"mm" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 10 May 2006 15:19:41 GMT, Robert Gammon
wrote:


Its even recommended in many if not most septic systems that clothes
washing and showers are spread out over several days. i.e. don't spend
Saturday mornign washing several loads of clothes and towels.

So, when we had a septic tank, my mother bought a washer that would
reuse the wash water. The people within the city limits had city
sewers. Was it a coincidence that she cut down on her water usage, or
do you think the appliance salesman asked if she had a septic tank and
recommended this? This was in 1957.

Reusing only works if you don't get your clothes very dirty. It would
never work with me, at least since I moved out of my mother's house.

The washing machine had two wash water intakes, and two outputs. The
first time from the hoses to the wall, like all machines have now.
Then that water was drained into the wash tub. Then the rinse water
was drained via a pipe throught the washwater into the drain.

Then for the second load, a switch or a starting point on the circular
timer knob had the soapy wash water sucked in from the wash tub. I
don't know how hard it would be, if physically possible, to use the
water a third time, but we didnt' do that. It automatically sent the
washwater out through that tube to the drain the second time.


It was a Whirlpool Suds-mizer, iirc. Do they still sell such things.

She didn't mention the septic tank, but she said or maybe I just
concluded it was there to save on heating the water, (and maybe on
water and soap?).

I've not seen such a feature on any contemporary washer. Perhaps it wasn't
popular as I can see it being hard to convince a lot of people that reused
water was clean enough. The current trend is toward front loaders which use
less water overall.