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Thandiwe Katinhimure, Business Reporter
A STUDENT at Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT) has designed a machine that recycles grey water and could be of great use to communities with challenges in accessing clean water.

Grey water is water that comes from bathrooms, kitchen and other domestic use.

The new machine is able to turn that water into clean water, which is as good as tap water. CUT Department of Environmental Engineering student, Mr Jonathan Chinamasa, came up with this innovative.

“I discovered that there is technology that is available in industry that can solve domestic problems. So bridging that gap is what I intended to do.

My aim was to reduce water demand for civilians in Zimbabwe to about 33 percent,” he said.

“On average a person in Zimbabwe can use 100 to 137 litres of water per day. So I want to remove 33 percent so that municipalities don’t have to treat so much water and reduce chemical costs.”

Mr Chinamasa said his technology has two stages of filtration, which lead to the delivery of potable water.

“The machine is called the Grey Water Recycling System and it goes through a two stage filtration process. In the first stage there is sediment removal, microbial aspects and carbon filtration. Therefore, the water will be clean enough for irrigation, watering the garden and washing vehicles,” he said.

The second stage has a five-phase filtration process, which will then lead to the delivery of potable water that can be used at homesteads.

“The Grey Water Recycling System is not yet available in the market but we are trying to commercialise it. Services can be provided to those who want the product,” said Mr Chinamasa.

He also pointed out that the recycling system can be sold to different people in the industry. He gave an example that dyeing industry players will need half of the system as they are only concerned about how hard the water is, so his invention provides them with half of the system to measure the iron in the water. —@thandyfeminine