Dealing with greywater

While your waterless compost toilet will eliminate blackwater discharge from your household, you will still need to deal with the greywater from your kitchen, laundry and bathroom.

Over 30 years, VIROtech has developed guidelines to help you build a simple and very inexpensive greywater disposal system which almost all local councils are now happy to approve.* Greywater systems are very site-specific and must be designed to suit your soil type, slope, proximity to water courses, etc but it could be as simple as some perferated poly pipe along a row of trees. Talk to us about a system for your place.
*Local council approval is required prior to installation.
The first rule is you DO NOT store greywater. Greywater should be dispersed into the soil immediately and can be used to irrigate trees and shrubs. We suggest you don't use it on vegetables.

​This diagram shows a typical design using standard plumbing fittings, but only appropriate if the block meets certain criteria regarding soils, slope, water courses, etc. VIROtech can help you adapt this simple design to your particular block.

Greywater Pre-Filter

Our greywater pre-filter (GWPF) is a passive device which has a coarse filter and contains loose plastic aggregate. The greywater passes through two coarse filter socks to remove solids such as lint and hair, then splashes its way down through the coarse plastic aggregate and is slightly aerated. Aerobic bacteria growing on the surface of the plastic aggregate removes many of the organic compounds. The greywater flows straight through the pre-filter and out to your land application area (LAA) - normally a sub-surface irrigation system. The 260lt capacity of the GWPF acts as a buffer to allow peak flows to be dispersed in the LAA.

The improved condition of the greywater will extend the life of your land application area - in other words you can dispose of your greywater in the same place for longer. The filter socks might need emptying once a year - a 5 minute job.

The GWPF may not be a requirement for council approval, but can sometimes convince an otherwise sceptical council officer that you have put some careful thought into planning your greywater disposal system - thus avoiding the need for a more expensive system and the associated running costs. If your local council officer is reluctant to approve your greywater system, VIROtech is happy to contact them on your behalf and explain the system in terms they are comfortable with.

​We're with you all the way.