grey waste on grass (1 Viewer)

[Derbyshire wanderer]

Quote 'It's not a case of "Eco danger zone" @Derbyshire wanderer but I just think it's unnecessary. And I've done my share of much-more-near-to-real "outdoor life" than I would class MHing as being '

This was not aimed at you or anyone in particular CWH, it was just to say that some opinions about the subject are not in proportion to what it really is. To hear some, it is the same as black waste.

Quote'
Just came across this:

"Greywater tanks can be very smelly. Grey water is not supposed to be stored for more than 24 hours, otherwise the bacteria present in the water feed on the nutrients (from the soaps, detergents and kitchen wastes) and really can make very bad smells in a relatively short time. "​

So the detergent makes it even more smelly??? '

Very true, but the natural environment of the grass has worms, beetles and micro organisms that break down these nutrients and hopefully makes for better ground conditions before the bacteria has a chance to grow. I have never been on a pitch to find any smell other than, yes you guessed it - dog poo

 

[John & Joan]

Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005. Extends the offence of
dropping litter on all types of land, including water, which is open to the air and
to which the public have access.

Water Resources Act 1991 (as amended by the Environment Act 1995) gives
the Environment Agency powers to prosecute those found illegally depositing
waste into controlled waters and causing a pollution offence. (This would happen if you drain into a roadside drain not connected to a sewer or a roadside ditch.)

DEFRA used to issue guidance before these Acts that draining into a hedgerow was acceptable. I regularly camp on an SSI where Natural England allows us to drain direct into the ground and bury toilet waste on the land.

Think Bike! I would hate to think someone had come off on the road, because of grease from a waste tank.

 

[DBK]

I noticed one chap, on a rally field with an old sock over the waste outlet trapping any food and greasy residue............not everybody's solution but thoughtful nonetheless.

That was a Funster washing their socks, one at a time.

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[Gaston aires]

Hedgerows OK, pitch grass NOT OK. Its easy to empty a bucket in a hedgerow.
Phil

 

[teensvan99]

Been to a rally Nr Eastbourne for 5 days. Yes empty grey water in the hedge. Our tank would not hold 5 days waste. Some campers need to get out more and stop fannying about.

steve & ann. ------ teensvan

 

[superfozzy]

My grey waste pipe was ripped off wild camping in Scotland and I replaced with one of those nature pure water filters.
I heard how good they were on here ,a few of you rate them highly,so I thought I'd make a little modification and do my bit for the environment .
All the water that leaves my van is purer than the water most of you put in so it runs freely wherever I park.



Vlad

If the water is that good, why not just recycle it.

Now there's a thought!

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[DavidG58]

Been to a rally Nr Eastbourne for 5 days. Yes empty grey water in the hedge. Our tank would not hold 5 days waste. Some campers need to get out more and stop fannying about.

steve & ann. ------ teensvan

You missed the point in the OP completely, hedge is good, the real question was about dumping on to a grass pitch you are about to leave

Total support for point one, don't really like your point 2

 

[Deleted member 29692]

I've been on sites where the owner/warden has told me to dump it onto the grass. Would you really argue with them and refuse to do it because you don't approve of it? What would you do instead?

The only time I've refused to empty it where they told me to was at a very popular, very expensive (IMHO) site in Wales who don't have any proper provision. I went into the office to ask what I was meant to do with it and was told "oh, just wait until you've driven out of the site and then just open your tap and dump it on the road as you drive away" I had to ask her if she was being serious. Apparently she was and that's what they tell everyone to do

 

[Don Quixote]

These "Gray Waste" threads are worse than the "gassing" threads - no one has actually met someone who has had it done to them. Let me expand "done to them" what bloody difference does it make if you arrive on the same pitch that someone has just left having being parked up for 5/7 days with gray waste open? - are you or do you get down on your hands and knees and smell the bloody grass..................... You WILL NEVER know if it was open or closed PERIOD

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[Larrynwin]

For those that condone draining onto a pitch, if the previous weeks users of your "new" pitch had drained their grey onto the pitch you might think differently.

