Last year when I started this blog, I mentioned briefly how I used to use the water from our sump pump to water our plants during a drought. I also would use the water that our dehumidifier collected in a similar fashion–and continue to do so now. However, it’s been so rainy and humid lately that two things have occurred:

1. My plants are no longer thirsty because with our frequent down pours, they’ve been getting plenty to drink.

2. With it being so humid out–thank you, dog days of summer–I’ve had to start emptying the dehumidifier about every 12 hours. Because of that my plants are more than quenched.

So that means that twice a day, I’m faced with what to do with about a half-gallon of water from the dehumidifier. Since I can’t water the plants any more or they’ll drown, here’s what I have been doing with the water so far:

* Pouring it into the washing machine as I’m filling a load. I have to do this when the load is filling, otherwise the water goes right down the drain. I figure that if the dehumidifier water helps to fill up the washing machine’s tub, I use less water (which I pay for, now that we’re on a public system) when washing my clothes.

* Using it to flush the toilets. Yes, I admit that we often subscribe to the notion of “If it’s yellow, let it mellow. If it’s brown flush it down.” That is, if you don’t have to flush the toilet every time you use it, don’t do it so you can save water. Of course, if I were having guests over or I was at someone else’s house, I wouldn’t ever do this. I’d flush with each bathroom use. But when it’s just the four of us around, it works for us.

And that’s about it.

What I’m wondering is how “clean” water coming from the dehumidifier is. I mean, could I pour it into the dog’s bowl (which holds 64 ounces) without worrying that I’m going to kill him? Could I pour it into a pot on the stove, and boil up the water to make pasta? I try to clean out the dehumidifier on a regular basis but I have no idea if dehumidifier water is potable.

Do you know? How do you think I should reuse water from the dehumidifier? Would love to hear your ideas.