WO2025165354A1

WO2025165354A1 - Devices, systems, and methods for greywater filtration

Info

Publication number: WO2025165354A1
Application number: PCT/US2024/013778
Authority: WO
Inventors: Noemi Helena FLOREA
Original assignee: Laero LLC
Current assignee: Laero LLC
Priority date: 2024-01-31
Filing date: 2024-01-31
Publication date: 2025-08-07
Anticipated expiration: 2026-07-31

Abstract

The present disclosure is directed to electronic devices, systems, and methods for filtration of grey water and may include a housing configured to be coupled with a supply line. The housing may include a pressure pump to pump fluid through the system and a bed media container to receive municipal water from the supply line and/or greywater to form a blended fluid. The bed media container houses a bed media filter to filter impurities from the blended fluid. The housing may also include a membrane filter container in fluid communication with the bed media container, which receives the filtered blended fluid from the bed media container and includes a membrane filter to remove impurities from the blended fluid. The housing may further include an ultraviolet container to receive the processed fluid from the membrane filter container, including an ultraviolet light source to disinfect the processed fluid.

Description

DEVICES, SYSTEMS, AND METHODS FOR GREYWATER FILTRATION

FIELD

The disclosed subject matter relates to an apparatus, system and method for water filtration and purification.

BACKGROUND

As widely reported, sewage and wastewater pollution represent nearly 80% of all pollutive impacts on global ocean ecosystems today. Unfortunately, untreated sewage discharged from industrial and municipal sources in high-income countries largely contribute to such grey statistics. For example, in 2019, there were more than 600,000 untreated sewage discharges in the United Kingdom alone and about 50% of all wastewater inputs in the Mediterranean region are classified as untreated sewage. Where wastewater enters aquatic ecosystems, bacteria use oxygen to metabolize present sewage, consequently causing hypoxic dead zones that lack the oxygen that fish and other organisms need to survive. Such dead zones are cited as among the most catastrophic drivers of climate change, causing widespread species extinction. See “The Effects of Sewage on Aquatic Ecosystems” Sciencing, 2018, sciencing.com/effects-sewage-aquatic-ecosystems-21773.html; “Is Sewage Pollution Still a Major Threat to Our Oceans?” Big Blue Ocean Cleanup, 2021, www.bigblueoceancleanup.org/news/2021/11/4/is-sewage-pollution-still-a-major-threat-to- our-oceans; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2023, www.cdc.gov/healthywater/surveillance/burden/index.html; Environmental Health News. 2021, www.ehn.org/drinking-water-pollution-2655521279.html.

In addition to increasing rates of ocean pollution, drinking water contamination and wastewater pollution are affecting rates of public health by increasing mortality rates and the spread of disease. For example, it is estimated that over 7.2 million Americans become sick from waterborne disease each year across the United States, largely as an effect of tap water contamination in public infrastructure. In 2021, approximately 268 chemicals were identified in municipal water supplies across the United States by the Environmental Working Group, which is nearly three times the approximately 90 drinking water contaminants regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today. See “The Effects of Sewage on Aquatic Ecosystems” Sciencing, 2018, sciencing.com/effects-sewage-aquatic-ecosystems-21773.html; “Is Sewage Pollution Still a Major Threat to Our Oceans?” Big Blue Ocean Cleanup, 2021, www.bigblueoceancleanup.org/news/2021/11/4/is-sewage-pollution-still-a-major-threat-to- our-oceans; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2023, www.cdc.gov/healthywater/surveillance/burden/index.html; Environmental Health News. 2021, www.ehn.org/drinking-water-pollution-2655521279.html. Advancing decentralized water treatment and reuse options as resource-saving measures is consequently becoming more critical to protect both the users and stakeholders of global water resources.

To assist with reducing such rates of wastewater pollution, greywater can be recycled to reduce the wastewater footprint of residential and commercial properties. The presently disclosed subject matter satisfies these and other needs for an efficient and economic system for decentralized greywater processing.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSED SUBJECT MATTER

The purpose and advantages of the disclosed subject matter will be set forth in and are apparent from the description that follows, as well as will be learned by practice of the disclosed subject matter. Additional advantages of the disclosed subject matter will be realized and attained by the devices particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof, as well as from the appended drawings.

Aspects of the disclosed subject matter are set out in the independent claims and preferred features are set out in the dependent claims. Features of one aspect may be applied to each aspect alone or in combination with other features. To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the disclosed subject matter, as embodied and broadly described, the disclosed subject matter includes a greywater filtration system comprising a compact housing configured to be installed to an existing household unit that receives water from municipal water supply, such as under a sink, bathtub, shower, or laundry unit, and coupled with a water supply line and grey water inlet coupled to a preexisting water outlet, such as sink drain tailpipe or other water outlet pipeline from a shower or laundry unit. The housing contains, at least, a control box, a bed media filter container, a membrane filter, and an ultraviolet container. The control box comprises at least a pressure pump for moving fluid through the system. The bed media filter container is configured to receive municipal water from the supply line and/or greywater from the greywater inlet and houses a bed media filter configured to filter impurities from the blend of received fluids, as well as an ultrasonic sensor configured to detect when the blended fluid reaches a predetermined volume level and to activate the pressure pump to transfer filtered blended fluid out of the bed media container. The membrane filter container receives the filtered blended fluid from the bed media container and comprises a membrane filter configured to remove impurities from the blended fluid and separate processed fluid, received by a first outlet, from rejected fluid, discharged from a discharge outlet. The discharge outlet is configured to couple to a preexisting wastewater outlet arm or other suitable outlet piping. The ultraviolet container receives the processed fluid and contains an ultraviolet light source to disinfect the processed fluid to create approved fluid, wherein the approved fluid may include up to approximately 30 percent of its volume from the filtered blended fluid. The approved fluid exits the housing to a preexisting faucet.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the membrane filter comprises an ultrafilter and a reverse osmosis filter. In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the membrane filter comprises an ultrafilter and a reverse osmosis filter.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the ultrafilter comprises a pore size of 0.02-0.05 microns.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the approved fluid includes up to approximately 30 percent of its volume from the grey water.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the bed media filter comprises one or more layers comprising at least one of activated carbon material, sand, and gravel. In certain embodiments the one or more layers comprise: a first layer including an activated carbon material; a second layer including sand; a third layer including gravel; and there is an internal fluid flow channel through the bed media filter between the one or more layers, wherein an internal fluid flow direction comprises flow consecutively through the first layer, the second layer, and the third layer. In certain embodiments the internal fluid flow direction is the same direction as gravity.

