Why choose Hippowash?

An analysis of the cost of silt management

The benefits of using our waste water clarifier are 'crystal clear'.

The costs associated with silt management are regularly underestimated. This is because until now, the options available for water recycling have been limited to concrete settlement lagoons or steel settlement tanks.

Due to the lack of an alternative, there has been an acceptance therefore, that it costs what it costs to clean them out and dispose of the silt. It is only since the waste water clarifier was launched, that customer feedback has indicated the scale of the costs associated with traditional silt management methods, costs that are almost completely eradicated using the Hippowash solution.

Step 1 : Remove the water

Lagoons and settlement tanks hold large quantities of water. In order for them to work effectively, they need emptying on a regular basis to ensure clean water is delivered to the wheel wash .The smaller the capacity, the more frequent the empty. With lagoons and settlement tanks, the entire volume of water is lost during every empty. In many cases, vacuum tankers or gully suckers will need hiring in to do this.

The SILTEATER waste water clarifying unit has been designed to be as effective as a 120,000 litre lagoon but only take up an area of 9m2 . Silt removal is quick and easily performed requiring no special equipment or plant. Minimal water is lost during each empty (approx. 4,000 lt per week vs. 25,000lt with settlement tanks or 120,000lt lagoons).

Step 2 : Remove the silt

Emptying a lagoon or settlement tank can take around half a day to complete, provided you have the right kit. For lagoons, the silt is conventionally removed by driving in a bucket loader to scrape out the sludge. This is not possible to do with settlement tanks, so many sites buy in gully suckers to do the job.

With the SILTEATER waste water clarifier, silt removal is performed quickly by opening the valves on the bottom of the hoppers. It can take about 10 minutes twice a week but is dependant upon site conditions.

Step 3 : Dispose of the silt

The disposal of silt from lagoons and settlement tanks can also be expensive. This is due to the high water content in the sludge so is classified as “liquid waste” and has to be disposed of responsibly. It can cost over £150 per load to dispose of.

The silt from Hippowash is cheaper to dispose of because it has a very low water content. We recommend the silt goes to a de-watering area, where the water can evaporate, leaving just the silt behind. This can often be put back into the quarry/landfill with no detrimental effects because it comprises the same material.

Step 4 : Replenish the water.

Naturally, after every empty, the systems require re-charging with clean water. At around 95p per cube, this can easily add thousands per year to your operating costs.

The waste water clarifier only requires periodic top-ups rather than a full re-charge of the system, minimising water consumption. This is due to the way in which the silt is discharged via the hoppers at the base of the unit.

Other considerations:

Effectiveness of wash

If the water recycling systems are not emptied regularly, the wheel wash loses its effectiveness because dirty water will be circulating within the system. This is when many sites will begin to employ a road sweeper to keep down the tracks that are being made on the roads.

Because the SILTEATER system is so quick and easy to use it helps maintain the superior performance of the Hippowash unit.

Other costs

The labour and plant costs incurred by managing the other systems are significantly higher than with Hippowash®.