Grey Water System for Washing Machine

Your dying lawn is just one side effect of this long California drought, however with this simple yet effective grey water recycling system you can change that all while washing your dirty laundry.

1) Assemble the water diverter system as shown above or in a similar fashion.

2) With Valve 1 open and Valve 2 closed the water is directed from the washing machine to the storage tank outside. With Valve 2 open and Valve 1 closed the water is directed to the drain (this is to be used during bleach application)

3) Make a grey water storage tank by cutting a hole for the water input and install a spigot. The location of the spigot will serve as the threshold level at which the water must be above in order to start flow.

4) Once the water is above the threshold level, it will start to flow from the spigot through the hose to your lawn all using gravity. For a large load of laundry you can get anywhere from 25-35 gallons of water. For best results use biodegradable detergent.

5) A cheap yet effective filter can be made by attaching the the mesh portion of a food strainer to a 3/4 x 1 inch female PVC adapter using a hose clamp.