pH Test Kits and Wastewater Treatment

On the average a mobile power wash contractor will generate in excess of 500 gallons of wastewater each day that he washes. As you can see the potential for polluting our Nation’s water resources is tremendous. As professionals and concerned citizens it is incumbent upon us to do everything within our power to preserve our natural resources. To this end I offer the following for your consideration.

pH (p ch ) a chemical symbol.

A measure of acidity or alkalinity of a solution numerically equal to 7 for neutral solutions, increasing with increasing alkalinity and decreasing with increasing acidity. The pH scale commonly in use ranges from 0 to 14.

[ p(otential of) h(ydrogen).]

People in the mobile power wash industry use a pH test kit for measuring the alkalinity or acidity of their wastewater. This is done prior to the discharge of this water to a sanitary sewer system where such is allowed. If the water to be discharged is not within the limits established by the authorities it can be brought into range by adding acid to a high pH or soda ash to low pH waste water which was captured for proper disposal. The most commonly used pH test kit consists of a small roll of red litmus paper and a color/number scale. To test the solution in question you tear off a small strip of the litmus paper and dip one end of the solution. Using the color/number scale provided with your kit you compare the color of the litmus paper that you have dipped in your test solution to the color/number scale and the color/number that matches is the pH value of the solution.

Environmental Impact:

A pH range of 6.0 to 9.0 appears to provide protection for the life of freshwater fish and bottom dwelling invertebrates The most significant environmental impact of pH involves synergistic effects. Synergy involves the combination of two or more substances, which produce effects greater than their sum. Synergy has special significance when considering water and wastewater treatment. The steps involved in water and wastewater treatment require specific pH levels. In order for coagulation [a treatment process] to occur, pH and alkalinity must fall within a limited range.

Sewer Types

Before discharging wastewater to any type of sewer you should check with the local authorities to determine the extent of their requirements.

{One source where this information may be found is on the internet at www.municode.com}

There are basically three types of sewers, they are: Sanitary, Storm, and Combined. Most cities have a Sanitary and a Storm Sewer System. The Sanitary Sewer System is what your home sewer is hooked up to. This system of pipes goes to the sewer treatment plant or Public Owned Treatment Works (POTW). At the POTW the sewage is treated and discharged to lakes, rivers or streams. This is where your wash water needs to go for treatment before being discharged to lakes, rivers and streams.

The Storm Sewer is where the rainwater goes into gutters along the streets and roads. This water is generally discharged directly to lakes, rivers and streams without treatment. Because this water is not remediated before discharge into the environment you should not discharge your wash water to a storm sewer.

Some cities have a combined sewer system where the sanitary and storm sewers are one system and all of the sewage and storm water is treated at the POTW. In these areas the wash water can be discharged to the storm sewer. You will need to call the Sewer Department in each area where you are washing, to determine which system you are discharging to.

Most outside drains are storm sewers and most inside drains are sanitary sewer drains but not always. Be sure to know which is which. If your customer does not know call the Sanitary Sewer Department you are hooked to and they will come out and determine which sewer system each drain is hooked to. In many areas this service is free.

The capacity and capabilities of POTWS vary greatly and so do their discharge limits. Discharge limits are determined by many factors including: the size of the body of water they are discharging to such as a lake, river, stream or ocean, what they are discharging, and the amount they are discharging. The larger the bodies of water the more relaxed are the discharge limits. Because discharge limits and POTW treatment abilities vary, the amount of treatment wash water needs before being discharged to sanitary sewer will also vary from POTW to POTW.

Disposal of Wash Water to the Storm Sewer

Normally you should never dispose of wash water to a storm drain. However, there are common exceptions to this rule. They are: house washing of a home by the owner, vehicle washing at residences, and vehicle washing by charities. Municipalities will generally overlook these transgressions.

Some Cities are allowing cold water washing with no chemicals (other cities hot water washing with no chemicals where there is no oil and grease, dirt only) to go into the storm sewer if these areas contain no hydrocarbons, pesticides, insecticides, or antifreeze. Hot water washing is considered to be PROCESSED WATER because hot water will emulsify oil and greases. Cold water washing is considered no worse than a rain event. The oil and grease spots should be pre-cleaned with absorbent clay (kitty litter) and disposed of in the dumpster. Leaves, debris, and dirt should be cleaned up before washing so this contamination does not enter the storm sewer. Storm Sewer entrances should be screened to catch leaves and debris and the wash water should pass through an oil absorbent boom or pad to absorb the hydrocarbons. No oil sheen should be present after passing through the oil absorbent filter. The lack of chemicals can be compensated for, by using a zero degree rotating nozzle such as a Turbo Nozzle or a Rotomax Zero Degree Rotating Nozzle. Typical washing examples are: Vehicles on Dealer Lots (dust only), sidewalks, shopping malls, parking lots, buildings, and homes.

