Introduction

The Earthsafe Environmental ES10PC system treats waste water on-site to primary and secondary levels far in advance of older style septic tanks. In technical terms the ES10PC has been designed to process waste water to achieve typically 95% reduction in suspended solids (TSS) and biological oxygen demand (BOD5). The treated effluent is clear, odourless and can be reused on site (subject to council approval).

The Earthsafe Environmental ES10PC is a compact sewage treatment system housed in a single tank. It is intended to treat domestic waste water from single households (with adequate capacity to treat waste water) up to 10 people. The tank is connected to the household plumbing system and requires electrical power to be supplied for the air blower and electronic alarm/control unit (and if, necessary, the irrigation and other pumps).

The ES10PC is an aerated septic tank system which uses totally natural biological processes to treat the waste water. It consists of a set of 5 chambers which perform various treatment processes on the waste stream.

Earthsafe Environmental systems are manufactured by Earthsafe Environmental and transported direct to site. Once installation is complete, Earthsafe Environmental / Agent will commission the system and issue a certificate of compliance.

Water first enters the primary pre-treatment chamber where large organic and inorganic solids settle to the bottom and fats and certain other floating matter forms a scum layer on top of the liquid in the chamber. A sludge layer builds up in the chamber and a fermentation process takes place i.e. anaerobic bacteria digest the sludge and break down some of the organic matter.

Fluid is decanted from the pre-treatment chamber through a baffle to eliminate the passage of grease and floating matter. Whenever more liquid enters the pre-treatment chamber, waste water flows by hydraulic displacement into the aeration chamber. In this chamber air is introduced through fine diffusers which serve to stir the contents of the tank and some air dissolves to provide air for the aerobic bacteria to survive. These bacteria form as a biofilm on the submerged media and float in the solution. Aerobic bacteria are faster acting than their anaerobic cousins and the effluent is converted into clean, clear water through aerobic digestion.

Liquid from the aeration chamber flows into the clarifier where the solution stands still to enable any suspended particles to settle to the bottom. Periodically the accumulated sludge is returned to the primary treatment chamber to ensure more complete digestion. A surface skimmer returns any floating material back to the aeration chamber.

Treated water then flows though a chamber where it is disinfected with chlorine, if necessary, and then passes into the final irrigation chamber. At this point treated waste water is automatically and silently discharged into the land application system or predefined outlets. Land application systems vary according to individual situations and can be in the form of surface sprinklers, subsurface irrigation, sand filters or other innovative systems.

Once the choice is made to use the Earthsafe Environmental system, Earthsafe Environmental / Agent can arrange for further site evaluations, soil and geo-tech reports to be conducted and will take care of all necessary paperwork to submit the application to the local authority.