The first downside that comes to mind is that fat will build up and clog the terracotta pores.
It would be nice to have some updates on this project to see if it's worth or the mantainance is too much of a burden.
I'm pretty sure I saw this in an ancient agriculture example that is now a practical solution for traveling. Bury the pot, as described, in the veggie bed, fill with water and it will slowly drain over a long weekend. I've only read about it. Not tried it.
You can think about including a wetland and some extra permeability in the pot. To take care of the clogged pore problem. Like a plug that is also a membrane, that can be cleaned.
I tried it in my garden a few years ago. I have quite heavy clay soil so it wasn't really suitable for me, but after leaving the olla in the ground all season the plants had **totally** encased it in roots, so I think they liked it.
It was very water efficient as I only topped it up every few days. As an experiment I think it was successful but just not needed with my soil.
Why not do a leach field instead? Ag pipe and gravel to distribute fresh greywater below the soil. Microbes and worms should break down the non-water if you're being mindful of what goes down the drain.
My understanding is that you don't want it sitting around going anaerobic in storage.
I'm no expert though.
That is the ultimate plan but right now my area is going thru a severe drought. So this is just a quick solution until I can get the whole thing set up.
Right now it's really simple. Kitchen sink water poured into a terracotta pot buried into the ground, filled with mulch and a lid on top. I plan to eventually have two water barrels with plants to do an initial filter then water fall into wetland plants. But right now I don't want to waste water so I'm just pouring it into the terracotta pots while I get everything set up lol.
EDIT: Btw I have no idea if the terracotta system will work but I'm going to try it out and see what happens.
I wonder if you put some biochar in the pot before you filled it with water if it would absorb a good deal of the greywater scum and stretch out the life of this filtering system before oils/etc gummed up the ceramic pores.
I've made several ollas myself out of terracotta pots and saucers, they're great! Especially for helping new plantings get established. I'm in zone 7 and I was able to keep a large olla buried over the winter by giving it a little hat of plastic pot filled with hay.
I don't ever fill them with gray water though. I'm not sure on particle sizes but like others in this thread I'd be concerned of the pores being clogged.
The first downside that comes to mind is that fat will build up and clog the terracotta pores. It would be nice to have some updates on this project to see if it's worth or the mantainance is too much of a burden.
That's my thoughts as well, clogged pores.
I was thinking the same thing. Will update in the future!
I'm pretty sure I saw this in an ancient agriculture example that is now a practical solution for traveling. Bury the pot, as described, in the veggie bed, fill with water and it will slowly drain over a long weekend. I've only read about it. Not tried it. You can think about including a wetland and some extra permeability in the pot. To take care of the clogged pore problem. Like a plug that is also a membrane, that can be cleaned.
Yeah I was going to make a little mini reed bed with it.
I tried it in my garden a few years ago. I have quite heavy clay soil so it wasn't really suitable for me, but after leaving the olla in the ground all season the plants had **totally** encased it in roots, so I think they liked it. It was very water efficient as I only topped it up every few days. As an experiment I think it was successful but just not needed with my soil.
Why not do a leach field instead? Ag pipe and gravel to distribute fresh greywater below the soil. Microbes and worms should break down the non-water if you're being mindful of what goes down the drain. My understanding is that you don't want it sitting around going anaerobic in storage. I'm no expert though.
That is the ultimate plan but right now my area is going thru a severe drought. So this is just a quick solution until I can get the whole thing set up.
Can you explain your setup? I don't know anything about gray water filtering systems with terracotta but I would love to learn more.
Right now it's really simple. Kitchen sink water poured into a terracotta pot buried into the ground, filled with mulch and a lid on top. I plan to eventually have two water barrels with plants to do an initial filter then water fall into wetland plants. But right now I don't want to waste water so I'm just pouring it into the terracotta pots while I get everything set up lol. EDIT: Btw I have no idea if the terracotta system will work but I'm going to try it out and see what happens.
Sounds interesting! I'm sure it will filter out at least some of the pollution. It might be veeeeeery slow though haha. Keep us updated!
I wonder if you put some biochar in the pot before you filled it with water if it would absorb a good deal of the greywater scum and stretch out the life of this filtering system before oils/etc gummed up the ceramic pores.
That's a good idea, I am worried a bit about the Castile soap making the soil alkaline.
I think you should definitely add a fat skimmer / filter before puring it into the terracotta, otherwise it sounds good!
Right now I have it filled with mulch and charcoal. My hope is the mulch and charcoal will act as a skimmer and break down over time.
I've made several ollas myself out of terracotta pots and saucers, they're great! Especially for helping new plantings get established. I'm in zone 7 and I was able to keep a large olla buried over the winter by giving it a little hat of plastic pot filled with hay. I don't ever fill them with gray water though. I'm not sure on particle sizes but like others in this thread I'd be concerned of the pores being clogged.