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Aqua Clarus Treatment Levels & New Zealand Requirements

What does advanced treatment mean for the water you can reuse?

Aqua Clarus brings several treatment stages together to produce water for selected non-drinking uses. But what do treatment levels actually mean, and how do you know which figures matter for your project? Here's how they compare.

Aqua Clarus M800sx

How clean is the water designed to be?

The figures below apply after the complete biological, 0.025-micron ultrafiltration and UV process. They describe the intended treatment quality, rather than the result of any single water sample.

M800sx final-water design specification
Parameter	Specification
Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)	Below 10 mg/L
Total suspended solids (TSS)	Below 10 mg/L
E. coli	Below 1 cfu/100 mL
Turbidity	Below 1 NTU

This is advanced-secondary organic and solids quality with tertiary filtration and disinfection, for selected non-drinking uses. Where a site requires a nitrogen limit or another additional parameter, that performance needs separate evidence; no nitrogen figure is specified here.

The M800sx holds NSW Health accreditation DGTS012 for single domestic premises under its stated conditions. Its sample criteria differ from the design specification above. Commercial configurations and site approvals are assessed separately; this accreditation is not a Level 1 test report.

Treatment explained

What the treatment terms mean

Primary treatment

Settling and physical separation remove some of the solids. Simple screening prepares greywater for the next stage; it does not establish a treated-water quality class.

Secondary treatment

Biological treatment and solids separation reduce organic material and suspended solids. The AS/NZS 1547:2012 secondary benchmark cited here is BOD₅ at or below 20 mg/L and TSS at or below 30 mg/L for 90% of samples, with maximum results of 30 and 45 mg/L respectively.

Advanced secondary / high-secondary

These terms describe improved removal of organic material and suspended solids beyond ordinary secondary treatment. Check the numerical limits in the relevant guidance or project specification.

Tertiary treatment

Tertiary treatment adds further processing after secondary treatment. In the M800sx, ultrafiltration and UV provide those stages. Other processes may address other substances; the term does not, by itself, promise nutrient removal or drinking-water quality.

AS/NZS 1547 covers on-site domestic wastewater management. Further explanations are available in council wastewater guidance.

Australian greywater standard

How Levels 3, 2 and 1 compare

Level 1 is the Australian greywater-quality reference used for the M800sx design specification. The table summarises selected AS 1546.4:2016 criteria. Read each pair as 90% of samples at or below / single-sample maximum. These are reference limits, not M800sx laboratory results.

On a small screen, swipe across the table to compare all columns.

Selected Australian greywater quality criteria
Class	BOD₅ (mg/L)	TSS (mg/L)	E. coli (cfu/100 mL)	Turbidity (NTU)
Level 3	20 / 30	30 / 45	10 / 30	Not listed
Level 2	10 / 20	10 / 20	10 / 30	2 / 5
Level 1	10 / 20	10 / 20	1 / 10	2 / 5

Levels 1 and 2 share the organic, solids and turbidity limits shown here. Level 1 has the tighter E. coli criterion. Assessment also includes the testing programme, disinfection requirements and the Level 1 microbiological challenge.

References: PIA greywater test criteria and EPA Victoria, Table 4-6.

The Australian guidance associates Level 3 with subsurface irrigation, Level 2 with additional uses such as toilet flushing and specified surface irrigation, and Level 1 with washing-machine cold feed and specified hose uses. The permitted uses at your property depend on the complete installation and its approvals.

Reading the results

A treatment level isn't the whole story

Treatment context — not a formal equivalence table
Australian class	New Zealand Local treatment Terms
Level 3	Secondary-type organic and solids quality, with an additional microbial criterion.
Level 2	Advanced-secondary-range organic and solids criteria, with turbidity and microbial control.
Level 1	Tertiary / Advanced-secondary-range organic and solids criteria, with the tighter microbial limit. The M800sx uses tertiary ultrafiltration and UV for its final-water design specification.

BOD describes the oxygen demand from biodegradable material. TSS measures suspended solids. E. coli is a microbial indicator, while turbidity measures cloudiness. Together they tell us more than appearance alone.

Design and approvals

What needs to be checked for your property?

Treatment is one part of a reuse system. Your designer considers the collected water, treatment capacity, storage, plumbing, intended use and wastewater discharge, together with the service plan. Larger or modified plants need evidence for their actual configuration.

Key requirements considered in the design
Reference	Application
Building Code G12	Protection of drinking water, identification of non-potable supplies, storage, backup and delivery.
Building Code G13	Wastewater collection, sanitary plumbing, drainage, treatment and discharge.
G13/VM4 and AS/NZS 1547:2012	G13/VM4 uses specified parts for domestic foul water up to 14,000 L/week and 10 population equivalents. Both limits apply; larger systems need a different assessment.
G14, where applicable	Safe facilities for collection, treatment and disposal, including access and security, where applicable to the installation.
AS/NZS 3500 water and drainage standards	The cited editions and New Zealand modifications for the water-supply and drainage design.
Regional and network requirements	Discharge conditions, sewer or other receiving arrangements, monitoring, setbacks, surplus water and service-waste handling.
Manufacturer and project documents	Equipment manuals and drawings, performance evidence, commissioning checks, operating limits and service instructions.

The designer selects the appropriate compliance method and prepares the supporting information. WCTNZ® assists with product documentation for that work. A general product page or supplement is not an installation approval.

Keep product evidence attached to the equipment it covers. WaterMark documentation for an upstream GreyFlow diversion device does not certify Aqua Clarus treatment quality. Toilet waste, roof runoff and unselected wastewater remain separate; kitchen flows need suitable pretreatment and loading assessment.

Need information for your designer? Contact WCTNZ® about the equipment being considered, the intended reuse and any stated water-quality requirements.

Contact WCTNZ® or call 0800 022 027.

Aqua Clarus Treatment Levels & New Zealand Requirements

What does advanced treatment mean for the water you can reuse?

How clean is the water designed to be?

What the treatment terms mean

Primary treatment

Secondary treatment

Advanced secondary / high-secondary

Tertiary treatment

How Levels 3, 2 and 1 compare

A treatment level isn't the whole story

What needs to be checked for your property?

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