The Golden State: Where & How to Live, Secure, Visit, Enjoy and Thrive in California

How To Design And Install Plumbing

Sprinkle or Trickle Filter. The liquid content of the raw sewage is pumped from the clear water well under the pump-house floor into a large reservoir which is located about 20 feet above the filter. The filter consists of a large concrete tank filled with crushed limestone of odd shapes and sizes. The bottom of the tank is provided with water courses drained into a large duct terminating in the secondary clarifier.

The reservoir is fitted with an automatic siphon which starts to operate when the sewage reaches a high level in the tank. The discharge of the siphon is connected to a series of sprinklers which spray the liquid over the stone fill, in the manner of an ordinary lawn sprinkler.

Trickle filters serve in the same capacity. They consist of perforated pipe lines extended from a pivot or axis and rotated by the water being ejected from the perforations.

The sewage, sprayed into the atmosphere, oxidizes and, as it passes through the stone fill, most of the small particles of suspended matter are eliminated. A gelatinous substance forms over the stone fill which also helps to eliminate bacteria.

Secondary Clarifier. The secondary tank or clarifier is identical in construction with the primary clarifier. The remaining particles of sewage are settled to the bottom and returned into the primary treatment tank. The clear water is discharged into the disposal plant's drainage terminal.

Chlorination. In most sprinkle and trickle filter sewage disposal plants, chlorine is injected to neutralize objectionable bacteria as an added precaution against water pollution.

Private Sewage Disposal

Modern transportation has made the country readily accessible to the urban resident, with a result that thousands of people spend week-ends, as well as extended vacations in natural beauty spots. This migration presents a serious problem from the standpoint of sanitation. Facilities for the disposal of fecal and organic wastes left by the tourists have opened a new field for the plumber.

Promiscuous discharge of organic materials has in many instances polluted lakes, rivers, and streams to such an extent that aquatic life has suffered to the point of near extinction. As a protective measure many states now have conservation commissions cooperating with health boards in a regulatory capacity with respect to this problem. Rigid laws are being passed by state legislatures to give these boards power to specify and control sanitary requirements for individual homes, factory and business sites, tourist camps, and resorts.