Some cities will allow building washing with acid cleaners if the acid is neutralized before entering the storm sewer. Typical neutralization is with baking soda (sodium bicarbonate), soda ash (sodium carbonate), or an alkaline detergent instead of a clear water rinse. In other cities the cleaning is done with cold water, no chemicals, and rotating zero degree nozzles.

The information offered in this article is intended to give you a springboard from which you can begin your search for information. This is not intended to be the final word on the subject. You should continue your search for information. “Knowledge is Power”.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Larry_Hinckley

Car Wash Drainage Slope and Gutters to Collect Rain Water and Dripping Run Off

Should all carwashes being built in the future be commissioned to collect all the water coming off the cars to be recycled and reused? Should all rain water coming onto the property, perhaps even adjoining properties be sent thru a similar system to treat, filter and condition the water to be used to wash cars?

Could you build a car wash which relied on rain storm water with reservoirs and recycling using all the water over and over again to prevent waste, conserve water and perhaps even not have any city water hook ups or sewer discharges at all; a perfectly environmentally friendly car wash system for the twenty first century? Well, yes this is all possible. How so you ask?

Well recently a smart Business Marketing Student came up with this concept and pitched the idea to an online think tank, to ask them if; A) Anyone had ever done this before and B) If there was equipment already available which could be used to make it possible.

It appears our fellow Marketing Student and Thinker, Paula Chavis, has hit the jackpot on both accounts. In that yes such equipment does exist and it would only be a matter of installing it and no, no one has ever done anything like this on this level or scale to my knowledge. Previously before retirement, I was indeed in the car wash industry myself.

How could this best be done? Well with a series of dips or concrete canals thru the parking lot which were indented about 2-3 inches like a reverse speed bump and with all areas sloped towards it. Adjacent property run off could also be collected, by use of small grated troughs running along their perimeters and towards the car wash, which would include all rain gutter run off too. The car wash would always have plenty of water and would not need city water hook up, but rather a large reservoir of pre-filtrated storm water run off.

Currently in the car wash industry there are plenty of fully self-contained close loop systems, which recycle the water and reuse it over and over again. This concept would be taking that concept to a whole new level. Indeed there is 5-7 gallons loss of water thru evaporation during the drying process and ending up on the towels and/or left on the car wash property while dripping. Most of this would then be collected unless a super hot day. Additionally the water that drips off the car as it drives down the street from the car wash would then be compensated for by the collection of storm water from the rain and the run off from the adjacent properties. Consider all this n 2006.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance in the Online Think Tank and solve the problems of the World; www.WorldThinkTank.net/

How Do You Install Your Own Plumbing And Drainage System?

The first thing that you will need to consider when undertaking any DIY plumbing and drainage are the regulations issued by your Local Authority or State Department covering these.

If you are altering your existing drainage, or installing a new drainage system you must always inform the local Building Control Department at your local council offices. You will almost certainly need to present detailed plans of the work that you intend to undertake and it will need to be inspected as the work progresses making sure that it complies with local building regulations. If you are simply replacing damaged sections, in most circumstances they do not need to be informed. However, if in any doubt – check it out. A simply phone call should suffice.

To begin with we will take a look at drainage systems.

These can be described as Foul Water systems and Surface Water systems. Foul water is anything that comes from bathrooms, kitchens, utility rooms, car washing areas etc. Waste from these sources must always go to your foul water drain system.

Surface water is basically rainwater. This can discharged into a soakaway, watercourse, surface water sewer or, particularly in older properties, into the foul water drainage system. In a combined system, the rainwater pipes are discharged into the foul water drains via gully traps which stop foul air escaping from the drains. However, modern systems are designed to keep the foul water and the surface water apart. It is extremely important to ensure that you do not connect foul water to a surface water drainage system. If you are unsure about the drainage system around your house get advice from the Building Control Department before you start any work.

Remember – If in doubt – check it out!

