Shop Sink / Gray Water

[rockcrawler]

I have a shop sink and I want to run the water out back into some sort of gray water system, not just onto the ground. I currently have it draining into a 5 gallon bucket which I just pour out when it is full. That has become a PITA. With just a sink, will I need to bury a small barrel or will just running a large perforated pipe a certain distance be sufficient? I‘m thinking I can just dig a long trench, lay some fabric inside, pour in some gravel, lay the pipe, pour in more gravel, close up the fabric, and recover. Will this work? How long will the pipe need to be? The sink is rarely used, but when I have used it during projects, I’ll have to empty the bucket 3-5 times. Any/all suggestions are welcome.

 

[Ilikeike]

Just a small run of a French drain would be plenty, for a low use I would think.
Mine just goes into a decorative rock bed.

 

[58Yeoman]

My shop is built on a sloping hill and I get a lot of water from the neighbors property behind my shop, so I dug down a few feet and filled it with gravel, but also perf'd plastic pipe which goes to daylight to a ditch by the county road. I also have two rain gutters run into that pipe, plus my shop sink. Works great for me.

 

[Firebrick43]

I have a shop sink and I want to run the water out back into some sort of gray water system, not just onto the ground. I currently have it draining into a 5 gallon bucket which I just pour out when it is full. That has become a PITA. With just a sink, will I need to bury a small barrel or will just running a large perforated pipe a certain distance be sufficient? I‘m thinking I can just dig a long trench, lay some fabric inside, pour in some gravel, lay the pipe, pour in more gravel, close up the fabric, and recover. Will this work? How long will the pipe need to be? The sink is rarely used, but when I have used it during projects, I’ll have to empty the bucket 3-5 times. Any/all suggestions are welcome.

If you actually live in dallas texas, and your neighbors can witness anything, it would be wise to do things correctly

https://www.tceq.texas.gov/downloads/assistance/publications/rg-536.pdf

 

[rockcrawler]

If you actually live in dallas texas, and your neighbors can witness anything, it would be wise to do things correctly

https://www.tceq.texas.gov/downloads/assistance/publications/rg-536.pdf

I do not live in Dallas. I only use that location so members will know the region of the county I live in just in case it’s pertinent to the conversations in my posts. Where exactly I live is of no importance to anyone. I do live out in the county on acreage and none of my gray water will affect anyone or any other property than my own. The sink is not used for any harsh chemicals anyway. It’s mainly washing hands and parts. The exact same things I’d be doing on the ground outside my shop if I did not have a sink inside.

 

[Firebrick43]

I do not live in Dallas. I only use that location so members will know the region of the county I live in just in case it’s pertinent to the conversations in my posts. Where exactly I live is of no importance to anyone. I do live out in the county on acreage and none of my gray water will affect anyone or any other property than my own. The sink is not used for any harsh chemicals anyway. It’s mainly washing hands and parts. The exact same things I’d be doing on the ground outside my shop if I did not have a sink inside.

lighten up Francis.

I just gave you the applicable law pertinent to the conversation. If you want to follow or not, I am not going to turn you in.

 

[rockcrawler]

lighten up Francis.

I just gave you the applicable law pertinent to the conversation. If you want to follow or not, I am not going to turn you in.

Oh, I didn’t take it like that. You’re good. I was just explaining. Sorry if my reply came off any different.

 

[nadogail]

My sink and toilet both connect to the city sewer system.

 

[TurnipTruck]

My little hand washing sink drains into this rusty 500psi pressure vessel (on the trailer) that my favorite wife found at her work. I buried it manhole-down amongst chunks of concrete as a drain field nine feet deep in gravel. The vessel had two flanged openings, so I added a cleanout pipe in case it needs a vacuuming.

Seven years so far of handsoap and latex paint with zero problems.





If we eventually do enclose the leanto and add a bathroom, we will then add an adjacent real septic system.

 

[larry4406]

Well, lets do some math....

You said with heavy use, you empty your 5 gallon bucket 3-5 times. Lets use the 5 buckets, so you are discharging 25 gallons of water. Converting 25 gallons, this is 3.34201 cubic feet or 5775 in^3.

Typical 4" perforated drain tile has a nominal inside diameter of 4", so 12.57" in^2 cross section. So you would need 459.4 inches of drain tile (38.2') to contain the 25 gallons assuming zero leakage.

 

[Codyboy]

What type of soil would the perforated pipe be in? Hopefully something that will absorb like sandy soil.

I have something like that .
Three, 4 inch perforated pipes about 2ft deep in sandy soil. I layed landscape fabric , pipe on top of that then wrapped the fabric over and covered it up.
Make sure the pipe is level. Don't pitch the pipe like you would plumbing normally. You don't want it filling up just at one end but rather the whole pipe to fill.
I did not use gravel just the fabric to keep the sand out of the pipe.
Make sure the fabric you use will pass water, as some will and some won't, at least readily.
As far as a barrel or holding tank, probably not needed . You'd only really need that to hold or trap solids from going into the drain field.

 

[CraigStu]

Whatever you do it would be a good idea to have solid pipe for the first 5ft away from the shop. I know it is Tx so probably evaporates/settles pretty quickly but no use watering the foundation.

 

[Fixr]

Whatever you do it would be a good idea to have solid pipe for the first 5ft away from the shop. I know it is Tx so probably evaporates/settles pretty quickly but no use watering the foundation.

Conditions in Texas vary wildly. There are no glaciers, but along with the stereotyped deserts and prairies, there are heavily wooded areas, coastal floodplains, swamps, fertile river bottoms, etc.