A hedgerow is fine if the site owner approves, but not too hard to wheel a wastehog to a dedicated dump, or is it ?

 

[Deleted member 29692]

For those that condone draining onto a pitch, if the previous weeks users of your "new" pitch had drained their grey onto the pitch you might think differently.

A hedgerow is fine if the site owner approves, but not too hard to wheel a wastehog to a dedicated dump, or is it ?

How about if there is no dedicated dump, no appropriate hedgerow and the site owner specifically tells you to dump it on the grass?

 

[Peter Ashcroft]

I think every motorhome/caravnning forum I have visited of late has some thread active on this subject. and the opinions are always different.

I think a lot of it depends on what actually goes into the waste, we don't wash up in our van , we rarely cook in it, and if we do the pots go to the nearest onsite sink to be washed, the only thing in our waste water is water used to wash hands, so would our waste tank have the same contents as some one who has, over the course of a few days cooked numerous meals and washed numerous pots and pans in the van?

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[Don Quixote]

For those that condone draining onto a pitch, if the previous weeks users of your "new" pitch had drained their grey onto the pitch you might think differently.

A hedgerow is fine if the site owner approves, but not too hard to wheel a wastehog to a dedicated dump, or is it ?

There is no way you would be able to tell if I did or did not........ The only thing that comes out of my gray waste is water and perhaps some soap, but thats it. Perhaps if there was waste food/grease/paper etc that might be different.

 

[Bernie P]

I ran the "site" for a large camp (8000 Campers) at our agricultural showground. Their site manager asked for grey water to be dumped in the "French Drains" or the hedgerows rather than down the drains. This was confirmed by a guy from the local water company who happened to be on site at the same time. Apparently it gets back into the water eco system quicker. That's the technical reason for doing it.
From a common courtesy perspective dumping grey waste in the smae place repeatedly (say over a weekend) makes that patch of ground boggy and not nice for other users as it will take a fair few days to soak away and dry up. Collect and scatter is the best approach. Leaving small bits of food in the waste is not a problem, the birds and wildlife soon clear that up.

 

[GJH]

I can't believe that anyone doesn't wipe their dishes with kitchen roll first before putting them in the dish water.

You're too trusting Joy

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[Don Quixote]

I ran the "site" for a large camp (8000 Campers) at our agricultural showground. Their site manager asked for grey water to be dumped in the "French Drains" or the hedgerows rather than down the drains. This was confirmed by a guy from the local water company who happened to be on site at the same time. Apparently it gets back into the water eco system quicker. That's the technical reason for doing it.
From a common courtesy perspective dumping grey waste in the smae place repeatedly (say over a weekend) makes that patch of ground boggy and not nice for other users as it will take a fair few days to soak away and dry up. Collect and scatter is the best approach. Leaving small bits of food in the waste is not a problem, the birds and wildlife soon clear that up.

Thats one hell of a lot of water to make it "boggy" over a weekend, or perhaps I don't use much.....

 

[DavidG58]

Thats one hell of a lot of water to make it "boggy" over a weekend, or perhaps I don't use much.....

not only do you appear not to use much, but you have an ingenious way to stop bits going down your plug hole, what goes in must surely come out, ours always has bits in it, hence my use of drain or hedge bottom, not pitch

a filter would mostly overcome this issue I guess

I guess the real problem would be opening a grey tank valve and dropping all contents in one go, left over a period would have far less effect, other than the 'bits'

 

[movan]

These "Gray Waste" threads are worse than the "gassing" threads - no one has actually met someone who has had it done to them. Let me expand "done to them" what bloody difference does it make if you arrive on the same pitch that someone has just left having being parked up for 5/7 days with gray waste open? - are you or do you get down on your hands and knees and smell the bloody grass..................... You WILL NEVER know if it was open or closed PERIOD

Whether I agree or not, that conjured up a picture that made me laugh.....