Planning

Before you begin, you will need to plan the route of the waste pipes. The main things to consider when planning the route of a waste or soil pipe are to keep the route as straight and short as you can. You must avoid making your pipe runs too steep. A soil pipe is normally laid to a fall of 1:40. This won’t seem very much but it is plenty. The rule of thumb for pipe laying is ‘a touch on the bubble’. This means that the bubble on the spirit level has moved to the higher end, but part of the bubble is still contained between the level lines on the spirit level. Remember - this is only a ‘rule of thumb guide. You can calculate the fall of a drain over a distance using a surveyor’s site level. If you do not have one of these available, establish a datum point and use a hosepipe filled with water to establish levels and calculate the fall from the datum this way. (If a hosepipe is filled with water, the level of the water will equal out at each end, measure to the trench floor from the end away from the datum to enable your calculations.)

Your local authority will be able to give you the recommended falls for pipework. Putting in drainage:

Preparing the trench:

When installing your drain trench, you will need to make sure that you do not impair the stability of the building. If you are laying a drain run parallel to the building, you must ensure that any foundations are not undermined.

Do not dig the trench too long before laying the pipe when installing a new drainage system. Make sure that you get the pipes laid as quickly as possible and then backfill the trench as soon as the system has been inspected and tested. The trench may need to be supported depending on the depth and soil conditions. Do not take any risks. If in doubt – add support to the trench to prevent it from collapsing. Keep the trench as narrow as possible, but allow room to work in the trench - say the width of the pipe plus 150mm (6”) on each side. The base of the trench should be clean and even and free from protruding stones or bricks etc. You may need to import a suitable material for the base of the trench if the existing material is unsuitable. Your local inspector will advise you.

Never use bricks and/or other hard materials to support the pipe in the trench. This will damage the pipe and must never be used as temporary or permanent support. The bedding should be properly compacted with hollows made to accommodate the joints in the pipes. You will need to provide a continuous and uniform support for the complete length of the pipe. Once the laid pipes have been inspected, granular material should be evenly backfilled and compacted to a depth of at least 100mm above the pipe. 10 mm shingle has often been used as a backfill material as, not only is it a uniform medium but is also a visual warning to anyone excavating in the area of the drains that there are drainage pipes immediately below. Above the granular backfill material, the original dug material can be used to completely backfill the trench. This should be compacted in 300mm layers. Be sure not use heavy compactors until there is at least 300mm of cover. Light vibratory tampers could be used sensibly to help with the compaction.

You will need to protect any part of the drain system that is less than 600mm below a garden. This is because of potential damage from garden activities and gardening tools. A 50mm layer of lean concrete laid 100mm above the pipe will be adequate to do this. However you could use preformed concrete slabs as an alternative.

It is important that all parts of your drainage system are designed so that all parts of the pipework are accessible to a set of drain rods. Therefore, a run of drains should be as straight as possible between two points. As a general rule, any change in direction of the pipework should be provided with an inspection chamber to allow rodding access. This will also apply to changes in gradient, all drain junctions that are inaccessible to a set of drain rods, changes in pipe diameter and at the head of each run of drain. Where a junction between two drains does not have a manhole, access should be sited on the branch drain within 12 metres of the junction.

DIY plumbing and drainage is certainly within the bounds of most DIY enthusiasts. However, you must remember that it is important to follow local building control regulations and, as always, it is ‘hard graft’!

Remember if in doubt – check it out!

Whilst the author endeavors to ensure the accuracy of the information contained within this article, you are reminded that this is only a guide and you should always check with local professional before undertaking any work based herein.

After many years working in the construction industry, Phil now teaches in the UK. He has written many articles for web sites like Householders Guide and http://ukhomeonline.co.uk. His wide knowledge of the Construction Industry and Housing Markets makes him a popular author on how to install drainage.©

Wash Waste Water Removal from Auto Detailing Services

If you own a mobile auto detailing company then you are most likely aware that there are laws; namely the Federal Clean Water Act, which prohibit the discharge of wash water run-off into a Storm Drain. Each city and many larger corporations and business properties have NPDES permits and are responsible for that run-off. If you are washing as a Non-point source discharge polluter then you are responsible for your waste wash water run-off as well. So, what can you do you ask?

Well simple really; Craftsman offers a new PUMP OUT Wet/Dry Shop Vacuum accessory, which you can attach to any Craftsman Shop Vac. This attachment allows you to suck up to 10 gallons per minute and straight up as high as 40 feet from a garden hose. The whole system only weighs about 4 pounds and it costs $40.

Now then, all you need to do is block off the storm drain with a storm drain blocker or corral the water into a single location and then let some of that water evaporate while you were working and then before you go vacuum up the remaining water into an additional storage tank on your mobile detail rig. Thus you have complied with the law and cleaned up the parking lot.

