Industry News

Washing down your dairy shed yard with recycled water can save you thousands of litres of fresh water every time you milk – that’s why Green Wash systems are becoming increasingly popular.

Our Winton branch installer, Brad Marshall, has worked on several this year including one on Smithill Farm in Fairfax, half way between Otautau and Riverton.

“Green Wash systems recycle effluent from your main storage pond to wash down the yard outside your dairy shed after your cows come in to get milked,” Brad explains.

“It’s becoming increasingly common. The amount of fresh clean water you’re able to save just blows people away.”

Smithill Farm’s owners were keen to improve their environmental sustainability so asked Brad to install a Green Wash system for them. Avoiding cross-contamination is vital, so Brad installed two different manifolds to keep the fresh water and effluent entirely separate.

Extra valves were added to the storage pond’s existing pump, along with a new touch screen in the diary shed. At the push of a button, the farmer can now easily switch between accessing pond water for Green Wash purposes or pumping it through the effluent fertigation system to land.

“It’s all about keeping it simple for the farmer,” Brad says.

“The Green Wash is gravity fed back to the storage pond where the effluent is screened and the farmer’s impressed by the amount of water they’re now able to save. They’re stoked with the whole package and rapt with the result.”