AU612461B2 - Storage water separator for polluted rain water - Google Patents

Description

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FILING DATE: EDWARD LESLIE LUCAS MAVIS ELSIE LUCAS PI 6639/88 8/ 2/88 0 Form COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA The Patents Act. 1952 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR AN INVENTION ENTITLED: STORAGE WATER SEPARATOR FOR POLLUTED RAIN WATER The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of perforiming it known to me/us: This form must be accompanied by either a provisional specification (Form 9 and true copy) or by a complete specification (Form 10 and true copy).

This invention relates to a storage water separator for polluted rain water.

Many persons are still reliant on, or prefer to use rain water collected from roofs or the like for consumption but it has been appreciated that such water can, at least on occasions, be polluted.

For example if there are periods without rain there can he a build up on a roof of various deposited materials such as sand and dust as well as organic material, specifically leaves and twigs and, on occasions bodies of birds or Small rodents.

o 9 0 0 0 0a Normally, at best, water being fed to a storage tank passes through a .E0 strainer which must have a mesh size sufficiently greater to be unlikely to block and thus while the larger polluted material will be prevented from entering the storage container smaller materials will still enter the o oo container and can pollute the water and, at the same time, can build up o° lo* substantial sludge deposits and the like in the bottom of the tank which can subsequently decompose if there is organic material therein.

e 00 The object of the present invention is to provide a means whereby there fii can be selective delivery from water run off so that there is a substantial restriction of the amount of pollution that can enter the storage.

The invention in its broadest aspect includes a storage water separator which comprises a tank which Is associated with a storage tank and which an inlet whereby water from a collecting surface can be fed thereto and an outlet adjacent the upper end thereof which enters into the storage tank, a drain outlet within the separator tank whereby water which initially enters the separator tank from the collecting surface can be passed therefrom and means whereby the drain outlet can be closed so that the tank can fill with -2- Lucas/72/Feb89 iu:; ne _ommmissioner ot vatents l I E

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water which can then pass from the outlet to the storage tank.

It may be preferred that the drain outlet can be in the base of the separator tank and can have a valve seat extending into the tank and there may be a valve means which is moved by water entering the tank until, when a certain quantity of water has so entered, the valve closes on the valve seat.

The valve may include a container which is normally biased away from the .o7, valve seat but which can receive a certain percentage of the water which enters the separator tank so that, when a predetermined quantity of water has been received the valve will close on the valve seat thus permitting the separator tank to fill and water to pass from the outlet to the container.

In order that the invention may be more readily understood reference will be made to the accompanying drawings in which;- Figure 1 shows one form of device of the invention associated with a o °storage tank; and Figure 2 shows the general arrangement of the components in the separator l tank; and Referring firstly to Figure 1 the separator tank is shown as being basically rectangular but having arcuate sides to permit closer button to the wall of a cylindrical water tank, It will be appreciated from the description hereinafter that the shape of the separator tank is not critical but generally for convenience it is desirable to locate it adjacent the wall of the storage tank near the top thereof preferably so that the existing down pipe arrangement from the -3- SLbucas/72/Feb89 1" spouting of the roof or the like from which the storage tank gains its water can be modified for connection thereto.

Obviously the outlet from 12 must enter the storage tank at or adjacent its top.

The separator tank can be made of any required material but preferably would be made of galvanised iron or brass so as to have a life effectively equivalent to the life of the storage tank with which it is to be used.

1 0 Referring specifically to Figure 2 the waste water outlet 11 may pass Q 0& 0 through the base of the tank and be sealed relative thereto and may extend o 0 a short distance into the tank.

0 0 o o o o 0 Adjacent is upper end it may be provided with a pair of diametrically extending outwardly directed pins 13 which are adapted to cooperate with ,o0 o slots 14 in a standing strainer and float guide 15. The upwardly directed o edge 16 of the waste water outlet pipe forms as will be described oo o hereinafter, a valve seat.

