Ultra
Violet Sterilising Systems
Our
UV systems are ideal for treating private water
supplies.
Ultra
Violet water filters are highly efficient at killing
bacteria, viruses and other micro organisms that
can be found in un-treated water.
The
way they work is by passing water through a chamber
which is flooded with Ultra Violet light.
The
UV light shines powerfully through water passing
along the unit, destroys the cell's DNA thereby
neutralising it.
Typical
Uses for UV systems
If
you have a private water supply ie get your water
supply from a well, borehole or river etc.
How
to get the right UV unit for your needs
The
main criteria you need to consider is what
size unit you need.
This
main factor this depends on is the flow
rate of your water.
You
may also need to consider what electrical power
you have available.
When
you have established these please refer to your
UV filters selection
table
Importance
of choosing a high quality UV unit
To
choose the best UV for your needs you also want
to make sure it is a high quality
and not low quality UV unit.
This
is because you want to make sure the UV you are
using is reliable.
If
the UV unit fails you might, at best, end up with
a bad stomach.
At
worst - for example if you ingest micro organisms
like cryptosporidium - you could have serious
health problems that last for several months.
See
below for More on High vs Low Quality
UV Water Filters
Other
essentials
Finally
all UV water filters should have a suitable
pre-filter to remove any
waterborne particles or debris.
These
will create a "shadow" behind which some
micro organisms, like bacteria, might be able to
hide. This prevents the UV light neutralising them.
Your
recommended pre-filter for each UV model depends
on your local water quality. We can advise you on
this.
Further
information
More
on High vs Low Quality UV Water Filters
How
to find your water's flow rate
Ultra
Violet filters selection table
Contact
our UV specialists
More
about High vs Low Quality Ultra Violet Water Filters
As
stated above you need to buy a well made, high quality
unit and avoid low quality UV filters.
Some
of the differences are:
A
low quality unit has no inbuilt warning
system, and / or no lamp-life count
down indicator - which gives you a pre-warning
that the lamp needs replacing.
Our
units give you good warning with
a weekly alarm that gives you a regular reminder
for the last 4 weeks of the lamp's life. At the
end of the lamp's life your lamp still works but
it then starts to beep incessantly until you change
it.
Low
quality units do not do this. Instead they simply
stop working, leaving you with a sudden problem
of no safe, filtered water.
We
sell high quality R-Can, Sterilight and Trojan units
- famous, market leading brands.
How
can you tell good from bad?
Notice
that we say "low quality units". We don't
say "low priced" because often these low
quality cheap units - imported from China , India
or Eastern Europe- are more expensive than the better
ones.
As
a website and not a shop that needs to cover its
high costs of rent, utilities and rates, we can
offer our high quality North American made, famous
brand UV's at a reasonable price.
More
benefits of good quality UV systems
Our
high quality branded UV systems have high frequency
electronic controllers to start up and run the lamp
/ bulb.
Lower
quality UV's tend to us old style choke and starter
circuits to run the lamps
The
former are much more efficient
thereby reducing running costs. They operate the
lamps more effectively giving a better and more
stable UV output. This helps prolong
the life of the lamp in operation.
Ironically
some lower quality UV's use well made lamps supplied
by trusted manufacturers' like Phillips. But even
these will suffer from the old style choke and starter
circuits. The lamps won't work nearly as well. And
they won't last as long.
Considering
that a UV lamp costs around £100
plus to replace, buying a cheaper unit will
end up costing you more in the long run.
Finding
your water flow rate
This
is not as easy as one might expect. There are no
hard and fast estimates of the water flow rate in
any particular building.
Even
a plumber or engineer would only be guessing. They
would have to work it out on a case-by-case basis.
However,
provided you are prepared to roll up your sleeves
it is not that hard to get a fairly
accurate estimate of the flow rate in your house.
The
best way of doing this is to actually get a bucket
and stop watch and time the flow from each
tap or shower head. this might seem silly but it
will be accurate.
The
trick is to estimate the maximum amount
of water you might use at any one time.
That will be your maximum flow rate.
Flow
rate considerations
There
are various factors to bear in mind.
For
example your water heater may only allow one hot
supply at a time.
So
whereas you might have three bathrooms, actually
only one can be used to run a bath or a shower at
one time.
|
Power
showers can do 40 to 50 Litres per minute.
Toilets
might flush several gallons but these come
from the toilet's cistern/tank which then
fills up slowly. |
A
cold water tap, turned on fully and
running vigorously enough to throw small
splashes out for several feet is running
at about 17 L / min. |
|
Pump
/ water pressures and flow rates
Don't
be tricked by the reported pressure of your borehole
pump or mains water (yes some people use UV's for
their mains water supply).
Just
because a pump can work up to a certain rate does
not mean that is the flow coming into your
house. This is set by the amount of water you are
using in the house at any given time.
Put
simply the water only flows when you turn on your
taps. The number of taps you have on at any one
time is what will affect your flow rate.
When
you have got an idea of your water flow rate see
the table below for choosing
your best UV water filter
UV
Filter Selection Table
Flow
rate
L / min |
Typical
Use |
Watts |
9.5 |
Feeds
a drinking water tap |
16 |
15 |
Small
cottage |
19 |
22.7 |
Average
House Up to 3 Beds. Our
best seller |
30 |
37.9 |
3
to 4 beds house |
46 |
57 |
5
beds plus house |
48 |
| 60
plus |
commerce
and industry |
TBA |
What's
next?
Because
of the range of combinations available and the need
to ensure you are getting the right system for your
precise needs, the best way forward is to give us
further details of your requirements - either on
the phone, or via our information form - and we
will get back to you very soon.
Please
call our help line on 0845
120 6369 to leave a message for
our specialists or fill in the quick enquiry form
below for a rapid response.
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