Clean water for schools.

Pedal powered water filtration for schools in developing countries. The system is reproducible using locally available discarded brick and other materials. No high tech skills are needed to create, operate or maintain the filter. It can be built and distributed on a micro economic scale. We offer thanks to Potters for Peace and Reid Harvey for their knowledge and inspiration and for showing us that individuals can make a difference in the world.

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• InnovateOrDie
• clean
• water
• pedal
• power
• water4schools

[Vitnor1206]

Great idea. I have one question though, it appears that you have the water flow going in a direction opposite that of gravity (up). What is the reasoning behind this? If you put the dirty water in at the top wouldn't you just have to put a fraction of the pressure into the PVC to force the water downwards?

[water4schools]

Great question. You are right; there are two forces that the pump must overcome. The first is the resistance of the filter. The second is the total water head of the system; the head is the height that you must pump the water from the low point of the source to the highest point of the system (top of the filter). So if the resistance is the same and the head is the same why use a counter flow?

[water4schools]

Well, when the water enters the bottom of the filter there is a change in area from the 13 mm hose to the 100 mm column. This causes a huge change in water velocity (thank you Bernoulli) and heavier particulates drop to the bottom instead of clogging the filter bed. It is a simple way of being able to filter higher turbidity water without additional costs or complexity.

Thanks for your interest!

Julia

[MoonRisingFast]

Nicely explained and a smart, effective innovation that is bound to go far beyond America's dollars that just delay the issue at hand when picked up.

[water4schools]

We agree about just sending money. I was raised to believe that the best way is a hand up, not a hand out.

[AJBKACL7]

What an awesome idea! It solves a large global issue in a simple, inexpensive fashion. As an engineer, I appreciate the thought that went into this system.

[water4schools]

Thank you

We thought that if we could keep it simple enough for us to build, others could duplicate it.

[musicchika]

This is a great idea, I really hope you can get this out to countries who need them!

[benpie12]

CUZ YOUR A FAT BITCH

[roberto1988]

I like it. But the aquaduct mobile filtration vehicle is a bit more practical. Not all schools are built near water sources. This is actually great if you are near a river or stream.

[isik111]

Hi, just wanted to let you know I've shown your video to all my economics classes this week during my "social entrepreneurship" lesson.

Ms. Isikdag

[ImperfectUtopia]

I like it. Plus, a lot of people who need clean water are likley to travel by bike, so they can just hook it up when they need water. Great use of materials!

[Mastachuck]

Great idea! I bet the adults will appreciate the clean water too.