In certain embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, the control box further includes a microcontroller and a relay configured to facilitate fluid flow through the system.

In certain embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, the housing has a volume of approximately 1.65 ft³ to 2.65 ft³.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the ultraviolet light source comprises an ultraviolet light bulb.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the membrane filter is enclosed in a plastic membrane housing and mounted on a stand.

In accordance with certain embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, the housing further comprises a collection tank in fluid communication with the ultraviolet container, wherein the collection tank is configured to receive the approved fluid from the ultraviolet container and output the approved fluid to the faucet. In accordance with the disclosed subject matter, the collection tank may further comprise at least one water quality sensor configured to analyze a quality metric of the approved fluid. In accordance with the disclosed subject matter, the quality metric may include data relating to at least one of total dissolved solids, pH level, and turbidity. In certain embodiments, the system is configured to compare the quality metric to a predetermined threshold value. In certain embodiments, the system further comprises at least one indicator configured to indicate that the quality metric does not meet a predetermined threshold value. In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the bed media container may include an ultrasonic overflow sensor configured to activate the pressure pump. In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the system may also include a bypass outlet to output approved fluid from the collection tank to the discharge outlet based upon a determination that the quality metric does not meet a predetermined threshold.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the system filters out at least one of lead, copper, nitrate, total coliform, cryptosporidium, legionella, and Giardia lamblia.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, a method of processing greywater, comprises: providing a compact housing configured to couple with a unit coupled with a municipal water supply; a bed media container receiving at least one of municipal water from a supply line and greywater from a greywater inlet; forming a blended fluid from at least one of the municipal water and the grey water and filtering impurities from the blended fluid; detecting, with the ultrasonic sensor, when the blended fluid reaches a predetermined volume level of the bed media container; pumping filtered blended fluid with a pressure pump out of the bed media container to a membrane filter container; removing impurities from the filtered blended fluid with the membrane filter and separating processed fluid from rejected fluid; transferring the processed fluid or rejected fluid to at least one of the first outlet or the discharge outlet; receiving the processed fluid by the ultraviolet container; creating approved fluid by disinfecting the processed fluid with the ultraviolet source, wherein the approved fluid includes up to approximately 30 percent of its volume from the filtered blended fluid, wherein the housing is configured to couple to the preexisting supply line, the greywater inlet is configured to couple to a preexisting drain tailpipe, the discharge outlet is configured to couple to a preexisting drain outlet waster arm, and the approved fluid is configured to exit the housing to a preexisting supply line, such as a sink faucet supply line. This housing may include: a control box having a pressure pump configured to pump fluid through the greywater filtration system, a bed media container configured to form a blended fluid, wherein the bed media container houses a bed media filter configured to filter impurities from the blended fluid and the bed media container has an ultrasonic sensor, a membrane filter container in fluid communication with the bed media container, wherein the membrane filter container is configured to receive the filtered blended fluid from the bed media container and includes a membrane filter configured to remove impurities from the blended fluid and separate processed fluid from rejected fluid, a first outlet to receive the processed fluid, and a discharge outlet to receive the rejected fluid, and an ultraviolet container in fluid communication with the membrane filter container, the ultraviolet container including an ultraviolet light source to disinfect the processed fluid to create approved fluid.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, a method comprising outputting the approved fluid through a sink tap.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, a method comprising processing the blended fluid with at least one of an ultrafilter and a reverse osmosis filter of the housing to create approved fluid. In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, a method comprising transferring the approved fluid to a collection tank in fluid communication with the ultraviolet container and outputting the approved fluid to a sink tap.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, a method comprising analyzing a quality metric of the approved fluid with at least one water quality sensor.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, a greywater filtration system may comprise a municipal water sensor to detect a quality of municipal water from a supply line, wherein the municipal water sensor compares the quality to a predetermined municipal value and selectively channels the municipal water to at least one of a sink tap or to a housing, the housing configured to be installed with a unit coupled with a municipal water supply such as a sink, wherein the housing is configured to couple to a supply line, including a preexisting supply line, the greywater inlet is configured to couple to a drain, including a preexisting sink drain, the discharge outlet is configured to couple to a preexisting wastewater piping, and the approved fluid is configured to exit the housing to an outlet or a faucet, including a preexisting faucet. The housing may include: a control box having a pressure pump configured to pump fluid through the greywater filtration system; a bed media container configured to receive at least one of municipal water from the supply line and greywater from a greywater inlet and configured to form a blended fluid from at least one of the municipal water and greywater, wherein the bed media container houses a bed media filter configured to filter impurities from the blended fluid, the bed media container having an ultrasonic sensor that is configured to detect when the blended fluid reaches a predetermined volume level of the bed media container and configured to activate the pressure pump to transfer filtered blended fluid out of the bed media container; a membrane filter container in fluid communication with the bed media container, wherein the membrane filter container is configured to receive the filtered blended fluid from the bed media container, and an ultraviolet container in fluid communication with the membrane filter container and configured to receive the processed fluid from the membrane filter container. The membrane filter container may include: a membrane filter configured to remove impurities from the blended fluid and separate processed fluid from rejected fluid, a first outlet to receive the processed fluid, and a discharge outlet to receive the rejected fluid. The ultraviolet container may include an ultraviolet light source to disinfect the processed fluid to create approved fluid, wherein the approved fluid includes up to 30 percent of its volume from the filtered blended fluid.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description and drawings are examples and are provided for purpose of illustration and not intended to limit the scope of the disclosed subject matter in any manner.

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute part of this specification, are included to illustrate and provide a further understanding of the devices of the disclosed subject matter. Together with the description, the drawings serve to explain the principles of the disclosed subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The subject matter of the application will be more readily understood from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. l is a drawing of a greywater filtration system according to an embodiment of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 2 is a drawing of a greywater filtration system according to an embodiment of the disclosed subject matter, comprising a housing, control box, bed media filter container, membrane filter container, and ultraviolet filter container.

