Making Wastewater Treatment Convenient: Three Design Tips for Convenience Store Wastewater Treatment Systems
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Convenience stores generate hundreds to thousands of gallons of high strength wastewater each day requiring specialized treatment for long-term sustainability. Onsite wastewater treatment is the only solution for convenience stores where a centralized sewer system is not available. Having a properly engineered system will save money and prevent premature system replacement.
First, let’s discuss the concept of “high strength wastewater.” High strength wastewater typically contains high concentrations of Biochemical Oxygen Demand, or nitrogen. These higher concentrations of pollutants require higher levels of dissolved oxygen and residence time to break down and treat the wastewater. For a better understanding of exactly how the wastewater treatment process works, check out this blog post.
Most convenience stores generate a great deal of high strength wastewater! High strength wastewater can be effectively treated with some careful design considerations to help prolong the life of the onsite wastewater treatment system.
Here are three design tips for treating high strength wastewater in Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems:
Identify all sources of high strength wastewater. In addition to food waste, high strength wastewater also includes soda and coffee.- Implement outdoor grease interceptors when fried foods are served. Maintain these tanks by pumping - no enzymes or bacteria should be used to minimize pumping.
- Inventory your cleaners and sanitizers. Strong sanitizers that are often used in the 3-compartment sink and in bathroom cleaning can affect the ability of treatment systems to function well. Using chlorine bleach is a good alternative for dishwashing and toilet bowl cleaners with bleach, peroxide or citric acid as their active ingredient will do the job.
Infiltrator's ECOPOD is an optimal solution for treating high strength waste generated from food, soda, coffee, and high-volume restroom use typical in convenience store operations.
Let us help design a wastewater treatment system for your convenience store!
Contact us if you have any questions about this blog post.