0 o The strainer and float guide 15 may be made of any required material but Scould satisfactorily be a plastics or metal pipe and in its lower portion, but above the end 16 of the waste outlet there can be a number of strainer holes 17 which permit the passage of water therethrough but which will generally prevent the passage of larger objects.

Located in the guide 15 there is a float 20 which can be in the form of an open topped hollow cylinder and again can be made of any required material.

At its lower end we can provide a stabilising washer 21 and a valve member Lucas /72/Feb89 Lucas 172 /Feb89 3t 3 D C' 0 33 22 which can be in the form of a sealing washer.

The members 21 and 22 can be connected to the closed lower end of the cylindrical float 20 by means of a cap 23 which is provided with a drain hole, not illustrated passing therethrough.

This cap is fitted to the float in any required way but as illustrated we provide a combined strainer threaded member 24 which can receive the end of the cap 23 and which, at the same time, acts as a barrier to permit the passage of water from the float to the drain but prevents any solid material which may block the drain from passing therethrough. Depending on the application, the size of the holes in the strainer can be varied, or if required, the strainer can be omitted.

The upper end of the float 20 is closed and the closure 25 may be in the form of a filter material or the like but has sufficient strength to carry a support stem 26 which can support the float assembly even when filled with water.

Fitted to the stem 26 there is a support rod 30 which is attached to one end of a lever arm 31 which is pivotted about a pivot 32 and which has on its other end a further support rod 33 and a weight 34. The form of the lever arm can be varied to obtain the most satisfactory result over a long term useage, The pivot 32 may be on a bracket 35 which in turn is connected to a member 36 whch is connected to the enterior surfaces of the separator tank.

A water catchment finger 40, which may be in the form of an open trough Lucas/72/Feb89 i i r; iior the like passes through the wall of the strainer and float guide and terminates above the upper surface of the float and which extends under the inlet 50 which is associated with the down pipes on the collecting surface.

The actual form of the inlet 50 will depend upon the particular physical relationship between the various components and may pass through the top of the separator tank 10 or could pass through a side wall adjacent the upper edge. In order to drain the separator tank at intervals, a drain tap plug 51 is provided in the lower surface thereof.

i The invention will be clearly understood when its operation is described.

When rain commences to fall the run off will pass into the separator tank o from the inlet 50 and It will be appreciated that this initial run off will tend to carry with it any material which it settled on the r"ollecting surface or in the guttering, that is the major part of the pollution.

S This water enters the separator tank and a substantial part of it passes to the bottom of the separator tank and when the level reaches a predetermined leverl the water drains through the strainer holes 17 into the waste water outlet 11 from which it can be passed either to waste or for purposes other than human consumption.

Part of the water is received by the catchment finger 40 and is fed through the staining upper surface 25 into the body of the float This water will, to an extent, commence to drain from the float through the drain hole in the cap 23 but the drain is arranged so its rate is substantially less than the normally expected rate of passage of water into -6- Lucas/72/Feb89 -i L the float, assuming there is reasonable precipitation.

In a predetermined time, then the weight of the float will increase it will become heavier than the counterweight 34 and it will move in the guide until the valve member 21 reaches the seat 16 formed on the upper end of the waste outlet li and the ?ink will be sealed.

Ingress of further water into the tank will then cause the level of water in the tank to rise until it reaches the level of the outlet and all further water o 0 will then pass into the storage tank.

It will thus be seen that the initial water entering the separated tank will immediately drain the waste outlet, and this water will maintain a o e substantial part of the pollution and a further quantity of water will be retained in the waste tank, and as this has many heavy material, such as o sand or the like this will settle on the bottom of the tank and then o a o subsequent water will tend to pass to the storage tank.

"o t S Of course if the inlet water contains heavy contaminates these will tend to drop to the bottom of the separator tank and thus be prevented from passing into the storage tank.