FIG. 3 is a drawing depicting the greywater filtration system under a sink according to an embodiment of the disclosed subject matter. FIG. 4 is a diagram depicting the prior art of standard under-the-sink plumbing according to an embodiment of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 5 is a diagram depicting the greywater filtration system retrofitted under a sink according to an embodiment of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram depicting a process for filtering greywater.

FIG. 7 is a drawing depicting the prior art household greywater system.

FIG. 8 is a diagram depicting locations of installation for the greywater filtration system according to embodiments of the disclosed subject matter.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Capturing and recycling a fraction of greywater for immediate treatment to potable standards, where it can then be reused within the household instead of sent to a wastewater treatment plant or dumped in a local waterway, can directly reduce the wastewater footprint of a household. By recycling greywater within households, public wastewater distribution systems will be less burdened, and sewage overflow rates will decrease as a direct function of reduced sewage outputs. This will improve the overall quality and health of local waterways, allowing aquatic wildlife to thrive while increasing accessibility to waterways for recreational use by residents.

A low-cost, accessible water treatment system for households is needed. By having water treated within the household right before it is used — at the point of use, instead of the point of source — residents can be protected against poor quality water that may be impacted by underfunded water distribution infrastructure. Integrating a point-of-use water treatment system may treat incoming municipal water for any dangerous contaminants including lead, copper, nitrate, total coliform, cryptosporidium, legionella, and Giardia lamblia, among many others. Portable water filters and household water treatment devices have previously been deployed in cities to provide what would be a “band-aid” solution to a systemic crisis of water contamination. However, usability was a critical issue with many such filters, as users could often forget to change the cartridge of their water filter — in effect risking exposure to contaminants — or to replace membrane filters on wastewater systems, thereby risking equipment failure as an effect of brine build-up. Additionally, portable filters were often viewed as a “cheap” and “flimsy” alternative to infrastructure upgrades for lead and copper pipes, which could cost up to millions of dollars and take multiple years or decades to complete. Consequently, there is a need for a technology that is situated between emergency relief and an infrastructural overhaul, and which would instead diversify existing water treatment systems through technological decentralization.

Large-scale urban planning and architectural proposals for stormwater management have been at least partially implemented in several cities, including stormwater drainage cisterns, green infrastructure such as green roofs and constructed wetlands, and household grey water systems. Such public projects cannot be deployed as rapidly as a consumer-driven intervention or greywater system which could optimize water and wastewater resources within private buildings. However, lack of financial return inherent to most greywater systems today could be a critical limiting factor for how much impact this type of technology would have in the coming decades. Because current greywater systems, such as system 700 depicted in FIG. 7, require households to be re-plumbed to merge new connections between sink drains and toilets or outdoor irrigation, they are only financially accessible to buildings that are being newly constructed or completely renovated. As shown in FIG. 7, in current household greywater systems, water is captured from sinks, showers, toilets, and laundry machines and either directed to a sewage system or treated for non-potable reuse as backyard irrigation or toilet bowl and laundry unit water. The average homeowner living in a pre-existing structure would not receive a return through utility savings on renovating for a costly whole-building greywater system, and this significantly limits the presence of greywater systems in most existing households.

As an effect, in order to design a household greywater system that would be affordable to a low-income family, the disclosed subject matter contemplates a retrofitted installation process and a compact equipment size to reduce costs. For example, connecting water supply lines and drain pipes below the sink, shower, or laundry machine may effectively redirect water flows into a compact treatment system without affecting any part of the building’s structural integrity. As shown in FIG. 8, the disclosed subject matter 800 includes a compact enclosure with the appropriate fittings to connect an existing structure such as the supply lines and drain pipes which remain in close proximity below or adjacent to sinks (802a), bathtubs (802b), showers (802c), and laundry units (802d) and integrates the appropriate water treatment system to enable recirculating wastewater supplies between the drain pipe and supply line of a sink, shower, or laundry unit by passing them through a four-stage water treatment process that treats grey water to drinking water standards.

The disclosed subject matter integrates into a household’s preexisting water infrastructure, with connections available for supply lines and drain pipes that may already be in use, such as the examples shown in FIG. 8. The disclosed subject matter captures and treats greywater and as such, provides a household appliance for treating used water to a potable standard. This alone allows households across the U.S. to immediately reduce their water footprint by making grey water systems accessible, cost-effective, and easy to install.

Several solutions exist to improve access to drinking water and reduce levels of wastewater pollution, though each with critical limiting factors. To improve access to clean drinking water, portable water filters have been distributed as a short-term solution to pollution crises in low-income regions. These filters include Brita countertop filters and Hydroviv under- the-sink filters. Whole-house water filters such as Rhino Well Water and Pelican Whole House

Filter are also available and typically used in households which directly rely on untreated groundwater sourced from property wells. While portable filters can be sold for $30 - $50, these filters can break down and must be replaced frequently, and often do not address the total scope of contaminants that users are concerned about. Whole-home water filters can alternatively cost as much as $2500, not including maintenance costs. Neither portable nor whole-house filters offer any reuse functions which can enable users to directly reduce their water consumption rates, and hence water costs.

Alternatively, to reduce levels of wastewater pollution and water scarcity, household greywater systems have become the first commercial technology capable of recycling water within users’ homes to reduce levels of water consumption and wastewater discharge. However, greywater systems are often considered too expensive to retrofit into pre-existing structures, as they require re-piping large parts of a building. Greywater systems on average cost $2500 to install, though can range from $700 to $20,000. Because of this high cost, they have not scaled to dominate the total addressable market in need of water treatment solutions, a significant proportion of which is classified as low-income and vulnerable to systemic issues of water contamination. There are also no greywater systems on the market today which offer potable water reuse, wherein greywater is treated to drinking water standards and recycled for re-consumption within households.

By contrast, the disclosed subject matter is capable of serving the more than 4 billion people who live in urban areas globally, and who may be impacted by a combination of drinking water contamination and/or local waterway pollution. The disclosed subject matter aims to remove a minimum of 92 contaminants from drinking water, and to treat as many as the 268 chemicals that have presently been identified in public water supplies. As the disclosed subject matter is designed to recycle up to 20% of greywater produced per person per day, up to 288 billion gallons of wastewater may be recycled on a daily basis when the technology is deployed to its full scale. Ultimately, this supports not only global efforts for water conservation, but can significantly reduce the rates of untreated wastewater that enter natural waterways as well as the impacts this currently has on human health.

