Recycling A/C condensation water

[Kaleva]

I'm remodeling an old Victorian home and am planning on installing a central A/C system this coming spring. I was thinking about using the water produced by the A/C during the summer to water plants and shrubs around the house rather then just pipe the water down the drain. There'd be a covered plastic barrel outside fed by a plastic tube connected to the A/C condensate pump located in the basement. As my wife and i enjoy having many house plants, I could also use it to water those rather then using tap water.

Did some google searching on the internet and apparently this is being done by many people already. People report that they are getting 2-10 gallons a day during the summer from their A/C units (depending on weather, location, humidity, etc.).

As the summers here are seemingly getting drier and the water rates continue to creep up, I think this would be a great idea to save money and help out the environment in a small way.

One might be able to keep their garden adequately watered this way as a supplement to regular rainfall. As a rule of thumb, a garden requires about a 1/2 gal. per week for every sq. foot.

[jonathan_seer]

1. if you haven't already done this, collect your roof water it's extremely easy

All you do is have your gutter drains directed into water storage containers.

Some might complain that rain water is full of pollutants, and if you live in a large urban area with very filthy air, it could be full of particulate matter.

However that stuff is a lot of carbon based material, which isn't harmful to plants, since it's literally simple carbon (not hydrocarbons). This sort of stuff settles out quickly.

If you fear acidic water - a few tums or any antacid tablet will fix that straight away. However some choice fruits love soil that's acidic like blueberries.

In any case the purity of rainwater has to be less than the concerns re: bottled water which uses a plastic known to turn into feminizing chemicals in the body (thus the plague of man boobs) which many people drink in place of tap water pumped full of chemicals to kill pathogens.

All in all, if pollution is a worry, nothing is less polluted than rain water if only for he simple fact that all other sources of water are collected AFTER they sit on the ground, dissolving whatever dirt and grime they find on the ground before being sucked up to send to your tap or bottled and sold as bottled water. (I think the 40% of bottled water is sourced from the municipal tap, not springs Etc. - and has a huge carbon footprint thanks to shipping).

For watering plants whatever concern there might be is dwarfed by the benefit to your plants and your home environment, and the environment can handle diluted pollutants that might be found in rainwater. It's when it's super concentrated as in type 2 treated sewage that nature gets overwhelmed.

You'll save many many many times the water you would vs. a vs. air conditioning water.

Do both and you could start your own water utility :)

[Kaleva]

2. Gutters wouldn't work well on my house.

Mainly because the roof line is very high and being 51 with bad legs, I just don't have it in me anymore to get up on long ladders to put up gutters and maintain them.

However, it'd be a viable option for many others. A 1/2 inch of rainfall on the roof of an average home equates to quite a few gallons. Others have talked about using the gray water from their showers and bathtubs to provide water for their gardens and lawns. The drains of the showers and bathtubs are piped directly to a holding tank in the basement (which has an overflow pipe connected to the sewer line) or to a sump pump which pumps the gray water to a tank located outdoors.

[east texas lib]

3. Water produced will depend on the relative humidity in your locale.

In the DFW area, roughly 30% of the cooling capacity of a home ac system is devoted to dehumidification @ 45% relative humidity. If you have a 5 ton (60,000 BTU's/hour) system, around 18,000 BTU's/hour will be used to dry the air going across your evaporator coil. A very rough rule of thumb technique is:

18,000 divided by 1100 equals 16.36 lbs water/hour divided by 8.37 equals 1.95 gallons/hour.


1100 BTU's is the amount of energy (roughly) needed to condense one pound of water from the air.
One gallon of water weighs 8.37 lbs.

Determine your system's run time for a 24 hour period and you can probably make a fair guess as to the amount water you can harvest. Hope this helps!

[Kaleva]

6. Thanks!

[Fledermaus]

4. Yes, my parents use to grow mint with the condensate and drink mint juleps in the summer.

The amount of water you get depends on how humid the climate is, how large the house is, and how hard you run the AC. Here in San Antonio, with a 1,500 square foot house, its enough for a small garden or flower patch.

Grey water is good. Many people around here use the water from their washing machine to water a part of their yard.

I want to insall an outdoor shower and use some type of french drain to water a large part of my back yard in the summer.

Section 341.039 of the Texas Health and Safety Code

HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE

TITLE 5. SANITATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY

SUBTITLE A. SANITATION

CHAPTER 341. MINIMUM STANDARDS OF SANITATION AND HEALTH PROTECTION MEASURES

SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS


Sec. 341.039. GRAYWATER STANDARDS. (a) The commission by rule shall adopt and implement minimum standards for the use and reuse of graywater for:

(1) irrigation and other agricultural purposes;

(2) domestic use, to the extent consistent with Subsection (c);

(3) commercial purposes; and

(4) industrial purposes.

(b) The standards adopted by the commission under Subsection (a) must assure that the use of graywater is not a nuisance and does not damage the quality of surface water and groundwater in this state.

(c) The commission may not require a permit for the domestic use of less than 400 gallons of graywater each day if the graywater:

(1) originates from a private residence;

(2) is used by the occupants of that residence for gardening, composting, or landscaping at the residence;

(3) is collected using a system that overflows into a sewage collection or on-site wastewater treatment and disposal system;

(4) is stored in tanks that:

(A) are clearly labeled as nonpotable water;

(B) restrict access, especially to children; and

(C) eliminate habitat for mosquitoes and other vectors;

(5) uses piping clearly identified as a nonpotable water conduit, including identification through the use of purple pipe, purple tape, or similar markings;

(6) is generated without the formation of ponds or pools of graywater;

(7) does not create runoff across the property lines or onto any paved surface; and

(8) is distributed by a surface or subsurface system that does not spray into the air.

(d) Each builder is encouraged to:

(1) install plumbing in new housing in a manner that provides the capacity to collect graywater from all allowable sources; and

(2) design and install a subsurface graywater system around the foundation of new housing in a way that minimizes foundation movement or cracking.

(e) In this section, "graywater" means wastewater from clothes-washing machines, showers, bathtubs, hand-washing lavatories, and sinks that are not used for disposal of hazardous or toxic ingredients. The term does not include wastewater:

(1) that has come in contact with toilet waste;

(2) from the washing of material, including diapers, soiled with human excreta; or

(3) from sinks used for food preparation or disposal.

[Kaleva]

5. Will have to look up the code for gray water use here in Michigan.

The Texas code is interesting in that it encourages builders to install plumbing so that gray water can be used.

[ConcernedCanuk]

7. Remember though, there are no nutrients in A/C condensation -it's basically "distilled"

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So I would mix it up with regular water - rain/tap/well - whatever.

It would be GREAT for a steam iron - no deposits

It's also suitable for refilling/topping up lead/acid batteries where distilled water is recommended.

[Javaman]

8. I already do this...

It all depends on the humidity of the area you live in.

in the late spring, I get on the average 55 gallons a week. As the summer heat comes and the humidity goes down, I get about 30 gallons a week.

We have a 1300 square foot house. I'm sure with a larger house would get more. Plus, the more you run your a/c the more water you will get. in the summer we set our thermostat at 75-80, so no doubt if we had it a little lower, we could get that much more.

If you have any other questions PM me. :)

[JohnWxy]

9. that's a great idea. Imagine if all those people who water their lawns did this?

It might not meet all their needs but maybe cut it in half (depending on size of lawn and other factors already mentioned.)

I have a lovely neighbor lady who I would be happy to build an out-door shower for. :evilgrin: