Create an Oasis with Greywater: Choosing, Building, and Using Greywater Systems, Includes Branched Drains

by Art Ludwig

Create an Oasis describes how to quickly and easily choose, build, and use a simple greywater system. Some can be completed in an afternoon for under $30.It also provides complete instructions for more complex installations, how to deal with freezing, flooding, drought, failing septics, low perk soil, non-industrialized world conditions, coordinating a team of professionals to get optimum results on high-end projects, and “radical plumbing” that uses 90% less resources.“Greywater for dummies and greywater encyclopedia in one information goldmine.” —Dan Chiras, author, The New Ecological Home; The Solar House

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Sustainability, Reference, Green, Environment, Agriculture

144 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2000

About the author

Art Ludwig is an ecological systems designer with 35 years full-time experience in water, wastewater systems, energy, shelter and human powered transport. His specialty is complex, integrated "systems of systems." Art has studied and worked in 27 different countries, attaining fluency in 5 languages. He has consulted for the states of New York, California, and New Mexico on water reuse policy and building codes, and given dozens of lectures and workshops. He has developed numerous innovations which have been adopted worldwide, incorporated in building codes, etc., all of which he has published into the public domain. These include the Laundry to Landscape and Branched Drain greywater systems.

He designed his own education in Ecological Systems Design, graduating from UC Berkeley. At Berkeley, he developed the first cleaners specifically designed to be biocompatible with plants and soil, and founded a successful business to manufacture and distribute them. Art has authored numerous articles as well as the books "Water Storage" "Principles of Ecological Design," and "Create an Oasis with Greywater."

The past several years Art has dedicated approximately a thousand hours a year to public interest research and sustainability policy activism.

Reviews

[Erika RS · Rating 4 out of 5]

As is obvious from the title, this is a somewhat technical book that is of interest mainly to people who are want to set up residential greywater systems. I have a short series on my house blog about residential greywater (http://setsuzokuya.blogspot.com/searc...), so here I'll just say that this book is full of solid information. A must read for anyone who wants to take advantage of the large amount of fairly easy to process greywater produced in their home.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is perhaps the best (only?) greywater "manual" out there currently... there were a few "ah ha!" moments for me, and some great suggestions and how-to contained in the book. As a person who has basically zero construction and plumbing knowledge or experience, I still felt like there were some parts that I just didn't really grasp that were a little over my head. BUT, this is a reference that I'm sure I'll be checking out of the library again, and/or buying, as I continue to plan out how to actually implement a greywater system for my future eco dream home.

[Lidia · Rating 5 out of 5]

All in all, the book has a lot of information and is a great start for any greywater project. Wish there were more details in the book, though specifically on plumbing part. Still with a help from a greywater certified installer, we purchased the right parts (mainly a 3 valve switch) and have the plumbing ready for bath/shower water to go to a constructed wetland (yet to be constructed). This will get you most of the way there and at least you will know what questions to ask.

[Kelda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, I had no idea there were So Many graywater options, and how wide the spectrum is, from totally simple mulched basins to elaborate wetlands. Easy to get the gist, and I'll have to reread it again when I'm more familiar with more plumbing tools and techniques.

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

We were looking to add a grey water system to a outside kitchen and shed that we have and were looking for ideas on exactly what we needed to do it right. This book has lots of good information as well as design ideas and ideas for plantings. I'd recommended it to others looking to recycle their water for gardens and lawn.

[Sarhee]

The greywater sourcebook.

[Patricia]

Someday this book will come in handy. Ludwig doesn't mince words about bad ideas in greywater. He also tells you how to put the good ideas in place.

[Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

our copy is 2015. It is an informative and inspiring book about how to use something that would be considered waste [dishwater, bath, and laundry water] and making it into something that is helpful [keeping compost damp and cool, helping the worm population, and watering ornamentals and trees.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

very informative, but I think it needs some updates for new processes and such.

[Justin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very thorough. Author seems to know his stuff.

[Eli · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought a copy of this and it's companion book after returning the "lon overdue" copy I got from the library.

[Merry Love · Rating 3 out of 5]

As far as setting up a greywater system goes, this is known as THE book. And the information is good, don't get me wrong. But it makes something that can be rather simple sounds very complex. It can take quite a bit of muddling through to find the simple but if information you need.

Honestly, I would say the only helpful thing I used from the book that I couldn't find just as easily on the internet for free was a table to determine how many square feet of mulch bed you'd need (depending on how absorbent your soil is).

What the plan actually ended up looking like:
1. Dig a pit 8" deep to fill with bark mulch. Use table to determine how big. Place the dug up dirt around the edges to make a safety barrier that's a bit taller.

2. Use 1.5" or 2" pipe from the graywater source into the mulch pit. Keep it as straight as possible, try to avoid curves. A system can have Y branches. Ludwig recommends no more than 16 total.

3. The pipe needs to flow at atleast a 2% (or 1/4 inch) downgrade. Use a natural slope, or get a level that measures this.

4. The end of the pipe needs to free fall. We took a 5 gallon bucket with a lid, drilled some 1" holes in the bottom half so it looks like Swiss cheese, and put that in the mulch pit for the pipe to flow into. Tada a space for it to fall that's covered (a lot of state laws require this).

It took WAY too much puzzling and reading to figure that out, but the book did its job. He also has a WEBSITE. I would definitely recommend checking that out first.

[Junio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Greywater is a sort of Chimera, a created idea about what is water has "been used before" and what is clean. All water has been used before. That's the point of the hydrologic cycle. Greywater just gets used again by the person who used it last. It's been slightly downcycled, by contaminants such as food waste, soap, or even urine. Feces officially makes blackwater. It is necessary to avoid using this without a great deal of processing. Greywater makes so much sense because in traditional plumbing systems, the nearly clean water gets mixed with the most unsanitary water and sent to a sewage treatment plant to be dealt with, but the contamination is harder to reverse than it is to prevent. This book is a practical guide that shows you how.

This book was the bible of greywater for years. The new edition which I haven't read should be read instead if you have a choice, but this one is still a very good read. I don't expect there to be anything wrong with the information in this edition. The new edition adds a section on branched drain systems which used to be a separate book.

[Adam Shand · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful book. Very practical guidance on how to approach the building of grey water systems, helpful information to understand the pros and cons of each strategy and enough detail to feel like I could tackle some projects when the time is ripe.

I particularly loved the simplicity and practicality of his "radical plumbing" approach but sadly I doubt it's possible with local regulations.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Create an Oasis with Greywater combines all of the benefits of self-published books with very few of the flaws. I highly recommend it for anyone wanting to use water from their sink or bathtub to irrigate the garden.

[Gea · Rating 4 out of 5]

exactly as the title says - this is the handbook book for backyard greywater systems - from easy to complicated.

[Cheryl Devine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book. I will be implementing greywater in my new home

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

EVERYONE should read this, even if they live in an apartment.