Osmosis filters and septic systems

Over the next few months we're building a new house in a rural area on

25 acres. The 410 foot well is terrific, but the water has a slight salty taste which apparently is sodium, so we'll have an undersink reverse osmosis filter for drinking/cooking water, with a sideline running over to the water dispenser/icemaker in the fridge.

My problem is that RO filters produce about 8 parts waste water for every 1 part of drinking water. This water is normally routed out to the drain pipe, which in our case would go to the septic tank. This is a significant amount of water; for every cup of water you drink from the RO filter faucet, 8 cups goes down the drain.

Is there SOME way to reroute this RO waste water away from the septic system? I hate to think of it all going in there. I guess you could just run a small pvc pipe from under the sink to the yard somewhere, but that seems kind of ugly-looking. We don't want it going in right next to the house because it could cause eventual problems with the foundation.

Please reply to the newsgroup.

Thanks!

Ron M.

Reply to
bstevens
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Since it's nothing but clean water with a few more impurities what's the worry? it's not going to clog anything, might be able to water a garden with it.

Reply to
beecrofter

First thing is to figure out what the volume you're going to be dealing with. If it's just drinking and cooking water, chances are that the extra water going into the septic system isn't going to be worth worrying about. If it is, you might consider routing the outlet line so it ends up being used to flush toilets -- it would take a little bit of "Amish Engineering" but it would probably be fun, too.

Reply to
Elmo

Guess I'd be inclined to see how it effects septic. With a good perc it should not be a problem. Also depends on your household. When I had a house full of kids with regular flush toilets, I had to have a 2nd drain field installed but now with just mom and I there is no problem.

Also, have you had water tested for best remediation.

Reply to
Frank

Most fridge mfgrs say not to use RO water for their dispensers or ice makers. Check with yours b/4 making that connection.

As for the waste water, if you really want to put it to good use and can afford the up-front investment, do some research on grey-water recovery systems. Those systems recover shower water and dishwasher water and use it for flushing toilets. You could just add your RO wastewater to that system.

Reply to
Rick-Meister

Ron, you use more mater shaving and brushing your teeth each morning than the grey water an RO produces all day.

This is true. The typical RO produces about four times the volume in grey water but is capable of producing only about three gallons of filtered water every 24 hours at the most, but the typical household will only use like a 1 1/2 gallons of filtered water a day... so what are we talking about here, perhaps 6 gallons of grey water a day/or like three water-saver toilet flushes. Don't worry about it. If your septic can't handle six extra gallons of plain water a day then you're gonna be in trouble anyway... don't ever have company. On a good beer day most guys can easy pee a couple-three gallons. And that beer represents that much less RO water they'll drink

It's pretty simple to bury a length or two of 1" PVC pipe running from the foundation to a tree or flower bed.. or to wherever the water from your downspouts from the roof let go.... do yoose have any idea how many gallons come off the average roof per hour during just an ordinary light rain... don't lose any sleep over a few dribbles of RO grey water.

Reply to
Sheldon

Nonsense.

Um, it's an under-sink RO... it's capable of producing at the very most 12 gallons of grey water in 24 hours but in normal usage will probably only produce 6 gallons of grey water a day... research/up front investment... so for two buckets of water you're gonna build a friggin' recovery system, does NASA know about this, does your mommy know she wasted a lotta money attempting to educate you. DUH

Reply to
Sheldon

Don't put it under the sink, put it in the basement under the sink. Since they are always running they make the pipes sweat a lot especially in the summer. It will begin stinking up the under sink with mold. Plus it's a pain in the butt to change the filters under the sink and much easier standing on a stool in the basement. Plus you may be able to drain the waste water out the cellar drain. Otherwise that amount of water will just flow through your septic system without any problems. The septic tank only holds solid waste, water flows on through and back into the ground.

Reply to
Claude Hopper

That would be news to most fridge manufacturers, some of which also make RO systems the include instructions for feeding refrigerator dispenser / ice maker connections.

Reply to
Pete C.

All true but this may come as a surprise, not everyone has a basement. In fact where people need ROs the most (rural areas) is where most folks don't have basements.

