Water Butts

[Ric.ror]

I am thinking of fitting one to collect my waste water to use on the lawn
A) Are they easy to fit
B) Can I use all my water (such as washing machine and washing up water)

Many thanks

[johnk]

Not too difficult to fit. I wouldn't use much of your washing water.

[sunny-dave]

Usually easy enough to fit a diverter to a down spout to collect rain water.

Using 'grey' water is more problematic - unless you live on the side of a hill it isn't all that easy to divert your kitchen outflow pipes at a height that will fill a water butt. The other problem is that storing grey water in a butt for any length of time can be a bit scummy/smelly - although your lawn won't care about that :)

[rowanwitch]

best just to collect rain water and the odd bucket of bathwater chuck any other spare water straight onto the garden rather than storing it

[Ric.ror]

We are not getting that mush rain at the moment though
Could I fit it to collect my shower water in the morning and evening?

BTW thanks for the answers so far

[rowanwitch]

possibly if there is enough of a drop you could fit a diverter into the pipe

[jackthehat]

You ought to be able to divert all first floor grey-water to your water-butt. But you would have to find some sort of system that would allow you to 'switch back'. If you made a permanent alteration you will find yourself in an 'overflow' situation when the rains come.

Strictly speaking you need to fit a gulley under the water-butt to cope with any overflow situations.

[sunny-dave]

If you can identify the down pipe and it is separate from any 'foul pipe', then why not. You may get a bit of soap scum forming, but that shouldn't be too much of a problem.

I can remember syphoning bath water onto the veg plot through a hose-pipe during previous bans - which is *not* illegal. It's only using a hose connected to the mains which is banned. How often you have a bath with cold water is of course completely up to you ....

[rowanwitch]

The valve diverters revert to straight down through the pipe once there is back pressure so no problem there

[d9f1c7]

Do not collect "waste" water you'll end up with a butt of putrid slime, set it up for rain water. One decent shower and it's full.

[diddlydo]

Lawns never need watering anyway. They might go brown in a prolonged dry spell but they always recover.

[Ric.ror]

Thank you all for your answers