SA Affordable Housing September - October 2016 // Issue: 60 | Page 22

FEATURE

An example of how the system, originally designed for low-cost government housing, can be adapted to suit any suburban
homeowner’s needs.

Another concern for homeowners is water availability.
South Africa is a semi-arid country, and one of the driest in
the world. Add that to failing infrastructure and a
burgeoning population, and interruptions in our municipal
water supplies are inevitable.
Many homeowners unwittingly use potable water to
satisfy all of their water needs, including washing dishes
and flushing toilets. Potable water is a valuable resource
that must be conserved where possible and, if it can be
done in a cost-effective way, so much the better.

WHAT IS GREYWATER?
Greywater or sullage is all wastewater generated in
households or office buildings from streams without faecal
contamination such as all streams except for the
wastewater from toilets. Sources of greywater include
sinks, showers, baths, clothes washing machines and dish
washers. Because greywater contains fewer pathogens
than domestic wastewater, it is safer to handle and easier
to treat and reuse onsite for toilet flushing, landscape or
crop irrigation.
By using harvested greywater for purposes that don’t
require treated drinking water, we reduce the demand on
municipal water supplies and increase the sustainability of
drinking water supplies.

20

SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2016

AFFORDABLE
SA HOUSING

You will also help your clients save on water costs. A
greywater recycling system does not require any electrical
supply and, after the initial payment, there are no ongoing
costs, which is a bonus for any homeowner.
There are many companies in South Africa and
internationally that provide financially-viable, sustainable,
eco-friendly solutions for the many South Africans who
live in rural areas with limited water supply. One such
company is plumbing giant Atlas Plastics, which has been
working on the Wash-o-Toi for over seven years. Atlas
Plastics partnered with Danie Groenewald, the device’s
inventor, in an effort to bring this unique water-saving
device to the people who need it most. It is also for sale to
the average homeowner and contractor and will help
those homeowners save money and water.

THE WASH-O-TOI
Building contractor Danie Groenewald has spent decades
working in the townships of North West and knows their
congested, dusty streets like the back of his weathered
hand. It was here that he came up with a simple watersaving device, arising from the notion that using potable
water for toilets is not sustainable.
See page 22 for more.