Reply to
Sheldon

Have you checked w/county/state? Many areas have outlawed the old fashioned septic tank/leach field in favor of aeration systems. I built in rural area

15 years ago and septics were forbidden then. The water from the system is chorine treated and animals and birds enjoy it. County checks on a random basis for purity of discharge.
Reply to
Twice Retired

Who gives a rat's b-hind... no under sink sized RO is capable of producing more than a dozen gallons of grey water, maximum... if your septic can't handle an extra dozen gallons of water a day then you better ban bathing. There are indeed RO systems that are used commercially that can process more water but no one is going to need such a system for the quantity of filtered water consumed at home.

I've had an RO system for years, it's very rare that I use more than 2 gallons of RO filtered water a day, most days nearer a gallon... each gallon of RO filtered water produces four gallons of grey water.... I dump more than that into my septic every day all summer just from two dehumidifiers. I suppose I could haul that water out into the yard but what can I say, with some things I'm lazy, the kitchen sink is closer and I don't like to make it a habit of opening the door during A/C season. Btw, water in of itself doesn't harm or place any undue load on septic systems, only solids and chemical laden water does, detergents and soaps from washing clothes, dishes, bathing is what taxes septics... in fact running lots of plain water into a septic system is the best way to keep it healthy... RO and dehumidifier grey water is plain water, it can't harm your septic, it's actually medicine for your septic, it helps dilute and flush out the solids and chemicals. Folks who are stingy with how much plain water they put into septics are those who have septic problems most often.

Seems many of yoose have no idea how little water is associated with an RO filter. I use mine first thing each morning to brew a pot of coffee, I refill like two ice cube trays each day, and I drink maybe two liters a day... I use some small amount for cooking too, but only if it becomes part of the dish like with rice, not for draining like with pasta.

No undersink RO filter produces enough water to have any effect whatsoever on a septic system... most folks pee more.

The real reason folks are averse to installing an RO is because they are too cheap to spend a couple hundred bucks to buy the equipment and no other reason whatsover.... tell their wives ugh, uses too much water, when in fact it cuts into their boozing bucks. Now if only someone can design an RO where you pump in water and out comes Budweiser...

Reply to
Sheldon

It's not really grey water It just has a higher concentration of the impurities you are filtering out. You could drink it, spread it on your lawn or wash your car or laundry with it. It's clear, clean water. You could also boil and distill it.

Reply to
Claude Hopper

It certainly is grey water... sure you can use it to water plants, even to hose off a filthy car (but it will spot badly) and you'd need to save a bunch over a long period to accumulate a volume worth teh effort. But it's not advised to drink the grey water from RO filters, besides tasting rather foul that water is typically bacteria laden... RO filters have a lifespan of about ten years... the input side of the membrane becomes rather filthy.

You can also distill your piss... do you have any idea what it would cost in energy consumption... you are truly brain dead.

Reply to
Sheldon

Claude,

You've probably noticed that you're arguing with the group's village idiot. You might as well give it up, because as with all similar people, he has no concept of being wrong, the usual condition.

John

-- John De Armond See my website for my current email address

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Reply to
Neon John

Except in this case where despite his usual idiocy and his ranting style, what he is saying is indeed correct. An under counter RO system, even if you used it to it's maximum of ~10gal/day of filtered water represents an absolutely negligible gray water load on a septic system. And yes, it is technically gray water since it is a waste product of filtration, even if it may still meet drinking water standards.

Reply to
Pete C.

In reality, it's a totally insignificant amount of water, but there are kits for redirecting the waste water into your hot water system.

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It's good for the septic system.

Reply to
SMS

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I used an under counter RO setup when I was on crappy city water and the reject:product ratio is more like 3:1, not 8:1 With a 10 gal/day system, that a worst case of a whopping 30 gallons of reject water added to a

1,000 gallon or larger septic tank, both insignificant and also good for the septic system. Under real world filtered water usage it would probably be more like 10 gallons of reject water per day.
Reply to
Pete C.

All true, like a few terlit flushes... the typical residential RO unit can't produce more than like five gallons filtered water in 24 hours... 15 gallons grey water is a lot... most days, realistically, it'll process about half that. People simply don't consume nearly as much water as they think,

Reply to
Sheldon

Excess water is NOT good for a septic system. Many rural people have dry well disposal of gray water to keep it out of the septic system.

Everything that goes into a septic tank has to sit there until it is thoroughly digested or settles out. That process can take days. Any solids that go into the drain field will eventually plug the drain field, requiring expensive system replacement.

Reply to
Larry Caldwell

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