SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE

Greywater System in Residential Unit

Submitted to:

Ar. Mahnoor Asim

Submitted by:
Rafia Waheed
Roll#31651052
Section B
Date: June 27, 2020

Department of Architecture

Lahore College for Women University

 Abstract

The issue of greywater management – which is defined as all sources of domestic wastewater excluding
toilet wastewater – is gaining more and more importance, especially in developing countries where
improper wastewater management is one of most important causes for environmental pollution and fatal
diseases. In recent years not only the threats of improper greywater management have been recognized;
there is an increasing international recognition that greywater reuse, if properly done, has a great
potential as alternative water source for purposes such as irrigation, toilet flushing and others.
The main barrier for wider and faster dissemination of suitable greywater management
systems on household level is the lack of knowledge and experience in that field, especially
in developing countries. Scientific knowledge is sparse regarding greywater characteristics
and adequate greywater treatment systems allowing a proper and safe disposal or reuse of
greywater.
 TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 5
1.1 Problem statement ....................................................................................................................... 5
1.2 Objective ....................................................................................................................................... 5
2 Literature review................................................................................................................................... 6
2.1 Definition of Greywater ................................................................................................................ 6
2.2 Greywater System ......................................................................................................................... 6
2.3 History ........................................................................................................................................... 6
2.4 Advantages.................................................................................................................................... 6
2.5 Per person Water usage................................................................................................................ 7
2.6 Sources To Reuse .......................................................................................................................... 7
2.7 Types of Greywater Systems ......................................................................................................... 7
2.8 Working Machanism ..................................................................................................................... 8
3 Conclusion and Recommendations....................................................................................................... 9
4 Bibliography ........................................................................................................................................ 10
1 INTRODUCTION
In low-cost decentralized sanitation projects implemented in developing countries, the main
focus is often put on latrine building, thus ignoring/neglecting the issue of greywater. If one
wants to have comprehensive and sustainable decentralized sanitation projects with dry toilet
systems one has to provide well-functioning management systems for the greywater as well,
otherwise the project will not have the expected impact on public health and environment.
Proper greywater management, comprising collection, treatment and reuse or disposal,
prevents humans of being in contact with it and limits pathogen transfer. A sound treatment
also has positive effects on the nearby water bodies, since it limits the input of nutrients and
thus eutrophication.
Greywater management is not only a precondition for clean and healthy living conditions, it
also has a great potential for reuse. Treated greywater in a decentralized way is reused for a
whole range of applications around the world; in developing countries, the reuse of treated
greywater for irrigation purposes is most common.
In the past three decades, a great increase in the reuse of wastewater for agriculture
purposes occurred, especially in semiarid areas. Several factors led to that trend (WHO,
1989a):

 the scarcity of alternative water sources for irrigation;

 the high cost of artificial fertilizer
 the demonstration that risks and soil damage are minimal if the necessary;
precautions are taken;
 the high cost of advanced wastewater treatment plants;
 the socio-cultural acceptance of the practice
 the recognition by water resource planners of the value of the practice

1.1 PROBLEM STATEMENT

As water shortages become increasingly common, new and innovative ways to conserve and reuse water
are critically important. Widespread reuse of household greywater has the potential to contribute
significant water savings, up to 40% of residential consumption, although how much water is actually
saved depends on how people design and maintain their systems.

1.2 OBJECTIVE
Lack of scientific data on how greywater affects soils and plants has been a barrier for widespread
implementation of greywater systems for residents. Lack of data regarding the costs of installation,
permitting and maintenance for greywater systems also present barriers for households that are
considering greywater reuse.
2 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 DEFINITION OF GREYWATER

“Greywater”, as we use the term, refers to water discharged from washing machines, showers, baths,
and sinks. Greywater does not include water from toilets or wash water with fecal material (eg. soiled
diapers). Kitchen sink water is often classified as “dark greywater”, though currently some states in the
United States, including California, classify it as “blackwater” and prohibit on-site reuse. Reuse of
greywater has many potential benefits; it can reduce overall potable water consumption, thus decreasing
the demand for surface and groundwater. Greywater reuse can reduce energy consumption, as it offsets
the need to treat water to potable quality for irrigation, and can protect water quality by reducing flows
on over-loaded septic systems.

2.2 GREYWATER SYSTEM

A greywater system is used to take water that has already been used from places like your laundry,
shower and sink and divert it to use in another purpose like watering gardens or landscaping instead of
flushing it down into the sewer

2.3 HISTORY
Due to a history of poor waste management and outbreaks of waterborne diseases, on-site wastewater
management is perceived as unsanitary and even backward. Most people are much more comfortable
with flushing waste away and not seeing it again. Many are not aware, however, that in addition to being
inefficient and costly, current wastewater infrastructure poses public health risks of its own.

