Grey Water "discouraged" but allowed

Just_Joe · Post by **Just_Joe** » Sun Jun 12, 2011 8:23 pm

Cut and paste from the burningman.com website:

For reasons of sanitation, and sheer volume, both Black Rock City and the BLM discourage scattering. However, if you're in a very small camp, with minimal dish and body washing water, you might choose to pour your grey water through a filter or sieve (better, a paint sieve or even pantyhose), disinfect the water, then, since it is treated, disperse it on your street to keep down dust. A watering can works nicely for sprinkling.

So, what's the deal? Is "NO GRAY WATER ON THE PLAYA" just an urban legend?

FIGJAM · Post by **FIGJAM** » Sun Jun 12, 2011 8:41 pm

It's a good rule of thumb that might keep people from just throwing anything on the playa.

motskyroonmatick · Post by **motskyroonmatick** » Sun Jun 12, 2011 8:59 pm

It is easier to pour grey water back in to a container for transport out of BRC than it is to filter, sanitize and sprinkle on the streets.
I've done it all. Mooped as a newbie. Set up failed evap ponds. Made and operated a very good evaporator that left me with less than a gallon of grey water at the end of the week. Recently I just pump the grey water in to a barrel and dump it in to the sewer when I get back home. This is the easiest least time consuming way to do it. YRMV.

Post by **Savannah** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 1:26 am

If you enter "grey water" into the Burning Man search, you determine that a camp of 5 or fewer may officially sprinkle a smallish, bleached-treated amount of grey water using a watering can in the street. But to evaporate first using the grey water evaporation pond searchable with the same words is recommended and actually works--so I do that too.

And that has been true for at least 3 years if not more.

(I print it out, in case anyone gets burnier than thou with me.)

Post by **Elderberry** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 8:53 am

I've seen lots of ideas for making an evap pond more efficient, most seemed either way too complicated (at least for my skill set) or just downright ugly ( for my aesthetic taste), like hanging wicking material over the pond, for example. We have, however, found a simple technique that actually works...a broom.

Most important is using relatively thick black plastic, available at Home Depot, then keeping a broom nearby. If you notice standing/pooling water during the course of the day, just take the broom and sweep it around. We make sure everyone in the camp is aware of this and is responsible for their share of sweeping. Since deploying this method, we have never had to carry out a drop of grey water.

Post by **Elderberry** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 8:55 am

Double post

Ugly Dougly · Post by **Ugly Dougly** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 9:10 am

"Disnfect" is a big word. It means dose it with enough chlorine to make it smell like a swimming pool, then scatter THAT on the playa.

phil · Post by **phil** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 9:32 am

Ugly Dougly wrote:"Disnfect" is a big word. It means dose it with enough chlorine to make it smell like a swimming pool, then scatter THAT on the playa.

Well, if you're disinfecting a swimming pool, yes. However, someone from BMOrg has posted instructions, which I posted to the "How do you disinfect Grey Water" thread here:

http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic. ... ght=bleach

One of my posts there quotes the official definition of grey water according to the BLM. There is no consensus on how grey water is defined, by the way. The definition depends on the agenda of the person doing the defining, so I'm happy the BLM finally issued their definition.

Finally, searching burningman.com for gray water gives different results than a search for grey water. There's no consensus on that spelling. :->

graidawg · Post by **graidawg** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 12:02 pm

phil wrote:
Ugly Dougly wrote:"Disnfect" is a big word. It means dose it with enough chlorine to make it smell like a swimming pool, then scatter THAT on the playa.
Well, if you're disinfecting a swimming pool, yes. However, someone from BMOrg has posted instructions, which I posted to the "How do you disinfect Grey Water" thread here:

http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic. ... ght=bleach

One of my posts there quotes the official definition of grey water according to the BLM. There is no consensus on how grey water is defined, by the way. The definition depends on the agenda of the person doing the defining, so I'm happy the BLM finally issued their definition.

Finally, searching burningman.com for gray water gives different results than a search for grey water. There's no consensus on that spelling. :->

so if we spell it GRAI water i can sprinkle MY water on the playa? just checking.

Ugly Dougly · Post by **Ugly Dougly** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 1:08 pm

phil wrote:
Ugly Dougly wrote:"Disnfect" is a big word. It means dose it with enough chlorine to make it smell like a swimming pool, then scatter THAT on the playa.
Well, if you're disinfecting a swimming pool, yes. However, someone from BMOrg has posted instructions, which I posted to the "How do you disinfect Grey Water" thread here:

http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic. ... ght=bleach

One of my posts there quotes the official definition of grey water according to the BLM. There is no consensus on how grey water is defined, by the way. The definition depends on the agenda of the person doing the defining, so I'm happy the BLM finally issued their definition.

Finally, searching burningman.com for gray water gives different results than a search for grey water. There's no consensus on that spelling. :->

Of course, I am playing devil's advocate, or simply being abstruse. But the truth is on the playa, all rules are subject to interpretation.

Sail Man · Post by **Sail Man** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 4:04 pm

graidawg wrote:
phil wrote:
Ugly Dougly wrote:"Disnfect" is a big word. It means dose it with enough chlorine to make it smell like a swimming pool, then scatter THAT on the playa.
Well, if you're disinfecting a swimming pool, yes. However, someone from BMOrg has posted instructions, which I posted to the "How do you disinfect Grey Water" thread here:

http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic. ... ght=bleach

One of my posts there quotes the official definition of grey water according to the BLM. There is no consensus on how grey water is defined, by the way. The definition depends on the agenda of the person doing the defining, so I'm happy the BLM finally issued their definition.

Finally, searching burningman.com for gray water gives different results than a search for grey water. There's no consensus on that spelling. :->
so if we spell it GRAI water i can sprinkle MY water on the playa? just checking.

Sure, if you want to be spanked with a rolled up newspaper and have your nose rubbed in it

Ugly Dougly · Post by **Ugly Dougly** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 5:30 pm

Grey Water is a great mixer in a number of fine concoctions.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 5:36 pm

Ugly Dougly wrote:Grey Water is a great mixer in a number of fine concoctions.

In fact, Dougly is a frequent drinker of Grey Water, and as you can easily see, it's made him a man of the world, suave, assured, popular and gracious.

capjbadger · Post by **capjbadger** » Tue Jun 14, 2011 11:24 am

theCryptofishist wrote:
Ugly Dougly wrote:Grey Water is a great mixer in a number of fine concoctions.
In fact, Dougly is a frequent drinker of Grey Water, and as you can easily see, it's made him a man of the world, suave, assured, popular and gracious.

"He doesn't always drink water, but when he does, he prefers Grey Water..."

-Badger

Post by **Savannah** » Tue Jun 14, 2011 11:51 am

Ugly Dougly · Post by **Ugly Dougly** » Tue Jun 14, 2011 1:35 pm

Stay thirsty, my friends.

capjbadger · Post by **capjbadger** » Tue Jun 14, 2011 1:41 pm

Ugly Dougly wrote:Stay thirsty, my friends.

Well at TTITD, that shouldn't be a problem.

"He is... the most interesting Eplayan in the world."

-Badger