumbing pipes on its way from the source (your shower) to the sewerage system and divert it to a storage tank.

Once collected, the water is filtered and pumped to irrigation pipes for watering the garden.

A do-it-yourself system can cost you anything from R3 000 to R6 000.

Children and pets shouldn’t be allowed to play in the vicinity of grey water.

Grey water mustn’t be used in swimming pools because of the high likelihood of it containing bacteria.

Don’t use grey water if anyone on your property suffers from an infectious disease.

Fruits and vegetables that will be eaten raw shouldn’t be irrigated with grey water as it hasn’t been proved to be safe due to the likelihood of bacteria in the water.

Your grey-water system must have an overflow or divert directly into the sewer.

Use biodegradable and environmentally safe cleaning products.