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Julie2Oregon
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# Posted: 30 Aug 2015 05:23am
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So when I'm in Oregon in October, I really need to find a plumbing contractor to design my cabin basics but also help me brainstorm and implement some of the cistern and greywater ideas I have.
I have read the greywater and some of the plumbing codes and verified that Oregon allows homeowners to direct the shower and sink greywater to flush toilets. You don't need a greywater permit for that -- it's under the plumbing code and looks pretty straight-forward, with pipes, small holding tank, pump, diverter, etc. Yay!
So, here's the thing. With the composting toilet, the bathroom greywater being stored and used for flushing and being processed through the toilet, the only water appliance that will be going through the septic system will be the kitchen sink. And a washer later on.
So, any ideas on how my cabin should be plumbed? There will be a crawl space and I was considering the pillow water tank in the crawl space with a Shur-Flo pump to draw the water up to the sinks. (I'm still contemplating the hot shower options.) The greywater reuse scheme includes a pump that takes the used water from the shower/sink drains to the toilet for flushing when needed. So the crawl space will have the toilet composter, the pillow tank, and at least part of the greywater storage/pump for the toilet.
But what about the kitchen? Would that just go to a septic tank, or is there a better way? Perhaps a greywater filter first and then to a leach field or something? I'd like to use some of the greywater to irrigate the landscaping around the cabin but I don't think the kitchen greywater is reusable as is. As for the composting toilet, the regs say that I CAN use the compost from it to fertilize trees and shrubs if it's buried one foot below the surface.
Anyhoo, my biggest concerns are water conservation, protecting the pipes and such from freezing and the elements, reuse, and efficiency. My small use doesn't require a whole house greywater permit from the state -- it seems like this is a plumbing (and maybe septic) design thing. Is it?
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groingo
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# Posted: 30 Aug 2015 10:17am
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Wether this is legal or not in your area, the system I used was very simple and worked well without any odor or side effects.
I simply ran all sink, shower and washing machine waste out to a garden area offset from the house, this garden had ferns and non edible plants which grew year round and grew at twice the normal rate and seem to do a good job of breaking things down.
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creeky
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# Posted: 30 Aug 2015 11:16am
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i have two systems. one for the kitchen. one for the washroom. i do like groingo.
the kitchen, 'cause of the heavier nutrient load off the dishwasher and stuff that gets rinsed down the sink. i put through a straw bale prefilter. it works really well. no smell. nothing. it's a new system. only in place for 8 months now. i'm just thinking it's time to change up some of the straw.
the washroom, with shower and laundry, i run into a bush/tree line. I can't see any difference from the rest of the hedge row. and you never smell anything or anything like that. four years with no noticeable effect.
what kind of composting toilet system are you planning to use? do you need the complexity of greywater recycling? I mean if you're using 1-2 quarts of water per day for the toilet (my approximate use) doesn't seem worth the hassle of filtering, storing and pumping. the water from one shower would give a week of flushing. and grey water goes stale fast. ie. becomes black water.
i don't know your water situation. but it might be better to put the shower, laundry, toilet on a rainwater system (more or less what I've done) and run the greywater back out to some trees/bushes.
.02
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Julie2Oregon
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# Posted: 31 Aug 2015 01:14am - Edited by: Julie2Oregon
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Good point, guys. I'd love to simply run it off to a separate area and/or use it for landscaping but there are codes.
I haven't chosen my compost toilet yet and I've actually been more concerned with the electric usage on them than the water usage since I was going to use greywater for flushing, lol. (I want a no electric unit.)
Not sure how much water it's going to use but I think it will be more like 1-2 gallons per day for just me. (I have Crohn's Disease, plus I'm a girl!) More if I have company.
I don't think that diverting unfiltered greywater to my landscaping will fly for inspectors. Actually, let me rephrase that. I need something that will pass muster with inspectors so that I can later use the greywater with abandon for my landscaping!  And treat/store it for use in case of fire, too! They don't let you store even filtered greywater AT ALL. Right. With all of the wildfires in the PNW?
Creeky, I am going to do rainwater collection in barrels and add that water to the cistern. Snow collection, too, if there is enough. Rain in this area isn't regular enough to set up a section of the house to only use that. But any ideas on maybe some sort of diverter valve system, maybe?
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groingo
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# Posted: 31 Aug 2015 10:04am - Edited by: groingo
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Without knowing more specifics on state, county, wether you are in city limits,size of house to be built etc., it's a lot of guesswork.
I to am in Washington State, Kitsap County to be more precise, all I can say is get either a good experienced contractor or read up on local building codes and ask a lot of questions before starting as there are a lot of grey areas, and state, county and Federal overlap of regulations regarding health issues which will be your area of focus.
Go in armed with knowledge is your best weapon or again a good experienced contractor.
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Julie2Oregon
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# Posted: 31 Aug 2015 04:13pm
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Oregon, Klamath County. Def not in city limits, lol. On a mountain in an unincorporated area. But there will be inspections by the county folks. The county seat, Klamath Falls, is small enough that I think I would be well-served by keeping my ear to the pavement, listening in to diner and hardware store conversations to get an idea of who the contractors are that the inspectors seem to like. I'd think they give them the benefit of the doubt.
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silverwaterlady
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# Posted: 31 Aug 2015 05:56pm
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Our cabin is in a remote area. I hire/find the locals to do the work that has to be done. They have been around for a long time. They know the building inspectors etc.. They know what is legal and have worked on other cabins and houses. They know the terrain,weather, what will work and what won't. The best thing you can do is to just go there and talk to them.
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Julie2Oregon
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# Posted: 31 Aug 2015 11:02pm
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Yes, that is best. It's just difficult when you live 1,700 miles away and are trying to plan, budget, and maximize time in a short, actual visit. I haven't had luck finding plumbing contractors there via the Internet so I can make contact by phone initially and set up appointments.
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groingo
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# Posted: 1 Sep 2015 10:21am
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Smartest thing I did before I even bought my property was to talk to neighbors, that alone saved me a lot of grief and money,do the same for contractors, the internet lacks the personal touch.
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NorthRick
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# Posted: 1 Sep 2015 01:25pm
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Some of the best contractors aren't on the internet. In fact they can be hard to find at all. Why? Because they get all the work they can handle by word of mouth.
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silverwaterlady
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# Posted: 1 Sep 2015 01:39pm - Edited by: silverwaterlady
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That is how we hired everyone. Word of mouth from family and friends or my Husband knew them forever.
Starting with the man that put our road in. He's a farmer with a bulldozer and a tractor. He cleared the lot for our cabin, dug a trench for drainage and put gravel down and will doze the turn around that is full of stumps and not level and add gravel.
The man that built our cabin is a good friend of our nephew. He built two other log cabins before ours. We saw him a few weeks ago in town doing some stone work. We had a nice visit.
The lady at the building department knows everyone in our family.
We were lucky because our cabin location is back home for my Husband.
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