Consequently, the disclosed subject matter combines the protective functions of a water filter with the preventative functions of a greywater system. The disclosed subject matter also improves on qualities of accessibility, affordability, and durability compared to other market products. Many household water filters are perceived by users to be temporary substitutions to infrastructural upgrades, which can cost millions of dollars and take years to complete. Alternatively, existing greywater systems are cost-prohibitive to most homeowners due to their high installation costs. The disclosed subject matter consequently diversifies the means of treating and recycling water through a low-cost, point-of-use intervention that costs under $500 or costs over 80% less than current whole-home greywater reuse systems.

It does so by integrating a four-stage water treatment process utilizing bed media filtration, ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis, and UV irradiation within a compact unit sized at approximately 300 mm in width by approximately 300 mm in length by approximately 500 mm in height. Supply lines connecting to the sink faucet are detached and joined to an enclosure, where incoming water supplies are redirected through a treatment system to reduce levels of public water contaminants, after which they pass through attachable supply lines to connect to the household faucet. The sink drain pipe which is exposed below sinks is also detached and connected to a drain pipe fitting, which allows sink grey water to pass through the treatment system. Approximately 20% of greywater is expected to pass through the ultrafilter and reverse osmosis membranes, and this water is then disinfected and reused through the attachable supply line which redirects recycled water through the tap. The remaining (approximately 80%) greywater which is rejected by the membranes is discharged at a non- potable quality standard, having passed through bed media filtration to remove significant contaminants prior to discharge.

The compact size and retrofitted installation process of the disclosed subject matter enable reduced installation costs by approximately 93% and maintenance costs by approximately 80% when compared to whole-home greywater systems. It is capable of being retrofitted where supply lines and drain pipes are close in proximity within a building, which is typically below sinks, bathtubs, showers, and laundry machines. The enclosure and recommended maintenance practices enable the system to last over 20 years with proper care, which increases its durability and life span significantly compared to standard water filters. Its functions for drinking water treatment, wastewater recycling, and greywater treatment enable the disclosed subject matter to address a trifold of systemic water management challenges concerning drinking water contamination, sewage pollution, and water scarcity in a single function, thereby distinguishing it from existing products which at most only address up to two of these challenges at once.

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, an example of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The disclosed subject matter will be described in conjunction with the detailed description of the system.

As disclosed herein, the devices and systems 100, 300, 500 presented herein can be used for filtration of water. According to embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, and as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the devices 100 are compact and can be used for filtration of grey water. In accordance with the disclosed subject matter, the greywater filtration system 100 can including a compact housing 100a such as a housing configured to be installed under a sink 200 as depicted in FIG. 3, or as configured to be installed with units such as a laundry system or a bath system as further described herein. The housing 100a can include a control box 101, a bed media container 102, a membrane filter container 103, and an ultraviolet container 104. The housing 101a can be configured to be retrofitted under a sink 200 using preexisting plumbing connections 401-408. For example, not limitation, the housing 100a can include a supply line inlet to couple to preexisting water supply line 402, a greywater inlet to a preexisting sink drain 403, a discharge outlet 506 to a wastewater outlet arm 404, and an approved fluid outlet 507 to faucet 408. While depicted as installed under a sink in FIGS. 3 and 5, devices and systems 100, 300, 500 may be installed with any suitable existing household plumbing, including bathtub, shower, or laundry units as shown in FIG. 8.

According to embodiments, retrofitted adaptors may be used to couple a supply line inlet to couple to preexisting water supply line 402, a greywater inlet to a preexisting drain tailpipe 403, such as a sink, a discharge outlet 506 to a wastewater outlet arm 404, and an approved fluid outlet 507 to a supply line 408, such as a faucet supply line. The retrofitted adaptors may be adaptable to a range of diameter sizes to facilitate attachment to different pipe fittings and sizes. In one embodiment, the range of diameter sizes may be approximately 1 inch to 3 inches.

According to certain embodiments the housing 100a can have a volume of approximately 1.5 cubic feet, 1.64 cubic feet, 2.65 cubic feet, 3 cubic feet, or any value therebetween.

According to embodiments, control box 101 can include a pressure pump 504 configured to pump fluid through the greywater filtration system. In certain embodiments, the control box 101 can contain a microcontroller and a relay configured to facilitate fluid flow through the system.

According to embodiments, bed media container 102 can be configured to receive at least one of municipal water 502 from water supply line 402 and greywater 501 from preexisting sink drain 403. The bed media container 102 can be configured to form a blended fluid 503 from the received municipal water 502 and the received grey water 501. The bed media container 102 can house a bed media filter configured to filter impurities from the blended fluid 503 to create a filtered blended fluid.

According to embodiments, the blended fluid 503 and filtered blended fluid can include, approximately 20% by volume, approximately 30% by volume, approximately 40% by volume, approximately 50% by volume, approximately 60% by volume, approximately 70% by volume, or any percentage value therebetween of greywater 501 with the remaining volume being made up by municipal water 502. At initial use, the volume would be 100% municipal water and over time with use, the percentage of grey water would increase. For example, the blended fluid 503 and filtered blended fluid can comprise up to around 60% by volume of greywater 501 and at least around 40% municipal water 502 by volume.

