Sewage, Sewerage and Biolytix

It impossible to understate the beneficial effects that clean drinking water and efficient sewerage. has on the health of mankind.

(Sewage and Sewerage are terms which are often used incorrectly. So just for the record, Sewerage is the harware, the pipes and tanks. Sewage is the runny stuff which goes through them).


The disposal of human waste is not generally a topic for polite conversation but if your house is not connected to a municipal sewerage system then you have to talk dirty.
Options such as composting toilets may appeal to true environmental warriors but I think most of us who grew up with the flush would prefer to stick with it.
Septic systems are common and for many, septic tanks were certainly a big improvement on the pan which the poo-cart man used to come and empty.

Septic tanks work by collecting all the waste water from a home: Sewage from the toilet, bath water, kitchen sink water, the lot. Solids sink to the bottom to decompose, fats float to the top and the grey water in between is discharged into the soil surrounding the tank. When problems arise things can get very messy.

Luckily for us there are systems on the market today which are a quantum leap ahead of the old septic tank. One such system is the award winning Biolytix. which mimics nature. Biolytix uses insects and organisms to turn grey and black water into irrigation water.

The Woman and I have already chosen Biolytix as our preferred waste disposal system.

What follows is an except from an article Turning waste to water By: FOES-LAMB,, Philippa, which appeared in The Nelson Mail, Feb 15, 2008.

``Biolytix is a very reliable and effective home sewage treatment system. It has been used in Australia for 30 years and has been installed in the Tasman area for the past two years, mainly in unsewered rural areas.

``The system uses tiger and red worms to break down human and Insinkerator waste, effectively providing pretty clean water that can then be used on most of the garden. We use a mix of these worms because red worms prefer slightly lower temperatures while tiger worms work well at higher temperatures - it's a good balance.''

As well as worms, beetles and microorganisms take up residence in the tank and also help to break down the waste material.

A major drawcard of the system is the fact that there is no odour when a tank that is in operation is opened, Robert says. ``There really is no odour, which is pretty amazing. A common human perception is that `what goes down must smell'. This is one of the great things about the Biolytix system - it is a complete, individual ecosystem.

``Each tank has several layers of net bags that are half-filled with short lengths of black drainage pipe, which provide a dry platform for the worms and other organisms.''

Worms are introduced to the tank after two people have been living in the house for about a month.

``One kilogram of worms is introduced after this period of time - the reason for the delay is so there is something for the worms to begin working on straight away.

``If a family of five moves into the house, the worms could be introduced earlier, at around two weeks.''

All the household waste water - which is termed grey and black - goes into the tank, along with waste from the kitchen sink waste disposal, if one is fitted. You don't have to have a waste disposal, but worms love kitchen scraps, so it seems logical to make the most of this. These days, many of us have busy lives and there's not always time to make home compost.

``The turnaround time is very quick. The liquid content is filtered down by gravity and is available for pumping when there is approximately 200 litres collected,'' Robert says.

``The liquid that collects at the bottom of the tank is then pumped into a pressure-compensated drip irrigation system which runs around the plantings surrounding the house.

``Based on a three-bedroom home, there are 540 linear metres of dripper irrigation which is covered in bark or other mulch.

``The pump operates at pressure, and the diaphragms in the drip irrigation pipes won't open until the pressure is right. They all open at 11psi, ensuring there is even distribution on all the line.

``The pump can also be fitted with a distribution indexing valve, which allows it to pump waste water to one side of the garden one day and the other the next, and this can be split into as many fields as you would like. This helps ensure each area of the garden receives a thorough watering, which is more beneficial for the plants.

``This waste water can be used on grapes, fruit trees, citrus and roses - in fact, anything that grows above ground. It is not advised that it be used where root crops such as potatoes or carrots are being grown."

Here is another explanation of How Biolytix Works.


I don't work for Biolytix and I dont expect to pay anything less than full price for my system, but this product has won many awards and deserves free pubilicity.