Greywater Solutions

First off, let's define greywater for those of you who may be unfamiliar with the term.

"Greywater is wastewater generated from domestic activities such as laundry, dishwashing, and bathing, which can be recycled on-site for uses such as landscape irrigation and constructed wetlands. Greywater differs from water from the toilets which is designated sewage or blackwater to indicate it contains human waste."

Thank you, Wikipedia.  Green and sustainable houses can make great use of greywater, but these systems are typically much easier to install as a house is being built.  Adding the plumbing necessary for greywater systems that take full advantage of shower, laundry, and dishwashing water is difficult once the house is already established. 

There are, though, some other ways to make use of greywater.  One of those ways is with the AQUS.  This very cool system is affordable at just $200 and supposedly easy to install.  The system hides under your sink and reroutes the water that goes down the sink to the toilet.  Once the water reaches the toilet and is flushed, it leaves the house through your existing plumbing system.  This is a great option for those who'd like to make better use of greywater but aren't planning a new build anytime soon.

We've got the AQUS on a wishlist but haven't yet tried it out ourselves.  We are, however, taking advantage of greywater in one of the easiest ways possible. 

See the grey bucket? 

I realize that this solution isn't for everyone.  Not everyone could tolerate a bucket on the floor, but it really doesn't bother me and just sits right next to the trash and recycling cans.  Anytime I have extra water involved with dishwashing or the kids didn't drink all their water at dinner, etc., I just pour the water into the bucket.  When the time comes, I then tote the bucket outside and use it to water all my potted plants on the front and back porches.  Blossom, our inside cat, is a fan, too.  She thinks it's her very own giant water bowl. :)