According to embodiments, the bed media filter can filter a variety of impurities. In general, particulate matter may be treated by bed media (or sediment) filters, chemical and heavy metal contaminants, such as pharmaceuticals and chemicals, may be treated by membrane filters, and organic pollutants including bacteria and viruses may be treated by a UV filter. Examples of such impurities include Cryptosporidium, Giardia lamblia, Legionella, Total Coliforms (including fecal coliform and E. Coli), Bromate, Chlorite, Haloacetic acids (HAA5), Total Trihalom ethanes (TTHMs), Chloramines, Chlorine, Chlorine dioxide, Antimony, Arsenic, Asbestos, Barium, Beryllium, Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Cyanide, Fluoride, Lead, Mercury, Nitrate, Nitrite, Selenium, Thallium, Acryliamide, Alachlor, Atrazine, Benzene, Benzo(a)pyrene (PAHs), Carbofuran, , Carbon tetrachloride, Chlordane, Chlorobenzene, 2,4-D, Dalapon, l,2-Dibromo-3 -chloropropane (DBCP), o-Di chlorobenzene, p-Di chlorobenzene, 1,2-Dichloroethane, 1,1 -Di chloroethylene, cis-l,2-Dichloroethylene, trans- 1,2-Dichloroethylene, Dichloromethane, 1,2-Dichloropropane, Di(2-ethylhexyl) adipate, Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, Dinoseb, Dioxin (2,3,7,8-TCDD), Diquat, Endothall, Endrin, Epichlorohydrin, Ethylbenzene, Ethylene dibromide, Glyphosate, Heptachlor, Heptachlor epoxide, Hexachlorobenzene, Hexachlorocyclopentadiene, Lindane, Methoxychlor, Oxamyl (Vydate), Polychlorinated biphenyls, (PCBs), Pentachlorophenol, Picloram, Simazine, Styrene, Tetrachloroethylene, Toluene, Toxaphene, 2,4,5-TP (Silvex), 1, 2, 4-Tri chlorobenzene, 1,1,1 -Tri chloroethane, 1,1,2-Tri chloroethane, Trichloroethylene, Vinyl chloride, Xylenes, Alpha particles, Beta particles and photon emitters, Radium 226 and Radium 228 (combined), Uranium, Aluminum, Chloride, Copper, Fluoride, Iron, Manganese, pH, Silver, Sulfate, Total dissolved solids, and Zinc.

According to embodiments, the bed media filter can include an ultrasonic sensor configured to detect when the blended fluid 503 reaches a predetermined volume level of the bed media container 102. In non-limiting exemplary embodiments, predetermined volume level of the bed media container 102 can include approximately 70% by volume, approximately 80% by volume, approximately 90% by volume, approximately 100% by volume, or any percentage value therebetween. Upon determining, by the ultrasonic sensor, that the blended fluid 503 has reached the predetermined volume, the pressure pump 504 housed within control box 101 can be activated to pump fluid through the filtration system. According to embodiments, the control box 101 is configured to automatically activate the pressure pump 504 in response to receiving a signal from the ultrasonic sensor corresponding to the blended fluid 503 reaching a predetermined volume level.

According to embodiments, the pressure pump 504 is configured to pump a filtered blended fluid out of the bed media container 102. In certain embodiments the bed media container 102 includes an ultrasonic overflow sensor configured to activate the pressure pump 504. For example, the ultrasonic sensor measures water levels and activates the pressure pump 504 when the bed media filter is full. In certain embodiments, an overflow outlet may be in place in the event the ultrasonic sensor fails for the blended fluid to flow out. According to embodiments, the bed media filter can include one or more layers comprised of at least one of an activated carbon material, sand, gravel, or any other particle size therebetween. In certain embodiments the bed media filter can comprise a first layer including an activated carbon material; a second layer including sand; and a third layer including gravel.

In accordance with the disclosed subject matter the one or more layers can be connected by an internal fluid flow channel through the bed media filter which comprises flow consecutively through the one or more layers. In certain embodiments this internal fluid flow direction can be the same as gravity.

According to embodiments, the membrane filter container 103 is configured to receive the filtered blended fluid from the bed media container 102. The membrane filter container 103 contains at least a membrane filter, a first outlet 505, and a discharge outlet 506.

According to embodiments, the membrane filter is configured to remove impurities from the blended fluid 503 and separate processed fluid from rejected fluid. In certain embodiments the membrane filter comprises an ultrafilter and a reverse osmosis filter. In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the ultrafilter may comprise a pore size range of 0.01-0.03 microns, 0.02-0.04 microns, 0.020.05 microns, 0.03-0.1 microns, or any pore size range between 0.01-0.1 microns. In certain embodiments the membrane filter is enclosed in a plastic membrane housing and mounted on a stand. The ultrafilter may act as a prefilter to remove larger particles before the reverse osmosis filter.

According to embodiments, the first outlet 505 receives the processed fluid, and the discharge outlet 506 receives the rejected fluid from the membrane filter.

According to embodiments, the ultraviolet container 104 is in fluid communication with the membrane filter container 103 and configured to receive the processed fluid from the membrane filter container’s first outlet 505. The ultraviolet container 104 contains an ultraviolet light source to disinfect the processed fluid to create approved fluid. In certain embodiments, the ultraviolet light source can comprise an ultraviolet lightbulb.

According to embodiments, the approved fluid can be comprised of approximately 10% by volume, approximately 20% by volume, approximately 30% by volume, approximately

40% by volume, or any percentage therebetween by volume of the filtered blended fluid.

According to embodiments, housing 100a may comprise a collection tank in fluid communication with the ultraviolet container 104, wherein the collection tank is configured to receive the approved fluid from the ultraviolet container 104 and output the approved fluid via an approved fluid outlet 507 to the faucet 408. In certain embodiments the collection tank may comprise at least one water quality sensor configured to analyze a quality metric of the approved fluid. In accordance with the disclosed subject matter, the quality metric may include data relating to at least one of total dissolved solids, pH level, and/or turbidity. In certain embodiments the system is configured to compare the quality metric to a predetermined threshold value. In accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter, the system may include at least one indicator configured to indicate that the quality metric does not meet the predetermined threshold value.

According to embodiments, the system may include a bypass outlet to output approved fluid from the collection tank to the discharge outlet 506 based upon a determination that the quality metric does not meet the predetermined threshold.

According to other embodiments, the system may be tankless. In such embodiments, fluid would flow straight from ultraviolet container 104 to supply line or faucet 408.

Solely for purpose of illustration, an exemplary embodiment of a greywater filtration system, is shown schematically in FIGS. 1-3, and 5. The examples herein are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosed subject matter in any manner. Particularly, and as illustrated, the placement of the bed media filter container, vertically on the left of the housing, and the placement of the other components, is not intended to be limiting. A person of ordinary skill in the art will be aware of the multitude of ways each component could be organized inside of the housing.

Solely for purpose of illustration, reference is now made to FIG. 4, which depicts prior art sink plumbing 400. As illustrated, all municipal supply water is sent directly to the faucet 408 via pre-existing supply line 402 through piping 401, 405, 407 and all greywater is discharged as wastewater from the system via sink drain 403 and pre-existing wastewater piping 406, 404.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the prior art can be retrofitted with the disclosed subject matter in order to enable the reuse of grey water, and to lessen the amount of municipal supply water used.

