Project Overview
Corbenic Camphill Community required a robust and sustainable private water supply solution capable of treating water from a long-standing spring supply while incorporating a backup river source. The system needed to effectively remove iron, manganese, and clostridium contamination, ensure safe potable water, and reduce reliance on the spring supply during high-demand periods.
Challenges Identified
- Iron and Manganese Contamination – Required removal to improve water quality.
- Clostridium Presence in River Supply – Likely due to upstream agricultural activity, necessitating an additional filtration stage for safety.
- Seasonal Water Demand – The system needed to efficiently manage peak consumption while reducing reliance on potable water for non-drinking applications.
- Chemical Handling Risks – Manually transferring caustic soda and chlorine posed health and safety concerns for site staff.
Solution Implemented
- Comprehensive Water Treatment System
- Three-stage bag filtration for initial sediment and particulate removal.
- Automatically backwashing iron and manganese reduction systems to improve water clarity and quality.
- Proportional chlorine dosing controlled via a pulse output flow meter to ensure accurate disinfection.
- Automatic pH correction dosing using caustic soda and a pH probe for water balance.
- 4500L cold water storage tank to provide a buffer supply.
- Twin Booster Pump System
- Installed a DAB 2KVC twin booster pump set, ensuring redundancy and reliability in maintaining consistent water pressure.
- Backup River Water Supply Integration
- The system was designed to allow river water to be treated through the same infrastructure, with the ability to be routed through additional filtration stages when required.
- Installed a Watts Big Bubba 1-micron filter and two 0.5-micron cyst reduction cartridges to mitigate Clostridium risks before use.
- Water Efficiency Measures
- Reconfigured pipework to enable garden irrigation taps to use river water during summer months, saving approximately 4,000L of spring water per day and preserving potable supply.
- Chemical Handling Safety Enhancements
- Installed two air-operated diaphragm pumps to assist staff in transferring chemicals from 25kg drums into storage tanks, reducing manual handling risks and exposure to hazardous chemicals.
Outcome
The system now comfortably delivers 25,000L of treated water per day, ensuring safe, compliant, and sustainable water management for Corbenic Camphill Community. The integration of a backup river supply with enhanced filtration provides resilience and flexibility, while the new chemical transfer setup improves staff safety and operational efficiency.