Later on you can simply use this water provided you have only used biodegradable soaps to water your lawn at home or water the landscape where you are. This prevents you from polluting into a storm drain and makes you a good corporate citizen. Perhaps you'll consider this in 2006.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance in the Online Think Tank and solve the problems of the World; www.WorldThinkTank.net/

Car Wash Fundraisers and Waste Water Restrictions in California

Many cities are disallowing car wash fundraisers unless the non-profit group can guarantee that no dirty car wash soapy water will go into the storm drain. No matter how you feel about the government’s philosophy on car wash fundraisers, we suggest that you follow some of the following Best Management Practices (BMP’s) especially if your city or county regulates such discharges. They might not and a little soap is actually good for the environment. I suggest you use a coconut-based soap or citrus-based soap. You might even try Liquid Organic Cleaner (L.O.C.) from Amway. It doesn’t form a lot of suds but it works great and won’t hurt the environment or the fish if a little run off (car wash waste water effluent) finds its way into a storm drain. If you are in a city or county that regulates discharges from car wash fundraisers, such as Los Angeles or San Francisco, you are going to have to follow the rules.

We suggest that you use the following methods to contain your waste wash water and prevent the effluent from entering near by storm drains or waterways. We call these methods "Best Management Practices" or "BMP’s". Your goal should be not to let any water containing soap to enter any storm drain. With this goal in mind, you should proceed and have a great fundraiser and earn those much needed monies that your organization deserves.

BMP #1: Block off the storm drain. Try to wash the cars at the highest point, hopefully a flat surface area. At the end of the day after most of the water has evaporated, pump the remaining the water into a sanitary sewer drain. If you are at a gas station, they might have a dump for R.V. toilets. A clarifier is also good. Maybe a restroom toilet. On a sunny day most of the water will evaporate. If no one in your group owns a water pump ask the local wastewater authorities if you may borrow a pump for your event. Or vacuum up the water with a shop vacuum.

BMP #2: Select a site where the cars can be driven onto grass or gravel before washing. This way soapy water can filter through vegetation and soil before entering ground water or running off into the drainage ditch or storm drain.

BMP #3: Have a great car wash but don’t use any soap.

BMP #4: Block off the storm drains and pump left over wastewater onto the grass or into the planters thereby water the landscaping. Let most of the water evaporate before pumping so you don’t overflow the planters.

BMP #5: Pick a location where water runs off into a field or landscape directly after the pavement ends.

SO WHAT’S IN THE WATER THAT MAKES IT SO BAD ANYWAYS?

Well, first of all, we have chlorine in our tap water. There is also magnesium and calcium. And that’s before you even wash one car. If you spray the hose in the air that’s what’s in the water before it hits the ground. Due to the calcium and magnesium in the water in California, especially Southern California, it is necessary to soften our water. The chlorine and fluoride that we add to our water doesn’t help any either. Hard water spots are a major problem. Just park your car next to your sprinklers at home and you will see exactly what we are talking about. If your car is a dark color and you park it in the sun, the hard water spots will etch themselves into your clear coat and cause permanent damage to your paint job. The chemicals bake into the paint.

The desert cities such as Lancaster, Palm Springs, etc. have a major problem with this. You see, when it’s 115° F in the shade, the cars dry in three minutes. Luckily, multiple dryers can dry a car in two minutes. A crew of two can stay on top of it by drying most cars in one to one and one-half minutes. The main problem is soaping. The soap dries before you can rinse it off and the water evaporates out of the soap bucket every fifth car. The sprayer has to follow the soaper around the car, which is good because, by the time they are done, they’re hot. They can take turns spraying each other off.

If you have ever taken any chemistry classes, you know that just about everything is water soluble eventually. Water can combine with almost anything and make some pretty weird compounds, none of which are particularly good for the environment.

The hardness is water is caused by calcium and magnesium ions that form insoluble compounds. Also you can find iron and even traces of aluminum in our water. Our water is some of the clearest and cleanest in the world. It comes from the DWP (Department of Water and Power) and the MWD (Metropolitan Water District). Actually it doesn’t really come from there. It starts out as rain, drains to lakes and rivers and is brought to the people by canals, pipes and pumping stations.

So that is exactly what’s in the water before the wash. Now here is what may be in the water after the car wash. 6-22 mg/l of oil and grease. Usually this doesn’t come off the car. This is what is on the ground already that the water washes away. Yuk! How would you like to drink that in your bottled water. There are also suspended solids (TSS) with concentrations of 35-151 mg/l. Most of that is dirt, yet we can never know where each car has been and what’s in that dirt (i.e. bird droppings). There will also be foaming agents (soap) with concentrations of 0.3-1.41 mg/l which is very low. Yet I wouldn’t want to drink it or use it to make ice cubes. There probably isn’t but there could also be toluene, ethylbenzene and benzene. These are wicked ingredients that you definitely don’t want floating around in your puppy’s water bowl or your wife’s cappuccino. All other run off from car washes meets the drinking water standards and is certainly not going to adversely affect wild life or kill any ocean going fish.

