Onsite Gray Water Treatment System

Nexus eWater has developed a gray water treatment system that recycles the home's gray water and  could save 72% of daily water use

KB Home, one of the state’s largest builders, showed off a new recycling system in San Diego that eliminates the need for much of the drinking water now used to quench thirsty landscapes. It would drop overall water use by as much as 72 percent. Water officials say it is the first time such a system is being installed in a housing subdivision.

The $10,000 system comes at a time when California is searching for ways to reduce water use because of severe drought. It is a standard feature in KB Home’s 52-home Sea Cliff project and routes so-called “gray water” from showers, bathtubs, washing machines and bathroom sinks through filters that remove most solids and impurities, and makes the water ready for use in each home’s landscaping.

The project, which held its grand opening over the weekend, is located north of state Route 56 in the northern San Diego city neighborhood of Rancho Penasquitos. Homes range from $890,000 to just over $1 million on floor plans of 2,892 to 3,934 square feet. Sales agent Sandro Di Nunzio said the recycling system caught the buyers’ attention.

KB obtained the system from Nexus eWater, founded in Australia five years ago and recently relocated to California.

“We’re the only certified system and this is the only place (it’s been installed),” said Scott Isaksen, Nexus’ director of engineering and technical services.

The National Sanitary Foundation, based in Ann Arbor, Mich., has certified the system as the only one currently available nationally for this sort of use. Its NSF350 standard was added to the California plumbing code in its most recent edition.

At a tour Monday, Nexus and KB officials showed how the system works.

Used water is routed from drains and pipes to a 50-gallon underground tank in the side yard. It then runs through a 10-gallon-per-hour filtering system that removes virtually all suspended solids, bacteria and impurities and ends up in a 200-gallon underground tank that feeds the home’s landscaping irrigation system.

Ralph Petroff, founder and chairman of Nexus eWater stressed that the water does not meet state drinking standards and should not be consumed.

A monitoring system connected by cell phone alerts Nexus offices if there is a problem that technicians can be dispatched to fix.

Source: The San Diego Union-Tribune

Read More Related Content On This Topic - Click Here

Media

Taxonomy

• Water Reuse & Recycling
• Waste Water Treatments
• Technology