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R/O waste back into rainwater tank

J

JustClean

Active member
I put my R/O waste water back into my rainwater tank. Cost me only a few bucks for a hose that goes into the rainwater down pipe.
 
It's cost some of us more to set it up, but the wastewater from the RO can be pumped to the rest of the equipment and used.
 
I bought a 'little giant' sump pump. It has a low level switch so it won't burn up and a second float that goes in the IBA feed tank. Will set float so it pumps prior to city water, but so city water can supplement as necessary.

Got the tank for free.

Total cost so far : under $300. Still waiting on pump to arrive so I can set this up and begin saving! Seems like every time I look my RO discharge is flowing down the drain.

One operator I know claims this same setup cut their water/sewer bill by 40%!!!!
 
This money saver has always been a no brainer. You pay the city sewer fees on all in coming water ,then pay to soften it , then pay to heat it (if you use tempered water in your RO unit) ,then run it to the RO system only to dump the waste water in the drain.
 
lag said:
This money saver has always been a no brainer. You pay the city sewer fees on all in coming water ,then pay to soften it , then pay to heat it (if you use tempered water in your RO unit) ,then run it to the RO system only to dump the waste water in the drain.
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Exactly, the RO reject is still soft, it only has a higher TDS than your regular softened water. It's perfectly good for rinsing, especially with a touchless automatic.
 
Yes, and it's even more of a no-brainer for those who look at this website, because there are even photos available of units operating in place!

However, I bet there are still alot of washes with SFR who are not recovering the RO Reject. Heck, I'm still not but have been intending to for months! I'm very close, though.:D
 
Bubbles Galore said:
How would I be able to tell where my SFR water is going?
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It depends on where you tell it to go. :)

My preferred method is to use a pump/bladder tank (Harbor Freight has a nice unit with a stainless pump, bladder and switch for under $200) and pump it where it can be used. I know someone who has it going to the cold water line feeding the SS pumps, with the pump set at 60 and a low-water switch to "kill" the pump if the tank runs out. On the original line he has a check valve and a regulator set at 30 PSI, so if the tank runs out the city water simply takes over.

I use gravity to allow the water to run through a second float valve in the auto tank. It uses about 10 gallons of the reject water per wash. There's a fitting near the top of the tank to allow it to flow to the drain if it overflows, but that has only happened once, when the auto was down due to a broken hose that I couldn't get on a Sunday.
 
I will have to check into that. I definitely don't want to be tossing any water down the drain, I do enough of that in the winter.
 
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My basic blueprint:

1. Install 275 gallon 'tote' plastic holding tank.

2. re-route RO reject into holding tank.

3. install vented overflow 't' connector near top of tank. route hose to where RO reject used to go. ie; bay floor.

4. Install 'little giant' sump pump into tank. pump has low level float switch so it won't run dry if RO reject is in short supply.

5. move existing float and city water valve LOWER in IBA feed tank.

6. Install float for RO reject pump into IBA feed tank so as to come on prior to city water.
 
The attendant said:
This is some great info.Does anyone have a "blueprint" of there system they would like to share ?
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1. Install some sort of overhead support system (like a heavy duty shelf)

2. Clean 2 or 3 old 55 gallon drums and put on side on your overhead support

3. Plumb all drums together using opening on drums closest to floor

4. Make sure caps are on in openings closest to ceiling except one which needs an overflow hose connected to a drain

5. Drill a hose in top of one drum and run waste hose from spot free to the new hole

6. Connect bottom plumbing to rinse tank via a $10-$20 low pressure float valve. You can get one from Kleen-Rite or your local cattle supply store (ask for a valve to control water for cattle in a water trough)

7. Your done
 
I agree that a gravity system would be great. However, I didn't have clearance for one so I use a pump system.
 
Well, my system is in place and operational!

It's a simple system and was very inexpensive.

Now I will test it on busy days to see how well the r/o reject keeps up with demand, how full the reject tank gets, etc.:):D:o
 
Waxman said:
Well, my system is in place and operational!

It's a simple system and was very inexpensive.

Now I will test it on busy days to see how well the r/o reject keeps up with demand, how full the reject tank gets, etc.:):D:o
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Wax... congrats on getting it up and running. On most days our tank never gets over half full ,and is used quickly. On very busy days it is always on the low side. Good luck
 
That's what I'm discovering; overnite the tank fills to about 100 gallons and is quickly used within the first couple washes.

I'd rather be using all the reject than overflowing.

So far so good!

Still curious about busier days where both SS bays and IBA are using spot free.
 
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