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[Don Quixote]

not only do you appear not to use much, but you have an ingenious way to stop bits going down your plug hole, what goes in must surely come out, ours always has bits in it, hence my use of drain or hedge bottom, not pitch

a filter would mostly overcome this issue I guess

I guess the real problem would be opening a grey tank valve and dropping all contents in one go, left over a period would have far less effect, other than the 'bits'

Well not so much ingenious, but simple, a bowl in which everything goes that has "crap" on it. The said bowl is then carried to said hedge and deposited into it. Things like washing hands etc goes out as normal. SIMPLES

 

[Larrynwin]

How about if there is no dedicated dump, no appropriate hedgerow and the site owner specifically tells you to dump it on the grass?

As I posted "if the site owner approves" .

 

[scottie]

I use paper plates, and they go in the rubbish bag. Knives and forks get wiped with a napkin, then rinsed in the sink. I shower on site where I can, so grey waste is minimal. I only fill up with what fresh water I am going to use, most of that in a separate container for tea etc. I reluctantly bring my grey and fresh water back home with me, only because I don't want the ridicule associated with disposing it on a grass field.

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[Deleted member 29692]

As I posted "if the site owner approves" .

You posted "a hedgerow is fine if the site owner approves." I'm talking about a specific instruction from the site owner to put it directly onto the grass where you are pitched.

 

[Larrynwin]

There is no way you would be able to tell if I did or did not........ The only thing that comes out of my gray waste is water and perhaps some soap, but thats it. Perhaps if there was waste food/grease/paper etc that might be different.

I didnt specifically mention smell etc, it is the fact that if we all did the same especially if there was also rainfall , a standard size pitch would soon demand wellies as a result of the volume of liquid.
Eventually it would smell and if some appreciate that kind of environment , I certainly wouldnt.

 

[Don Quixote]

I didnt specifically mention smell etc, it is the fact that if we all did the same especially if there was also rainfall , a standard size pitch would soon demand wellies.

Larry, please read my posts it states "so I use it with common sense............................"

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[Larrynwin]

You posted "a hedgerow is fine if the site owner approves." I'm talking about a specific instruction from the site owner to put it directly onto the grass where you are pitched.

If the site owner was happy with that then fine .

 

[Larrynwin]

I didnt specifically mention smell etc, it is the fact that if we all did the same especially if there was also rainfall , a standard size pitch would soon demand wellies as a result of the volume of liquid.
Eventually it would smell and if some appreciate that kind of environment , I certainly wouldnt.

Sorry John, but I was referring to your later post, not the one above. I do think that however well filtered , the very nature of grey water in concentrated amounts on a pitch would soon become a smelly mess.
In a field not regularly used for camping or in hedgerows, that is different.

 

[trekkin]

Why waste such a valuable resource in a hedgerow,

We left Malvern in a Convoy and used the waste water to mark the route for the others to follow, just in case we got split up. Like boy scouting days really setting a trail for others to follow...

Least no one got lost, and all found the motorway ok.

(Only joking)

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[Allan & Loren]

Our grey waste hose is about 4" diameter so couldn't leave it dripping even if we wanted to which I don't and I wouldn't want to pitch up on a pitch that someone has dumped their grey waste on the grass because if everyone did it the grass would smell. Just stick your nose down your grey waste manhole at home and take a good sniff if you don't agree with me

 

[Brian and Jo]

We would not dream of emptying our grey waste onto a grass pitch or any other pitch and get annoyed when we see others doing it .its only idleness and the person not being bothered to empty into a container and take to the waste water dump.whats so hard about that.keep the sites clean it's not rocket science.
Brian & Jo

 

[Jabberwocky]

We made a rookie mistake at the weekend, rinsed the system through before leaving on the Friday and when we got home I went to empty it down the drain I park over and the tap was already open, doh! I was horrified, we had obviously poured all our grey waste straight onto our pitch and then every lay by we had stopped for tea and biscuits on Dartmoor. Fortunately our pitch was on gravel so no damp patch for the next occupant, but I will never do it again. No 1 priority before leaving... Check grey waste tap.

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