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 France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

during the 1930s.The Garchey story
(On ''Barbican Living'', accessed: 5 September 2017) It was first used in the UK in 1935 after the City of Leeds installed it in one of its housing blocks. A British firm holds the UK rights. 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. 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. From there it is flushed with water to central tanks for periodic removal or treatment. 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.

Installations

;In Britain * London's Barbican Estate (1960s and 1970s) * RAH Livett's Quarry Hill Flats (1941, demolished 1978) * Chalkhill Estate in Wembley, London *

Park Hill Flats Park Hill is a housing estate in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. It was built between 1957 and 1961, and in 1998 was given Grade II* listed building status. Following a period of decline, the estate is being renovated by developers Urban ...

in Sheffield ( Jack Lynn and Ivor Smith, opened 1961) * Spa Green Estate, Clerkenwell, London ;In France * The French Garden city at du Plessis-Robinson. * The Matrat-Voisembert property complex in

Issy-les-Moulineaux Issy-les-Moulineaux () is a commune in the southwestern suburban area of Paris, France, lying on the left bank of the river Seine. Its citizens are called ''Isséens'' in French. It is one of Paris' entrances and is located from Notre-Dame Cat ...

(until 2005). * Le Corbusier's Cité radieuse de Marseille.

Methodology

Installations

References

External links