Recycle Your Graywater to Landscape
Rebate Information
Up to $400 per household for clothes washer to landscape systems! Up to $1,000 per household for dual plumbed shower/bath and bathroom sink to landscape systems! The rebate applies to single or two-unit residential buildings only. Visit www.soquelcreekwater.org/199/Graywater-to-Landscape
Landscape
Clothes washing machine to landscape or “Laundry to Landscape” (doesn’t need a building permit)
Bathtub and/or shower to landscape (requires a building permit)
Bathroom sink to landscape (requires a building permit)
Graywater systems must meet all applicable state and local requirements to prevent potential health threats and environmental contamination.
Please refer to the Graywater System Regulatory Requirements regarding state and local graywater system requirements.
What is Graywater?
You can save water and money during the irrigation season when you use graywater to irrigate instead of or in addition to potable (i.e. drinking) water. A benefit of using graywater is that it is generated year-round and is thus readily available when needed during the irrigation season. Although the amount of water you can save is dependent upon the specific size and design of your landscape, landscape water typically accounts for about 25% of total residential water use during the dry season.
Graywater is: wastewater from showers/baths, bathroom sinks, and clothes washing machines only. Graywater may contain fats, oils, grease, hair, lint, soaps, and household cleaners. However, it can be safely used to irrigate most landscapes (except root crops or edible crops that touch the soil) as long as regulatory requirements and guidelines are followed.
Graywater is not: wastewater from kitchen sinks, dishwashers, or toilets, or from clothes washing machines when used to wash diapers or other infectious garments. Wastewater from these sources is referred to as “blackwater” and cannot be used due to the risk of contamination by bacteria, viruses and other pathogens.
Rain Catchment Rebates
Collect rainwater from your roof and use it to irrigate your landscape. In addition to saving water, rain catchment systems help prevent stormwater runoff and pollution and help to recharge groundwater. Determine how much water can be collected from your roof with a simple formula. Our area gets about 29 inches of rain per year.
Soquel Creek Water District (SqCWD) offers the following rain catchment rebates:
- $25 per barrel (for barrels with a storage capacity of 50 to 100 gallons)
- $25 per 100 gallons of storage capacity (for tanks/cisterns with a storage capacity of 100 to 3,000 gallons)
Our rain catchment rebates provide flexibility as there are many different types and sizes of rain catchment systems including single or multiple rain barrels, large tanks, and below-ground cisterns.
Backflow Prevention Requirements
All rain catchment systems or large amounts of stored water (like in a pool or hot tub) can pose a risk of backflow or back siphoning into the water system if a hose is submerged in the water. For this reason, all hose spigots should have a hose bib vacuum breaker (HBVB) installed before the hose connection.
The Soquel Creek Water District provides these HBVBs for free to install on all hose bibs at the property. Request a HBVB delivery by emailing the Conservation Department.
If the tank is connected to the potable water system in any way, a backflow prevention device or double-check valve is required to be installed at the water meter and annual testing is required.
- 5,000 gallons or more total storage: backflow prevention is required
- 301 gallons to 4,999 gallons of total storage and are disconnected from the potable water system: No backflow devices are required but an annual inspection by the District’s cross-connection control specialist is required and all hose spigots must have vacuum breakers.
- 300 gallons or less total storage: No backflow prevention device or inspection is required but all hose spigots must have vacuum breakers. These are provided for free from the District.
Rain Catchment System Rebate Eligibility
If you have any questions regarding rain catchment rebates or need additional information, please call our Conservation Department at 831-475-8500.
Complete rebate eligibility requirements are listed on the Rain Catchment System Rebate Application
Visit www.soquelcreekwater.org/228/Rain-Catchment for more information.