In accordance with the embodiments of the subject matter previously described, the components of the housing and each container can be made out of a plurality of suitable materials. For instance, metal, wood, or plastic could be used to make any of the components, such as a housing made of metal, with plastic filter containers.

Referring to FIG. 6, a flow diagram for a process 600 of filtering greywater according to embodiments of the present disclosure and consistent with the embodiments described in FIGS. 1-3 and 5 is illustrated. In step 602, at least one of municipal water and greywater are received. For example, greywater may enter the system through sink drain 403 and supply line water (or municipal water/groundwater) may enter the system through an attached supply line. The supply line may be detached and retrofitted from a pre-existing original hookup to sink faucet 408. A blended fluid is formed from the received municipal water and the received greywater in step 604. The blended fluid of step 604 may be formed in and pass through bed media container 102. In step 606, impurities are filtered from the blended fluid. Step 606 may include at least one of the filtering mechanisms described within membrane container 103 herein. For example, blend fluid may pass through pressure pump into membrane filters. At step 608, processed fluid is separated from rejected fluid. The processed fluid is received at an outlet, such as first outlet 505 of membrane container 104, at step 610. For example, processed (or treated) fluid which passed through the membrane filters may enter ultraviolet container 104. Rejected fluid may include fluid that is rejected by the membrane filters and may be discharged from the system and exit the building through existing wastewater/drainage piping. At step 612, the processed fluid is disinfected, such as by ultraviolet container 104, to create approved fluid. At step 614, the approved fluid is output to a faucet, such as faucet 408 in a household, or other attached supply line.

Embodiments disclosed herein include:

A. A greywater filtration system, comprising: a compact housing configured to be coupled with a water supply line, the housing including: a control box having a pressure pump configured to pump fluid through the greywater filtration system; a bed media container configured to receive at least one of municipal water from the supply line and greywater from a greywater inlet and configured to form a blended fluid from the municipal water and greywater, wherein the bed media container houses a bed media filter configured to filter impurities from the blended fluid, the bed media container having an ultrasonic sensor that is configured to detect when the blended fluid reaches a predetermined volume level of the bed media container and configured to activate the pressure pump to transfer filtered blended fluid out of the bed media container; a membrane filter container in fluid communication with the bed media container, wherein the membrane filter container is configured to receive the filtered blended fluid from the bed media container, the membrane filter container including a membrane filter configured to remove impurities from the blended fluid and separate processed fluid from rejected fluid, a first outlet to receive the processed fluid, and a discharge outlet to receive the rejected fluid; and an ultraviolet container in fluid communication with the membrane filter container and configured to receive the processed fluid from the membrane filter container, the ultraviolet container including an ultraviolet light source to disinfect the processed fluid to create approved fluid, wherein the approved fluid includes up to 30 percent of its volume from the filtered blended fluid.

B. A method of processing greywater, comprising: providing a housing configured to fit under a sink; receiving, by the bed media container, at least one of municipal water from a supply line and greywater from a greywater inlet; forming a blended fluid from at least one of the municipal water and the greywater and filtering impurities from the blended fluid; detecting, with the ultrasonic sensor, when the blended fluid reaches a predetermined volume level of the bed media container; pumping filtered blended fluid with the pressure pump out of the bed media container to the membrane filter container; removing impurities from the filtered blended fluid with the membrane filter and separating processed fluid from rejected fluid; transferring the processed fluid or rejected fluid to at least one of the first outlet or the discharge outlet; receiving the processed fluid by the ultraviolet container; creating approved fluid by disinfecting the processed fluid with the ultraviolet source, wherein the approved fluid includes up to 30 percent of its volume from the filtered blended fluid. The housing including: a control box having a pressure pump configured to pump fluid through the greywater filtration system, a bed media container configured to form a blended fluid, wherein the bed media container houses a bed media filter configured to filter impurities from the blended fluid and the bed media container has an ultrasonic sensor, a membrane filter container in fluid communication with the bed media container, wherein the membrane filter container is configured to receive the filtered blended fluid from the bed media container, and an ultraviolet container in fluid communication with the membrane filter container, the ultraviolet container including an ultraviolet light source to disinfect the processed fluid to create approved fluid. The membrane filter container including a membrane filter configured to remove impurities from the blended fluid and separate processed fluid from rejected fluid, a first outlet to receive the processed fluid, and a discharge outlet to receive the rejected fluid.

Embodiment A may have one or more of the following additional elements in any combination:

Element Al : wherein the membrane filter comprises an ultrafilter and a reverse osmosis filter.

Element A2: wherein the ultrafilter comprises a pore size of 0.02-0.05 microns. Optionally, wherein pore size is smaller than 0.02 microns. Optionally, wherein the pore size is greater than 0.05 microns.

Element A3: wherein the blended fluid comprises up to around 60% greywater by volume and at least around 40% municipal water by volume. Optionally, wherein the blended fluid comprises greater than around 60% greywater by volume. Optionally, wherein the blended fluid comprises less than around 40% municipal water by volume.

Element A4: wherein the approved fluid includes up to 30% of its volume from the grey water. Optionally, wherein the approved fluid includes greater than around 30% percent of its volume from the grey water.

Element A5: wherein the one or more layers comprise: a first layer including an activated carbon material; a second layer including sand; a third layer including gravel; and an internal fluid flow channel through the bed media filter between the one or more layers, wherein an internal fluid flow direction comprises flow consecutively through the first layer, the second layer, and the third layer.

Element A6: wherein the control box further includes a microcontroller and a relay configured to facilitate fluid flow through the system. Element A7: wherein the housing has a volume of approximately 1.65 ft³ to 2.65 ft³. Optionally, wherein the housing has a volume of less than 1.65 ft³. Optionally, wherein the housing has a volume of greater than 2.65 ft³.

Element A8: wherein the membrane filter is enclosed in a plastic membrane and mounted on a stand.

Element A9: wherein the housing further comprises: a collection tank in fluid communication with the ultraviolet container, wherein the collection tank is configured to receive the approved fluid from the ultraviolet container and output the approved fluid to a faucet of the sink.

Element A10: wherein the collection tank further comprises at least one water quality sensor configured to analyze a quality metric of the approved fluid.

