Featured Items

Past and Present


Create an Oasis with Greywater-bookHow to choose, build, and use twenty different types of greywater systems. Revised and expanded edition of the world's best-selling greywater book.

Builder's GW Guide-bookLegal updates, more information on treatment effectiveness, sample permits, NM and AZ laws.

Water Futures: Integrated Design for Water & Wastewater Lectures in San Luis Obispo Counties December 2nd, 3rd, 2008.

Eco Design Principles-downloadInsight, inspiration, and guidance for a radical redesign of our way of life. Disengage from corporate consumer culture, and create a more fulfilling lifestyle.

Three Way Diverter Valves Special valves used to switch greywater to septic systems or sewer (if you want to launder with bleach, irrigation is not needed, or it's frozen out there...) or between alternate irrigation zones in the garden.

Flow splitters (hardware)Fittings for automated greywater distribution to multiple outlets without filtration, pumping, or a surge tank.

Wild water wisdom-articleUnderstanding how nature processes and reuses "wastes" is a prerequisite not only to camping responsibly, but to designing any ecological wastewater system.
Washing dishes in a creek with sand
Water testing-downloadLearn water testing techniques which are an optimal combination of simple, inexpensive and accurate. Improve the design of your testing program and get more out of your interpretation of water testing results.

Greywater policy centerA compilation of grey water laws, suggested improvements to gray water regulations, legality & greywater policy considerations, sample permits, public health considerations, studies, etc.

Fruit tree chart Over a hundred recommended cultivars of subtropical and low chill deciduous fruit trees—drought, frost and shade tolerance, fruit quality, bearing seasons, etc.

Maruata at the Crossroads (download) Eighty pages in Spanish with 125 photos, graphics and tables on the ecological systems design for an indigenous village in Mexico.
Grease-fitting equipped bicycle under testing in salt water.
Invincible bearings Learn how and why to install your own grease fittings so your bearings vastly outperform "sealed" bearings at a fraction of the cost.
Eco village home
Eco village house Design examples of intertwined water, wastewater, energy systems and landscaping in eco villages.
Tortugero at Maruata
Indigenous community Description of an ecological design program in an indigenous community in Mexico.
Toto handwash cascade toilet
Indoor greywater reuseCase studies, links, and references for indoor graywater reuse.
Stub out plumbing
Stub outs How to construct and inspect greywater collection plumbing stub outs.
Growth of the American home over the years
Green 4,000 ft2 home?A discussion of the difference between designing a "deep green" home and applying "green veneer" to a conventional home.
Coliscan testing plate
Fecal coliform countsAlternative measurements of water quality can help you understand coliform bacteria counts and relate them to the real world.
What does driving really cost?
What driving costsGet the facts on how much money driving a car really costs.

Getting Clear on Greywater Lecture by Art Ludwig at the Water Conservation Showcase 4-5 pm Tuesday, May 25th, 2004 Pacific Energy Center, San Francisco California.

Gray water workshop Learn design and construction of greywater systems with Art Ludwig. October 2nd-5th 2003 Santa Fe, New Mexico .

Water Storage-bookDesigning, building and maintaining tanks and ponds; sustainably managing groundwater, how to make ferro cement tanks. $19.95

Rainwater Harvesting for Drylads

Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands (book by Brad Lancaster)Turn water scarcity into water abundance: guide on how to conceptualize, design, and implement sustainable water-harvesting systems for your home, landscape, and community.

The Hand-Sculpted House

The Hand-Sculpted House (book)A bible of radical simplicity. A cob cottage is the ultimate expression of ecological design.

Growth of the American home over the years
Live Better, Waste Less Essay by Art Ludwig for Fine Homebuilding Kitchen & Bath Special Issue November 2008.
Growth of the American home over the years

Legalize sustainability  A compilation of information and resources for removing barriers to institutional sustainability.

CA gray water policy center  A compilation of resources to help California make the most of its mandate in SB1258 to develop new greywater standards for California.


Laundry to landscape the simplest, least expensive, lowest effort way to irrigate with residential greywater. Complete instructions for DIY and installing them as a business. Free.

Laundry to Mulch Basins Graywater System (Workshop) Geared towards landscapers and builders who are interested in installing greywater systems professionally under California's new greywater standard.

Integrated Fire Strategies Articles and information about fire prevention and preparedness, including extensive, raw research notes on fire bunkers.

Laundry 2 landscape-video An instructional video on how to design and build the simplest, least expensive, lowest effort way to irrigate with residential greywater.