When water run off finishes the water in the separator tank will drain into the waste water outlet through the drain hole in the retaining cap 23 and whilst this delivery will be relatively slow there will come a time when the weight of the float will become less than that of the counter weight 34, the float will rise and any remaining water in the separator tank which is above the level of the strainer hold 17 will pass to waste through these holes.

It will be appreciated that if vtere is intermitent precipitation then the -7- Lucas/72/Feb89 rate of flow of water from the separator tank will not be sufficient to permit the float to rise and further water passed along the catchment finger will tend to refill the float And the further percipitation, which will of course tend to be unpolluted as it is following relatively quickly on the earlier precipitation, shall pass directly to the storage tank.

It will be appreciated that the float 20 does not have to be sealed in the float guide as it is of no concern, if the overall water level is higher than the float that the float be retained full. As long as the period which is passed since previously percipitation is not substantial then the amount of polluting material on the surface will be minimal and there is no need to separate water.

At predetemined intervals the drain cap 51 in the separator tank can be removed and any sludge build up in the bottom of the separator tank can be flushed so that this is unlikely to be stired up on new water entering the *tank and possibly increasing pollution.

It will be seen that the separator of the present invention is simple and has little to go wrong, can have a life expectancy of the same order as the life taxpectancy of the storage tank with which it is associated, the only maintenance which should be required be to occasionaly flush the tank and possibly to replace the valve washer 22 and yet it provides effective and automatic separation of water which is likely to be polluted from that which is clean.

Also, if water is a scarse commodity in its position of location the water which is considered to be waste as far as human consumption is concerned can readily be diverted to other purposes.

-8- Lucas/72/Feb89 I Whilst we have described a particular mechancial means of effecting the invention it will be appreciated to persons skilled in the art that this could be varied substantially to provide the same effect and without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

0F 4 OV Ui b0 U 4 0J 4 Lucas/72/Feb89

Claims (9)

1. A storage water separator which comprises a tank which is associated with a storage tank and which has an inlet whereby water from a collecting surface can be fed thereto and an outlet adjacent the upper end thereof which enters into the storage tank a drain outlet within the separator tank whereby water which initially enters the separator tank from the collecting surface can be passed therefrom and means operated by water entering the tank whereby the drain outlet can be closed so that the tank can fill with water i which can then pass from the outlet to the storage.

2. A separator as claimed in claim I wherein the means whereby the drain outlet can be closed comprises a valve which is moved into contact with a seat which surrounds the outlet after a pre- determined quantity of water has entered the tank.

3. A separator as claimed in claim 2 wherein the valve comprises a float having a valve member on its lower surface, the float, when empty, being biased away from the seat and, when filled with water, Sbeing moved to contact the seat and thereby close the outlet.

4. A separator as claimed in claim 3 wherein a predetermined part of the water entering the tank from the inlet is passed to the float.

A separator as claimed in claim 4 wherein there is a catchment means located in the path of the water to the float.

6. A separator as claimed in clain 4 or claim 5 wherein the float has a drain aperture therethrough which enters Into the drain outlet so that, water in the tank can pass through the drain outlet so that, after sufficient water has passed therefrom, the float Is moved away Lucas/72/Feb39 from the valve seat.

7. A separator as claimed in any one of claims 3 to 6 wherein the float is conterbalanced by a weight which is less than the weight of the float when filled with water.

8. A separator as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the drain outlet is at one end of a cylinder into which water may pass and wherein the valve seat is formed in the cylinder.

9. A separator as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the separator tank is adapted to be connected to the storage tank, on the outer surface thereof. A storage water separator substantially as hereinbefore described Swith reference to the accompanying drawings. I I DATED this 8th day of February 1989 0 00® 0 0 o t ESWARD LESLIE LUCAS By His Patent Attorneys A. TATLOCK ASSOCIATES Fellows Institute of Patent Attorneys of Australia -11- k Lucas /72/Feb89