michelle kaufmann designs

Drains are pretty scary things. Think of all the valuables that can be lost down them: watches down storm drains, rings down pool drains, water down sink drains. That’s right, letting the water just flow away down your drain after you wash your hands is just like loosing your wedding ring down it – well, maybe not just like that. But there is value to be found in that used water.

Instead of just going off into the sewer system, your old wash water can be captured and reused in place of fresh, potable water. How? A little something called the AQUS. That’s how. No, AQUS isn’t the name of some water conserving superhero (though maybe it should be…). It’s the name for an ingenious system that captures water flowing down your sink drain, filters and disinfects it, and then sends it to your lovely loo for your next flush. If the system runs low on reclaimed water then it just switches back to the normal toilet valve for the time being.

You can potentially reduce the amount of water your home sends to the sewer by up to 40%. Want some even more convincing numbers? The system can be purchased for about $200, pay for itself in water saving in about 4 years, and last for 10 to 12 years total. So you’ll be doing just the opposite of flushing money down the toilet during all those 6 to 8 years in between. The AQUS is a perfect example of saving green while going green. Click here to learn more about it and click here to buy one for yourself from Arid Solutions Inc., one of our favorite shops for all things water conservation related!