Element Al l : wherein the quality metric includes data relating to at least one of total dissolved solids, pH level, and turbidity.

Element A12: wherein the system is configured to compare the quality metric to a predetermined threshold value.

Element Al 3: further comprising at least one indicator configured to indicate that the quality metric does not meet a predetermined threshold value.

Element A14: wherein the bed media container includes an ultrasonic overflow sensor configured to activate the pressure pump.

Element A15: further comprising a bypass outlet to output approved fluid from the collection tank to the discharge outlet based upon a determination that the quality metric does not meet a predetermined threshold.

Element A16: wherein the system filters out at least one of lead, copper, nitrate, total coliform, cryptosporidium, legionella, and Giardia lamblia. By way of non-limiting example, exemplary combinations applicable to A include, but are not limited to: A with any one or more or all of Al -Al 6, in any combination.

Embodiment B may have one or more of the following additional elements in any combination:

Element B 1 : wherein creating approved fluid from the filtered blended fluid includes processing the blended fluid with at least one of an ultrafilter and a reverse osmosis filter of the housing.

Element B2: further comprising transferring the approved fluid to a collection tank in fluid communication with the ultraviolet container and outputting the approved fluid to a sink tap.

By way of non-limiting example, exemplary combinations applicable to B include, but are not limited to: B with any one or more or all of A1-A2, in any combination.

To facilitate a better understanding of the embodiments described herein, the following examples of various representative embodiments are given. In no way should the following examples be read to limit, or to define, the scope of the disclosed subject matter.

In summary, a greywater filtration system is described including a housing configured to be installed under a sink and coupled with a supply line and grey water inlet coupled to a preexisting sink drain. The housing contains, at least, a control box, a bed media container, a membrane filter, and an ultraviolet container. The control box comprises at least a pressure pump for moving fluid through the system. The bed media container is configured to receive municipal water from the supply line and/or greywater from the greywater inlet and houses a bed media filter configured to filter impurities from the blend of received fluids, an ultrasonic sensor configured to detect when the blended fluid reaches a predetermined volume level and to activate the pressure pump to transfer filtered blended fluid out of the bed media container. The membrane filter container receives the filtered blended fluid from the bed media container and comprises a membrane filter configured to remove impurities from the blended fluid and separate processed fluid, received by a first outlet, from rejected fluid, discharged from a discharge outlet. The discharge outlet is configured to couple to a preexisting wastewater piping. The ultraviolet container receives the processed fluid and contains an ultraviolet light source to disinfect the processed fluid to create approved fluid, wherein the approved fluid may include up to approximately 30 percent of its volume from the filtered blended fluid. The approved fluid exits the housing to a preexisting faucet.

Unless otherwise indicated, all numbers expressing quantities and the like in the present specification and associated claims are to be understood as being modified in all instances by the term “about.” Accordingly, unless indicated to the contrary, the numerical parameters set forth in the specification and attached claims are approximations that may vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by the embodiments of the disclosed subject matter. At the very least, and not as an attempt to limit the application of the doctrine of equivalents to the scope of the claim, each numerical parameter should at least be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques.

One or more illustrative embodiments incorporating various features are presented herein. Not all features of a physical implementation are described or shown in this application for the sake of clarity. It is understood that in the development of a physical embodiment incorporating the embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, numerous implementationspecific decisions must be made to achieve the developer's goals, such as compliance with system-related, business-related, government-related and other constraints, which vary by implementation and from time to time. While a developer's efforts might be time-consuming, such efforts would be, nevertheless, a routine undertaking for those of ordinary skill in the art and having benefit of this disclosure. While various systems, tools and methods are described herein in terms of “comprising” various components or steps, the systems, tools and methods can also “consist essentially of’ or “consist of’ the various components and steps.

As used herein, the phrase “at least one of’ preceding a series of items, with the terms “and” or “or” to separate any of the items, modifies the list as a whole, rather than each member of the list (i.e., each item). The phrase “at least one of’ allows a meaning that includes at least one of any one of the items, and/or at least one of any combination of the items, and/or at least one of each of the items. By way of example, the phrases “at least one of A, B, C, and D” or “at least one of A, B, C, or D” each refer to only A, only B, or only C, or only D; any combination of A, B, C, and D; and/or at least one of each of A, B, C, and D.

Therefore, the disclosed systems, tools and methods are well adapted to attain the ends and advantages mentioned as well as those that are inherent therein. The particular embodiments disclosed above are illustrative only, as the teachings of the present disclosure may be modified and practiced in different but equivalent manners apparent to those skilled in the art having the benefit of the teachings herein. Furthermore, no limitations are intended to the details of construction or design herein shown, other than as described in the claims below. It is therefore evident that the particular illustrative embodiments disclosed above may be altered, combined, or modified and all such variations are considered within the scope of the present disclosure. The systems, tools and methods illustratively disclosed herein may suitably be practiced in the absence of any element that is not specifically disclosed herein and/or any optional element disclosed herein. While systems, tools and methods are described in terms of “comprising,” “containing,” or “including” various components or steps, the systems, tools and methods can also “consist essentially of’ or “consist of’ the various components and steps. All numbers and ranges disclosed above may vary by some amount. Whenever a numerical range with a lower limit and an upper limit is disclosed, any number and any included range falling within the range is specifically disclosed. In particular, every range of values (of the form,

“from about a to about b,” or, equivalently, “from approximately a to b,” or, equivalently, “from approximately a-b”) disclosed herein is to be understood to set forth every number and range encompassed within the broader range of values. Also, the terms in the claims have their plain, ordinary meaning unless otherwise explicitly and clearly defined by the patentee. Moreover, the indefinite articles “a” or “an,” as used in the claims, are defined herein to mean one or more than one of the elements that it introduces. If there is any conflict in the usages of a word or term in this specification and one or more patent or other documents that may be incorporated herein by reference, the definitions that are consistent with this specification should be adopted.

While the disclosed subject matter is described herein in terms of certain preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that various modifications and improvements can be made to the disclosed subject matter without departing from the scope thereof. Additional features known in the art likewise can be incorporated. Moreover, although individual features of one embodiment of the disclosed subject matter can be discussed herein or shown in the drawings of the one embodiment and not in other embodiments, it should be apparent that individual features of one embodiment can be combined with one or more features of another embodiment or features from a plurality of embodiments.

