Garchey

The Garchey System was an early refuse disposal system in the United Kingdom. Devised by Louis Garchey, a Frenchman, it was first installed in blocks of flats in France during the 1930s.[1] It was first used in the UK in 1935 after the City of Leeds installed it in one of its housing blocks.[2] A British firm holds the UK rights.[3]

Similar systems were installed in various buildings during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. A more sophisticated system was installed in London's Barbican Estate in the 1960s and 1970s.

Methodology

The disposal system is distinguished for its water-borne method of refuse conveyance.[2] Conventional waste chutes convey dry refuse from individual flats. With the Garchey system, refuse (ranging from potato peelings and ashes to small bottles and tins) is collected in a unit below the sink in each residential unit through a large plug in the sink. When the refuse has accumulated in the unit and was soaked with water, it is discharged into cast iron stacks.[3] From there it is flushed with water to central tanks for periodic removal or treatment.[1]

Some installations of the Garchey system (e.g. Spa Green Estate) caused complaints for its tendency to produce foul smell and "bubbling back" of the refuse due to poor maintenance.[4]

Installations
In Britain
In France

References
  1. The Garchey story (On Barbican Living, accessed: 5 September 2017)
  2. Stirrup, F. L. (1965). Public Cleansing: Refuse Disposal. London: Pergamon Press, Ltd. p. 137. ISBN 978-1-4831-8068-7.
  3. Wise, A. F. E.; Swaffield, John (2002). Water, Sanitary and Waste Services for Buildings, Fifth edition. Oxford: Butterworth Heinemann. p. 90. ISBN 0750652551.
  4. Temple, Philip (2008). Northern Clerkenwell and Pentonville, Volume XLVII. London: Yale University Press. p. 83. ISBN 978-0-300-13937-2.


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