One of the great things about SketchUp is the 3D Warehouse. This allows you to share models online so others can download them into their projects, saving time through sharing. PekaSys shares these models online to save you work.

Getting Started

1. Click on this link and install the free program on your computer.

2. The easiest way to learn how to use SketchUp is to watch the online tutorial videos that Google posted. You can see these by clicking on this link.

3. Click here to visit our 3D Warehouse. You will need a Google or Gmail account in order to save or share models.

Google+ makes it easy to share information and stay up to date on new things that are happening. At PekaSys, we use Google+ to share news, photos, documents, designs and more in a way that is tailored to each person. We do this through the use of ‘circles’. This means that you won’t be bombarded with information that is not pertinent to you…but rather you will only receive updates when we think that you would be interested in that information.

In essence, Google+ allows us to be more efficient with your time while making sure you have easy access to the information that you need to succeed while working with our products.

Google+ is free and only requires that you have a Gmail or Google Apps account. You can sign up for a free Gmail account at Gmail.com. The login you use for Gmail will be the same one you use for Google+, as well as the many other services that Google offers.

Getting Started

1. Click on this link and if you aren’t already signed into your Google account, you can either click on one of the two images to login or sign up for Google+ if you do not already have a Google account. If you are already signed in, you can skip to the next step.

2. Once you are signed in, click on the “Follow” button.

3. Once you click on the “Follow” button, you will then be able to select the Circles where you want to add The Bubbler. You can just use “Following”, or if you intend on sharing things like photos with us, you can create a new circle.

Today, SBR technology is available for use in a single-family home, apartment, school, trailer park, or cluster system. These units can treat as little as 200 gallons per day. Given their superior control of the batch process, these units consistently produce clear, odorless, oxygenated effluent with reduced nitrogen that promotes a clean environment and extends the life of onsite systems indefinitely.

Anatomy of an SBR

An SBR consists of a pretreatment and reactor. The pretreatment is basically a septic tank and can be one or more chambers. The reactor is a separate chamber that must have a watertight separation from the pretreatment. The size of each tank depends on the daily flow volume as well as the strength of the wastewater.

The shape of these tanks is generally not important. SBRs can be rectangular or round, as long as there are no obstructions to the mixing.

SBR Process

The pretreatment is where primary settling takes place. There is some anaerobic breakdown in the pretreatment similar to that of a septic tank.

In the reactor, the SBR process is a timed, five-step process, involving the following steps:

1. Fill
2. React
3. Settle
4. Decant
5. Idle

Back to Clear Rex Bubbler page

1. Demand Response Aeration – energy efficiency
2. Smart Controls – for reliable treatment over time
3. No Chemicals or Fixed Media – fewer problems
4. Retrofitable – can repair failing systems

Since they operate in batches, SBRs only aerate when necessary. Not only does this save energy, but it does not stress the bacteria by introducing oxygen when no ‘food’ is entering.

SBRs also handle nitrogen removal effectively without added chemicals. SBRs use a ‘step-fill’ method, which uses influent wastewater as the carbon source.

SBRs do not rely on a flow path, so most tanks can be retrofitted to SBRs. This allows existing systems to be easily upgraded and can add nitrogen removal painlessly.

If left alone in wastewater, nitrogen causes the following problems:

1. Depletion of oxygen in the water.
2. Causes algae blooms and eutrophication.
3. Pollutes drinking water and can cause blue baby syndrome.

Nitrogen enters wastewater in some organic form, but once it hits the water, it quickly becomes ammonia or ammonium, depending on the pH of the water.

The Process of Nitrogen Reduction

In order to promote nitrogen removal, a wastewater treatment plant has to create the environment that allows each step to take place. SBR’s create the conditions for these processes in a sequence of time throughout a cycle in a single reactor chamber, ergo the name Sequencing Batch Reactor.

During the testing, the Bubbler achieved an average effluent BOD of 3 mg/L BOD, TSS of 5 mg/L, and a TN reduction of 65%.

While the NSF does not certify retrofits, the unit that was tested can be retrofitted to obtain the same results where regulations allow it. This is the only product on the market with 245 certification that can be retrofitted!

Yes…we’re excited, too.

Under proper operating conditions, bacteria form tight flocs with very little filamentation occurring. These flocs quickly settle out, leaving a clear portion of water that goes to discharge.

When there is too much or too little oxygen, filamentous bacteria outcompete tighter floc-forming bacteria because filamentous bacteria have a larger surface area to collect food or oxygen when it is scarce. Filamentous bacteria are not as effective at treating wastewater and do not settle out of solution.

The picture above shows what happens over time as a system goes into failure due to sludge bulking.

SBRs were designed specifically for the reason of avoiding sludge bulking. SBRs adjust aeration to meet demand, and therefore do not create the environment that leads to sludge bulking.

PekaSys is proud to announce its Concrete 2.0 Initiative. This is a joint venture with willing precasters throughout North America to take precast concrete to the next level in sustainability, adding new product offerings to existing concrete forms…and offering end users the ability to save money by protecting the environment.

Case in Point: California Saves Water, Creates Bad Smells

California has been the country’s leader in water and energy efficiency. That is why it makes a great case study on things that can go wrong as we work toward a more sustainable economy. California first adopted water-saving measures several decades ago. Since plumbing code is based on the highest volume of flow, it seemed like a no-brainer that systems could handle LESS volume with ease…except for one thing.

Given the zoning rules in California, structures are taxed on their above ground segments, so building underground made fiscal sense. This meant that plumbing was installed below the mains, so it had to be pumped up. The systems were sized for estimated water use at the time, and since many of these buildings were built, water use has been slashed, meaning that water would sit longer in the tanks.

This led to odors in the tanks. The solution? Run more water…thereby negating the water-efficiency efforts.

PekaSys is working on a sustainable solution to this…but it is always better to plan ahead for future efficiency so you don’t run into these problems in the first place!

There are only three basic ways that wastewater is treated:

1. Anaerobic – bacteria consume pollutants in the absence of oxygen.
2. Aerobic – bacteria consume pollutants with powered by oxygen.
3. Filtration – suspended solids over a certain size are physically separated from water.

Anaerobic Treatment

Anaerobic treatment is most commonly used in conventional septic tanks. Anaerobic bacteria are very slow when compared to aerobic bacteria, so septic tanks only attain a 30% reduction in BOD and virtually no reduction in total nitrogen. Anaerobic systems produce gases like methane, which is explosive, and hydrogen sulfide, which is highly toxic and creates that ‘rotten egg’ smell.
 

Aerobic Treatment

Filtration

Filtration systems are capable of producing the highest quality water, but at the highest cost. Filtration systems work by allowing water to pass through a membrane, thereby separating it from the pollutants. Membranes can remove almost all nitrogen from water. Since filters only separate water from the pollutants, it is often combined with an aerobic system that metabolizes the sludge and can release much of the nitrogen as gas.