Rainwater Harvesting
It is now viable to harvest rainwater for your whole household. This includes rainwater harvesting, storing and pumping rainwater for bathing, showering, toilet flushing, pool, laundry and irrigation. Rainwater harvesting together with other Water Rhapsody products can save up to 90% of your water bill.
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Tag Archives: Greywater re-use
Port Alfred set to run out of Water
The Ndlambe Municipality has intervened to stave off an impending water disaster in Port Alfred by drastically reducing the pressure in supply pipes. The decision was taken at a crisis meeting of the Ndlambe council yesterday morning, guided by municipal experts who have warned there is less than a month of drinking water left for the Sunshine Coast town, at the present rate of consumption. It was implemented immediately from yesterday midday, according to Communications manager Khulukile Mbolekwa. A team was also set to compiling a business plan to present to the government to support a plea for urgent funding for a new disalination plant. The de-pressurisation measure has been implemented equally, across poor and affluent areas, in Port Alfred and adjoining Nelson Mandela Township, Mbolewa said. The town is an uneven area, with valleys and hills, and it is possible residents in the high-lying areas will be more challenged for supply. They will get water, but supply will be slow. Port Alfred has only about seven days for drinking water left from its main source, the Sarel Hayward Dam, situated in the catchment above Bathurst. Besides this there is a holding dam that is still full, and it will give us the extra days for the … Continue reading
Posted in Grey Water Recycling, Rainwater Harvesting, Water Conservation
Tagged Bathurst, Dam Levels, Desalination Plant, drought disaster area, Greywater re-use, Port Alfred, Port Elizabeth, Rainwater Harvesting, Saving water, Water Restrictions, Water shortage, Water Stress, Water tanks, Water usage
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Interesting information re Grey Water Recycling
Grey water is the domestic or household wastewater that comes from the laundry and bathroom. When treated properly this is safe for external use. Toilet water on the other hand is termed ‘black water’ and cannot be reused. Kitchen water is technically grey water; it is treated as black water as it often contains food and grease. Water Rhapsody can help you recycle your household grey water for use on garden beds. It is an excellent way of saving water and saving money! Grey water is available every time you shower or wash with the average house creating up to 83,000 litres of grey water per year. Your grey water is suitable for irrigating most garden areas including ornamental beds and lawns. When watering native gardens remember to use a type of detergent that has low levels or has no phosphorus. Treatment before irrigation? Plants and soil, especially the upper, most biologically active layer of soil, are fantastically effective for wastewater treatment. Pretreatment is often presented as an essential element in a grey water system, when in fact it may be more pointless than treating your wastewater before sending it down the sewer. Plants and soil are fine with … Continue reading
Innovations needed as climate change sees water supplies dwindle – Andrew Muir
LARGELY due to climate change, South Africa is becoming drier from the west to the east. Climate modelling for our area shows that our annual precipitation (rainfall) will reduce by between 10% and 15% at current warming levels. As a result, along coastal areas fresh water has to be transported from further and further afield to meet the demand of ever-growing urban areas. This has become a worldwide challenge, and around the globe researchers and scientists have being looking at the use of technology to increase the supply of fresh water. Proposals include towing icebergs from Antarctica to water-stressed regions, cloud-seeding, desalination plants and extracting fresh water from deep submarine aquifers. A longstanding proposal beginning in the late 1970s has been to tow icebergs from Antarctica to supply fresh water to water-scarce regions of the world. One major challenge to this proposal has been how to tow the icebergs towards the equatorial zone without them melting before reaching their destination. Cloud-seeding is a process in which dry ice or potassium iodide particles are used to increase rainfall. Although there is little scientific evidence that this actually works, many communities faced with water shortages are willing to try it. There is … Continue reading
R750-Million for Desalination Plant not available
Two weeks ago I posted the report that our Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs (DWEA) Minister Buyelwa Sonjica has said that her department was forging ahead with plans to supply desalinated water to Cape Town, and furthermore extract water from the Table Mountain (TM) aquifer. This week it was reported in The Algoa Sun, that since Nelson Mandela Bay was declared a drought disaster area, very little has been done to pull the area out of the crisis. Municipal spokesman Kupido Baron says that since the declaration, the minutes of the meeting were send to the national and provincial disaster management centres. “We have received feedback from the national centre which has assessed the area and confirmed our situation,” said Baron. However, no funding has been made available to the municipality thus far. He said in the interim, funding would have to be allocated from the current municipal budget. According to Baron there are several facets of the disaster plan that have already been set in motion. They currently had four reputable companies working with the municipality to determine the environmental impact a deslination plant would have in and area.”An area close to the Swartkops power station on the Swartkops River has been identified … Continue reading
Posted in Grey Water Recycling, Rainwater Harvesting, Water Conservation, Weather
Tagged Dam Levels, drought disaster area, Eastern Cape, Greywater re-use, Port Elizabeth, Rain fall, Rainwater Harvesting, Saving water, Water Conservation, Water Restrictions, Water sources, Waterproblem
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Saving Water in industry
by Michelle Hardy-Berrington – Business Link Magazine Wastage of water by business is both antisocial in times of drought and a waste of money. Business Link has uncovered the following hints to help save water and improve the bottom line: Grey water Many business processes can make use of dirty or “grey” used water. An audit of “grey” water, and evaluating how this could be reused will often reveal significant areas for water conservation and cost savings. A variety of filtration methods is available to pre-treat grey water before it is recycled. Cleaning tools There are many common cleaning agents that do not require the use of buckets of water or hosepipes. Using scrapers, squeegees, brushes or hoses to clean an area can reduce the cleaning time and thus save water. Johan Erasmus from Auto Cleaning & Valet Services provides examples of water-free agents: “We use non water-based products such as paraffin, engine cleaners, solvents and foam products to clean the under-bodies and engines of vehicles,” says Erasmus. Sprays and jets can have a dramatic impact on how much water is used. New technology allows companies to use much lower pressures, which saves water overall. “When we use water in … Continue reading
Eco-friendly Laundry
In the process of going green, people need to be informed properly; about available products and which product will suit there needs best. Before making use of your greywater for irrigation purposes, how do you go about making sure that the water being used in the garden will not be harmful to any plants or your lawn? Many atimes, when installing our Garden Rhapsody System, the questions are being raised about what laundry detergent to use and where it is distributed? Even if laundry water is not uses onto your garden, shouldn’t it be our responsibility to switch to the greener option for a healthier lifestyle and making a difference to the environment…..? Why not use conventional laundry detergents? It is made from synthetic petrochemicals that are hard on the environment, and can leave chemical residues on clothing, so the ingredients constantly brush agains our skin, potentially causing rashes and other reactions. Bleaches are made from chlorine, a known carcinogen. Fabric softeners contains chemicals that can cause allergic reactions. Optical brighteners are chemicals that make your clothes appear brighter by leaving a residue that converts UV light into a blue-white light. They have nothing to do with how clean your clothes are, … Continue reading
Posted in Green, Grey Water Recycling, Water Conservation
Tagged biodegradable, eco-friendly, going green, Greywater re-use, safe water, Water Rhapsody
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