The Regional Water Quality Control Board is not the only governing body concerned with water discharges. The Coastal Commission is also very concerned as well as the Department of Fish and Game. Both agencies have authority to issue civil penalties for water pollution.

For more information on water quality you can contact:

California Department of Fish and Game
Marine Resources Division
330 Golden Shore, Suite 50
Long Beach, CA 90802
FAX (310) 590-5193

Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board
101 Centre Plaza Drive
Monterey Park, CA 91754
Phone (213) 266-7500

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance in the Online Think Tank and solve the problems of the World; www.WorldThinkTank.net/

Mobile Car Wash Waste Water Run Off

If you are going to run a mobile car wash you will need to make sure that you do not allow water to enter a storm drain, as that is illegal and those drains are meant for actually rain water.

Blocking storm drains is easy and then allow the water to evaporate a little and take what is left in the waste tank. Next you will want to make pre-arrangements to get rid of the water for instance contact the city or make a deal with a Coin Op car wash to dump the carwash waste water there which will go into their system properly.

Or you can divert the water if possible into vegetation and that should comply with the NPDES permitting, but be sure to run this by the local water quality control board or city.

One of the easiest ways to collect the wastewater is to dam up the flow towards the storm drain or block the storm drain completely. You can buy a vacuum, which both sucks and pumps the water from a Wal-Mart for about $79.00 and attach a garden hose to it to suck up any collected wastewater. Then you can put it into a small storage tank on your pick-up or trailer unit to remove it from the property.

There are other solutions also, which may include using a mat to wash on and there are a few companies, which sell these; “Car Wash Mats” or “Auto Detailing Mats” that you can purchase. I hope you will protect our Nation’s water supply and consider all this in 2006.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance in the Online Think Tank and solve the problems of the World; www.WorldThinkTank.net/

Safety And Health Aspects - Waste Water

Generally, all waste-water treatment works, irrespective of their size, have to comply with strict governmental safety and regulations acts. It is the responsibility of the owner or local authority to be fully acquainted with all aspects of the safety guidelines for waste-water treatment operations. The potential danger of an explosion of biogas and air mixtures cannot be over- emphasised, therefore units such as the waste gas burner should preferably be situated at least 15 m away from the gas holder, digester(s) or any buildings, together with due consideration to the prevailing wind.

The health hazards associated with the treatment of waste-water and specifically sludge handling should not be under-estimated. It is the responsibility of the supervisor and the operating staff to acquaint themselves of the dangers and to take the necessary steps to avoid them.

A wide variety of disease-causing organisms are present in both the liquid phase and the sludge stage. Amongst these are salmonella, shigella and vibro that cause diarrhoea and other intestinal tract problems. Viruses are also usually present in waste-water sludges. Amongst these are viruses causing infectious hepatitis, poliomyelitis, sore throats, gastroenteritis and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which can cause AIDS. Protozoa such as entamoeba and giardia that cause intestinal distress are also common in waste-water treatment works. Helminths, such as ascaris (roundworm), taenia (tapeworm) and trichuris (whipworm) are also part of the bio-breakdown process but the ova of these can pass through the body and are fairly resistant to normal treatment processes including anaerobic digestion. Very high counts are usually found in sludge. The ova can survive in sol for several years.

Basic health hygiene rules apply when working in waste-water treatment plants; always wash up properly after working or handling any part of the waste-water treatment system or products. Try to avoid touching your face without washing your hands. Refrain from smoking whilst on the works, it is very easy to ingest disease-causing organisms. Protective clothing is an absolutely essential while working in a waste-water treatment plant especially while working with liquid sludges. Most of the guidelines associated with waste-water treatment are common sense. If one is not sure, every plant should have a code of health and hygiene that can be checked upon to see every health aspect associated with the waste plant.

All waste-water treatment works are classified as factories and must have first aid kit available in-case of accidents. The location of these first aid kits should be prominently displayed as well as the name of the first aid officer assigned to a specific section. It is recommended that all senior operating staff must have completed a basic first aid course. All open wounds should be treated by a doctor and it is important to receive a tetanus injection occasionally due to the types of bacteria workers are exposed to. As a general rule no scratch or cut is too minor to receive proper treatment.

Michael Russell Your Independent guide to Waste Treatments