Components

Custom-Made Filter Housing

A geotextile filter housing was constructed using parts bought at hardware store. This was necessary because the cost for printing the housing using the 3D printer at Drexel’s main campus would have put the project severely over budget. The filter housing was made using: bucket with lid, traffic cone, shower drain, basket sieve, ball valve, float switch, and PVC pipe. A hole was cut into the lid so a corrugated downspout could be inserted into the filter housing. The bucket had holes cut in it for the overflow pipe, float drain, and an outlet to the water storage tank. A cone was inserted into the bucket in an inverted orientation to simulate the inner wall of the filter. A float switch was attached to the bottom of the bucket between the cone and the wall of the bucket. Geotextile fabric was placed in a sieve and used as the primary filter for the system. It is easily removable and can be quickly cleaned or swapped out with a new geotextile. The sieve is similar in shape to the basket in Figure 5. The shower drain was wrapped in geotextile fabric to act as a secondary filter in case any particulates pass through a torn primary filter. The shower drain with geotextile was also used to prevent debris from entering the tank as the filter basket is being removed for cleaning. The ball valve drains the water trapped between the inner wall of bucket and the cone. The water released lowers the float in which turns off LED #2. The cone is connected to a 4 inch PVC pipe to pass water into the collection tank. A 1.5 inch elbow and 2 feet of 1.5 inch PVC pipe were used as an overflow pipe. This overflow pipe drained into a larger bucket, which is used to disperse the water away from the house’s foundation using a 4 inch PVC pipe.