Anyone know what the maximum temperature water garden plants can
tolerate before being killed by too hot a recycled water from a
clothes washer ???

I want to recycle wash water but only on warm/cold and cold/cold
cycles.... since I'd use an automatic sump pump the water will be
discharged onto the gardens immediately.

thank you.

harry long wrote:

Anyone know what the maximum temperature water garden plants can
tolerate before being killed by too hot a recycled water from a
clothes washer ???

The water coming out of a hose that's been lying in the sun
doesn't kill them, so washing machine leftovers (at 110F?) should
be no problem.

I want to recycle wash water but only on warm/cold and cold/cold
cycles.... since I'd use an automatic sump pump the water will be
discharged onto the gardens immediately.




Tsu

--
To doubt everything or to believe everything
are two equally convenient solutions; both
dispense with the necessity of reflection.
- Jules Henri Poincaré

On Fri, 18 Apr 2003 05:05:35 -0400, harry long wrote:

Anyone know what the maximum temperature water garden plants can
tolerate before being killed by too hot a recycled water from a
clothes washer ???

I want to recycle wash water but only on warm/cold and cold/cold
cycles.... since I'd use an automatic sump pump the water will be
discharged onto the gardens immediately.

thank you.

I presume you have a set-up for such a procedure?

On Fri, 18 Apr 2003 04:18:35 -0700, Tsu Dho Nimh wrote:


The water coming out of a hose that's been lying in the sun doesn't kill
them, so washing machine leftovers (at 110F?) should be no problem.


This is not true. I've killed plenty of plants with hot hose water.
Btw, average household water temps are 120 to 130... which seems to hot
for plants.

--
http://yard-works.netfirms.com

On Fri, 18 Apr 2003 05:05:35 -0400, harry long wrote:

Anyone know what the maximum temperature water garden plants can tolerate
before being killed by too hot a recycled water from a clothes washer ???

I want to recycle wash water but only on warm/cold and cold/cold
cycles.... since I'd use an automatic sump pump the water will be
discharged onto the gardens immediately.

thank you.

I have a friend who uses recycled water out of the bath tub and his
experience is this...
The water can be too hot. He also found issues with the soaps ect. The fix
was to install a 50 gallon drum ( his is burried almost all the way in the
ground ) where the water can settle and cool. This way all the soaps ect,
seem to settle to the bottom and he pumps from the top. Then he clean the
drum once in a while.
Hope that helps...........
--
http://yard-works.netfirms.com

On Fri, 18 Apr 2003 05:05:35 -0400, harry long wrote:

Anyone know what the maximum temperature water garden plants can
tolerate before being killed by too hot a recycled water from a
clothes washer ???

I want to recycle wash water but only on warm/cold and cold/cold
cycles.... since I'd use an automatic sump pump the water will be
discharged onto the gardens immediately.

This is an interesting question. Is it feasible to measure the
temperature of the water you plan to reuse? In spite of another
poster's declaration that he/she used water from a sun-heated hose
with no problem, that always seems too hot (on my hand), so I direct
the hose away from my flowers & veg until it's cooled a bit.

Another consideration for measuring temperature on discharge is that,
whiile the washer might be fed with really hot water directly from the
heater, surely it cools down a bit as it sloshes around in a cold
metal tub with the laundry. This sounds like excellent material for
a paper of some sort. :-)

Everyone who has answered this question seems to ignor that the original
poster said that the discharged water would be from either the warm/cold or
cold/cold washing cycles. Maybe the responders don't do laundry. Cold/cold
means cold wash and cold rinse. That obviously should not be too hot.
Warm/cold means warm wash and cold rinse. So the only issue is the warm
water. Warm wash water probably less than 100 degrees. I doubt very much
that it would be too warm to harm the plants in the garden. The poster
didn't ask about the soap, but that would really be my question.

--
Compostman
Washington, DC
Zone 7
"Frogleg" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 18 Apr 2003 05:05:35 -0400, harry long wrote:

Anyone know what the maximum temperature water garden plants can
tolerate before being killed by too hot a recycled water from a
clothes washer ???

I want to recycle wash water but only on warm/cold and cold/cold
cycles.... since I'd use an automatic sump pump the water will be
discharged onto the gardens immediately.

This is an interesting question. Is it feasible to measure the
temperature of the water you plan to reuse? In spite of another
poster's declaration that he/she used water from a sun-heated hose
with no problem, that always seems too hot (on my hand), so I direct
the hose away from my flowers & veg until it's cooled a bit.

Another consideration for measuring temperature on discharge is that,
whiile the washer might be fed with really hot water directly from the
heater, surely it cools down a bit as it sloshes around in a cold
metal tub with the laundry. This sounds like excellent material for
a paper of some sort. :-)

Compostman wrote:
Everyone who has answered this question seems to ignor that the
original
poster said that the discharged water would be from either the
warm/cold or
cold/cold washing cycles. Maybe the responders don't do laundry.
Cold/cold
means cold wash and cold rinse. That obviously should not be too hot.
Warm/cold means warm wash and cold rinse. So the only issue is the
warm
water. Warm wash water probably less than 100 degrees. I doubt very
much
that it would be too warm to harm the plants in the garden. The
poster
didn't ask about the soap, but that would really be my question.

When someone asks the question, "If I hit my head repeatedly with a
hammer, will the blood splatter on the wall" is going to generate a lot
of responses on how hitting their head with a hammer may cause brain
damage or death, and few people who even bother to address how far the
blood would splatter.

Likewise when someone asks about the water temperature effect on their
garden when using discharge from their laundry is likely to get far more
responses about why the soap in the water may be a far bigger issue than
the temperature of the water.

If we answered just the question about the blood, the guy with the
hammer might think that it's a good idea to hit his head with a hammer.
If we answered just the question about the water temperature, the guy
wanting to water his garden with water polluted with phosphate and
bleach might think it's a good idea.

There are times that the original poster's question is based on such a
flawed concept that the concept needs to be addressed far more than the
specific question asked. This was one of those questions.

--
Warren H.

==========
Disclaimer: My views reflect those of myself, and not my
employer, my friends, nor (as she often tells me) my wife.
Any resemblance to the views of anybody living or dead is
coincidental. No animals were hurt in the writing of this
response -- unless you count my dog who desperately wants
to go outside now.

Frogleg wrote:

snip
Another consideration for measuring temperature on discharge is that,
whiile the washer might be fed with really hot water directly from the
heater, surely it cools down a bit as it sloshes around in a cold
metal tub with the laundry. This sounds like excellent material for
a paper of some sort. :-)

FWIW, the state of NM has just passed legislation allowing the use of 'grey'
water for lawns, plants etc. We can use water from the clothes washer but NOT
water from the bath or sink.

--
John S. DeBoo

On Sun, 20 Apr 2003 18:56:29 -0600, "John S. DeBoo"
wrote:

FWIW, the state of NM has just passed legislation allowing the use of 'grey'
water for lawns, plants etc. We can use water from the clothes washer but NOT
water from the bath or sink.

How can they tell? And why one and not the other? Enquiring minds,
etc.

FWIW, the state of NM has just passed legislation allowing the use of 'grey'
water for lawns, plants etc. We can use water from the clothes washer but
NOT
water from the bath or sink.

why one and not the other?

Here in Colorado we are not allowed to use grey water from the sink because of
the high concentration of organic matter (actually considered "black water") or
bath because it may contaminate the ground water with bacteria (ecoli, etc.)
that are washed from human bodies. For more information, see:
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/natres/06702.html
sed5555