In addition to the various embodiments depicted and claimed, the disclosed subject matter is also directed to other embodiments having any other possible combination of the features disclosed and claimed herein. As such, the particular features presented herein can be combined with each other in other manners within the scope of the disclosed subject matter such that the disclosed subject matter includes any suitable combination of the features disclosed herein. Thus, the foregoing description of specific embodiments of the disclosed subject matter has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosed subject matter to those embodiments disclosed. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the devices, method and system of the disclosed subject matter without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosed subject matter. Thus, it is intended that the disclosed subject matter include modifications and variations that are within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

CLAIMS What is claimed is:

1. A greywater filtration system, comprising: a compact housing configured to be coupled with a water supply line, the housing including: a control box having a pressure pump configured to pump fluid through the grey water filtration system; a bed media container configured to receive at least one of municipal water from the supply line and greywater from a greywater inlet and configured to form a blended fluid from the municipal water and greywater, wherein the bed media container houses a bed media filter configured to filter impurities from the blended fluid, the bed media container having an ultrasonic sensor that is configured to detect when the blended fluid reaches a predetermined volume level of the bed media container and configured to activate the pressure pump to transfer filtered blended fluid out of the bed media container; a membrane filter container in fluid communication with the bed media container, wherein the membrane filter container is configured to receive the filtered blended fluid from the bed media container, the membrane filter container including a membrane filter configured to remove impurities from the blended fluid and separate processed fluid from rejected fluid, a first outlet to receive the processed fluid, and a discharge outlet to receive the rejected fluid; and an ultraviolet container in fluid communication with the membrane filter container and configured to receive the processed fluid from the membrane filter container, the ultraviolet container including an ultraviolet light source to disinfect the processed fluid to create approved fluid, wherein the approved fluid includes up to 30 percent of its volume from the filtered blended fluid.

2. The water filtration system according to claim 1, wherein the membrane filter comprises an ultrafilter having a pore size of 0.02-0.05 microns and a reverse osmosis filter.

3. The water filtration system according to claim 1, wherein the compact housing is configured to be installed with a unit that receives municipal water from the supply line, wherein the unit includes at least one of a sink, bathtub, shower, or laundry unit .

4. The water filtration system according to claim 1, wherein the blended fluid comprises up to around 60% greywater by volume and at least around 40% municipal water by volume.

5. The water filtration system according to claim 1, wherein the approved fluid includes up to 30 percent of its volume from the grey water.

6. The water filtration system according to claim 6, wherein the one or more layers comprise: a first layer including an activated carbon material; a second layer including sand; a third layer including gravel; and an internal fluid flow channel through the bed media filter between the one or more layers, wherein an internal fluid flow direction comprises flow consecutively through the first layer, the second layer, and the third layer.

7. The water filtration system according to claim 1 , wherein the control box further includes a microcontroller and a relay configured to facilitate fluid flow through the system.

8. The water filtration system according to claim 1, wherein the housing has a volume of approximately 1.65 ft³ to 2.65 ft³.

9. The water filtration system according to claim 1, wherein the membrane filter is enclosed in a plastic membrane and mounted on a stand.

10. The water filtration system according to claim 3, wherein the housing further comprises: a collection tank in fluid communication with the ultraviolet container, wherein the collection tank is configured to receive the approved fluid from the ultraviolet container and output the approved fluid to a faucet of the unit.

11. The water filtration system according to claim 13, wherein the collection tank further comprises at least one water quality sensor configured to analyze a quality metric of the approved fluid.

12. The water filtration system according to claim 14, wherein the quality metric includes data relating to at least one of total dissolved solids, pH level, and turbidity.

13. The water filtration system according to claim 15, wherein the system is configured to compare the quality metric to a predetermined threshold value.

14. The water filtration system according to claim 15, further comprising at least one indicator configured to indicate that the quality metric does not meet a predetermined threshold value.

15. The water filtration system according to claim 16, wherein the bed media container includes an ultrasonic overflow sensor configured to activate the pressure pump.

16. The water filtration system according to claim 13, further comprising a bypass outlet to output approved fluid from the collection tank to the discharge outlet based upon a determination that the quality metric does not meet a predetermined threshold.

17. The water filtration system according to claim 1, wherein the system filters out at least one of lead, copper, nitrate, total coliform, cryptosporidium, legionella, and Giardia lamblia.

18. A method of processing greywater, comprising: providing a compact housing configured to couple with a unit coupled with a municipal water supply, the housing including: a control box having a pressure pump configured to pump fluid through the greywater filtration system, a bed media container configured to form a blended fluid, wherein the bed media container houses a bed media filter configured to filter impurities from the blended fluid and the bed media container has an ultrasonic sensor, a membrane filter container in fluid communication with the bed media container, wherein the membrane filter container is configured to receive the filtered blended fluid from the bed media container, the membrane filter container including a membrane filter configured to remove impurities from the blended fluid and separate processed fluid from rejected fluid, a first outlet to receive the processed fluid, and a discharge outlet to receive the rejected fluid, and an ultraviolet container in fluid communication with the membrane filter container, the ultraviolet container including an ultraviolet light source to disinfect the processed fluid to create approved fluid, receiving, by the bed media container, at least one of municipal water from a supply line and greywater from a greywater inlet; forming a blended fluid from at least one of the municipal water and the grey water and filtering impurities from the blended fluid; detecting, with the ultrasonic sensor, when the blended fluid reaches a predetermined volume level of the bed media container; pumping filtered blended fluid with the pressure pump out of the bed media container to the membrane filter container; removing impurities from the filtered blended fluid with the membrane filter and separating processed fluid from rejected fluid; transferring the processed fluid or rejected fluid to at least one of the first outlet or the discharge outlet; receiving the processed fluid by the ultraviolet container; creating approved fluid by disinfecting the processed fluid with the ultraviolet source, wherein the approved fluid includes up to 30 percent of its volume from the filtered blended fluid.

19. The method of processing greywater according to claim 18, wherein creating approved fluid from the filtered blended fluid includes processing the blended fluid with at least one of an ultrafilter and a reverse osmosis filter of the housing.

20. The method of processing greywater according to claim 18, further comprising transferring the approved fluid to a collection tank in fluid communication with the ultraviolet container and outputting the approved fluid for user consumption .