How to Recycle Grey Water at Home

From 2007 to 2009, the state of California experienced drought conditions and, as a result, tight state restrictions on water generally prevailed. As California recovers from that drought, new ways to cut back water usage abound with water increasingly seen as a precious resource. One way to reduce your consumption of water whether you live in California or elsewhere in the country is to recycle gray water, also spelled grey water. Gray water is the water you create when you wash clothes or vegetables, take showers or brush your teeth. Because gray water is only slightly contaminated, you can reuse it.

• 1

  Place a bucket or basin underneath your window-mounted air conditioning unit. Reuse the water to wash your windows or floors or clean other items around your house.

• 2

  Place a bucket in the shower before you take a shower. The bucket will collect all the cold water that normally goes down the drain as you wait for it to heat up. Remove the bucket once you get in the shower. Save the water for your lawn and garden.

• 3

  Connect the hose from your washing machine to the hose connect on a water drum. You might need an extension hose to do this, depending on the length of your washing machine hose. When you do a load of laundry, you can collect the runoff gray water in the drum and use it for your garden or for cleaning or other uses around the house.

• 4

  Place a bucket underneath the pipe under your kitchen sink. Loosen the p-trap under your kitchen sink by twisting it to the side. Don't let it drain completely as keeping some water in there prevents sewer gases from floating up the pipe and into your kitchen. Wrap a plastic bag around the pipe and hold it in place with a rubber band. Use the water you collect daily to water your lawn and plants.