Overall Design - extendable and user-friendly.

[eak24]

Here is the first attempt at making a comprehensive, extendable design for the PF300. To add more sed tanks, simply extend the platform and add some more in the same configuration. I think this could reasonably expand up to 6 sed tanks with minimal changes (enlarging the filters to 2 L/s, enlarging the entrance tank, enlarging the chemical storage.) Things I'm still concerned about:

• living quarters
• ease of chemical mixing
• safety when standing on the filter or the sed tank
• bathroom/bodega
• distribution box.

[eak24]

@mintynunez @monroews @rvl24 Here is a rough AutoCAD sketch of my latest thoughts on the ideal design for X number of plantitas. The core concept is a central elevated platform that gives access to the sed tanks, filters, entrance tank and dosification and chemical tanks. This platform could even be made out of wood. The challenge is the length of stairs. Since the platform needs to be tall enough for a sed tank to slide underneath, the stairs need to extend out quite a ways (roughly 3 meters). This means we're left on either side with some unused space. I think these spaces could be used for a bodega, baño, and oficina, but the optimal layout is still unclear to me. The operator will be able to walk freely below the platform as well. In the center of the below section, I think we'll want to found a concrete trench that will serve as a mini drain channel. Both the floc hopper drain and the filter siphon drain will deposit into there. With this design, adding a new floc-sed-fi system would just require extending the pad over, moving the wall and extending the platform. You would not need to re-route the entrance/exit. Please include comments/suggestions/observations.

[eak24]

This leaves us at 4 m x 6.5 m for a 2 L/s system. Something I forgot to mention: there will be a large door to let in the sed tanks on the right side downstairs section, and on the left will be a smaller door to use commonly. The bodega will be separately ventilated (and maybe should go directly under the chem tanks instead of the baño...) and the filter siphon faces the platform for easy access and connection to the drain channel. Also, to access the outermost flocculator tube for maintenance/cleaning, the operator will slide a piece of plywood over the sed tank and use it as a platform extension as they do in Cuatro Comunidades. The bottom of the sed tank is half under the platform. There is no wall between the flocculators.

[monroews]

I'm not clear on where the entrance tank is located. I'm guessing it is currently located next to the filters. Could the chemicals and entrance tank move to where the Bodega is currently? The stairs would then need to move up against the bathroom.Then the pipe from the entrance tank to the flocculators could run along between the sed tanks and the outside (bottom) wall. Perhaps add the main pipes that connect unit processes to make sure that the walkways for the operator aren't too difficult to navigate.

Are the stairs blocking access to the storeroom currently (and to the bathroom in my proposal?).

How do we decide whether to use full stairs or something more like ship's ladder? If the stairs are determining the size of the building, then I'd suggest considering steeper stairs.

For consistent geometry for n plants the floc/sed layout should simply repeat (not be mirrored).

[eak24]

@monroews

Entrance tank location: It is located there because the sed tanks stick under the walkway (they are oval from above, but I didn't draw the hidden portion.) Therefore the walkway that protrudes alongside the stairs has to be on the filter side so that there is an easily accessible walkway underneath as well. This means that the chemicals, and therefore the entrance tank, should be on the filter side.

Stairs used: To make this comply with architectural norms, we have to use fully-fledged stairs. I also think the stairs should be easy to ascend because operators will need to carry chemicals and potentially buckets of treated water up them. Also, with the current configuration, I don't think a full set of stairs leads to much wasted space (we need at least the baño and the bodega).

flocculator inlet pipes: The plan is to run the flocculator inlet on the outside wall of the building, with valves on each inlet that will be accessible from above (the inlet to the flocculator in this scenario will be up high.) The flocculator inlet pipe will run from the bottom of the contact chamber, immediately up to the bottom of the platform, across the platform directly underneath the walkway, and run along the walkway, branching off into the various sed tanks as it goes. It will be sized to distribute water equally, which shouldn't be too hard considering the high headloss in the flocculators.

Store room access: This isn't ideal, but I had the store room door in the office, so that you need to go through the office to get to the store room. I'm thinking, however, that I should put the bathroom where the storeroom/office are and then put the storeroom where the bathroom is and remove the office. If needed, the office could be a simple desk at the far end of the building.

Note on all of the pipes: All the pipes crossing the pathway underneath the platform will be at the height of the sed exit or higher. The operator may have to duck a little, but not a lot.

Note on exit/distribution box: I'm planning to have a plastic distribution box directly below the entrance box that will be slightly offset to allow for the contact chamber. I want to make the plant able to shutoff gradually when distribution tanks are full. To do this, I will make a float that detects the level of water in the exit tank. When the level is high, and therefore the distribution tanks with floats have enough water, the exit tank will fill up. The float in the exit tank will then push on a sliding-tube-float, which will slowly close the entrance. I can make the float valves in the distribution tanks gradual - such that when the tank is at half capacity, half the flow rate comes in, when it is empty, all the flow rate comes in, and when full, it is effectively shut off. I do this by extending the slider in the tube float valve design, and varying the hole spacing along the shaft - this way we automatically use the tank's ability to dampen quick changes in demand.

[mintynunez]

Hola! Disculpen hasta ahora veo sus discusiones. Este fue el diseño final para Tatumbla.

[eak24]

Hola Minty,

Gracias por compartir el diseño! Y tambien para terminar el diseño de Tatumbla. Es muy interesante ver los cambios que se han hecho.

He reabierto esta tema porque queremos un diseño en general para todas las plantitas, y creo que hay cosas que podemos optimizar.

Por ejemplo, con el dosificador en el fin, es un poco mas complicada a agregar una otra plantita porque necesita cambiar la entrada y salida. Tambien, ahorita este diseño no tiene una bodega que podemos aislar el cloro.

Debemos discutir este diseño mas.

Tambien, por favor adjuntar el DWG a esta tema!