2.4 ADVANTAGES
 Potable water conservation
 Lower water bills
 Decreased load on local sewers
 Potential initiatives to meet LEED or Living Building Challenge criteria
 Reduced energy use and greenhouse gas production from water treatment plants
 Enhanced drought resistance
 Greywater ordinarily contains detergents that have nitrogen or phosphorus, which are plant
nutrients.
 Greywater also increases the life and capacity of your septic system since usage decreases.
2.5 PER PERSON WATER USAGE
In a new house, with new appliances and plumbing fixtures, this figure may drop to about 25
gallons per day, or 750 gallons per month. This varies from house to house. For most cases,
about 60% of water used inside the home would be considered greywater.

2.6 SOURCES TO REUSE

2.7 TYPES OF GREYWATER SYSTEMS

Greywater systems can be classified as those designed for outdoor
irrigation and those for indoor non-potable use. In general,
residential systems for outdoor irrigation are simpler and easier to
maintain, while larger, mechanized systems for indoor non-potable
use, such as toilet flushing, are more complicated. The systems
surveyed in this study are residential systems, predominantly
“laundry to landscape” and “branched drain” systems. These
systems do not have tanks, pumps or filters, and irrigate landscape
plants directly, though a few systems we studied did incorporate
pumps.
In the “laundry to landscape” system, shown in figure 1, the washing
machine pump sends greywater from the drain hose of the machine
directly to the landscape (usually gravity based).

The “branched drain” greywater system uses gravity to distribute

greywater from showers, sinks, and baths. “Branched drain” systems
typically divert greywater through the drainage plumbing of the
house, which is then distributed to plants via a series of branching
drainage-type pipes.

Both types of systems discharge greywater into “mulch basins”,

which are excavated trenches in the ground, usually 6 to 20 inches
deep, 1 to 2 feet wide and 3 to 10 feet long, and filled with wood chips
or other woody organic material (see figures 2 and 3).

The two types of pumped systems in the study, “pump no filter,” and
“pump with filter,” both have a small surge tank to temporarily collect
greywater. Inside the tank is a pump, which send the water to the
landscape. The “pump no filter” system sends unfiltered greywater to
the landscape, typically using 1” pipe or tubing, whereas the “pump
with filter” first filters the greywater and sends it out through smaller
tubing, typically 3/4” mainline with 1/2” irrigation lines with ¼”
emitters.

2.8 WORKING MACHANISM

Greywater treatment shall consist of the following components:
A. Pre-treatment
B. Biological treatment
C. Filtration
D. Disinfection

In case the greywater is collected from kitchen sinks and

dishwashers, pre-treatment will also include an oil and
lubricant trap. An automatic oil and lubricant trap, where the
oil is skimmed out automatically using a timer or sensor
device, would be used.The thin screen would preferably be of
the self-cleaning type to restrict the dependence of the user
cleaning the screen, to maintain system performance.

Biological treatment will be included to remove organic matter and other pollutants in the greywater. The
most common types of biological treatment are biological aerated filter (BAF), rotating biological
contactor (RBC), and sequencing batch reactors (SBR).Filtration would be included to achieve the required
effluent turbidity. Many types of filters are commercially available and they are capable of effecting high
effluent quality standards on a small footprint.Disinfection is required as the final treatment step. Chlorine
is added to protect the water while in storage and the reticulation system – the only time any chemicals
are used throughout the treatment process.
3 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Greywater irrigation is an important component of reducing total residential water consumption.

Residential greywater systems can work synergistically with other water conservation strategies, such
as lawn removal, conversion of non-greywater irrigated landscapes to xeriscaping or native plantings,
rainwater harvesting and rain gardens, and installation of water-efficient fixtures and appliances. In
preparation for drought-related water shortages and mandates for reduced water withdrawals to help
restore our aquatic ecosystems, water districts can encourage deep savings by promoting a suite of
options to reduce water demand by increasing incentives to the homeowner as they incorporate all the
strategies.

Our findings suggest five policy approaches that can help agencies and other organizations realize
residential greywater systems’ water savings potential at scale:

 Simple laundry-to-landscape and branched drain systems should be promoted, as these types of
systems are more economical, have few problems, and result in high user satisfaction.
 Education programs should also include support for implementation, since most people installed
their systems within a year of learning about greywater. For example, installation workshops,
subsidized installations, or referrals to local installers could enable people to follow through with
their ideas for a home greywater systems.
 Use of plant-friendly products (without salt and boron) should be emphasized, to ensure good
quality greywater for irrigation.
4 BIBLIOGRAPHY
Alfiya, Y. D.-K. (2012). ) Potential impacts of on-site greywater reuse in landscape irrigation. Greywater -
what it is, how to treat it, how to use it.

Al-Hamaiedeh, H. a. ( 2010). Effect of treated grey water reuse in irrigation on soil and plants.
Desalination, .

Greywater.com. ( (2004)).

Jefferson, B. J. (2001). Treatment methods for grey water. london.

Winward, G. A.-W. (2007). A study of the microbial quality of grey water and an evaluation of treatment
technologies for reuse. Ecological Engineering (32) 187-197. .