Where Does Our Water Come From?
Killeen Water Treatment PlantDo you know where your tap water comes from?
The Water Treatment Plant
This water treatment plant is open since 2009 and this is where the water from your taps comes from. This water is called ‘treated’ water because it has gone through many processes in the water treatment plant before it reaches the tap in your homes.
The water that comes from the Lough Cumnel is called ‘raw’ water. The raw water flows from the lake down the mountain to the treatment plant.
Lough Cumnel is where we get our ‘Raw’ water
The raw water flows into the drum filters where lots of the heavier dirt is removed. The cleaner water the flows into an underground chamber and from there it is pumped into the raw water tank at the side of the treatment plant.
The water at this point may be cleaner but it is still called raw ‘untreated’ water.
Drum Filter
Q: So What Happens This Raw Water Then?
A: This raw water must then enter the Water Treatment Plant to be further filtered, cleaned and disinfected
Inside The Water Treatment Centre1. Raw Water Pumps
These pumps are used to pump the Raw Water from the tank around the treatment plant through pipes
2. Hydac Pre- Filter
This filter removes the main dirt that comes from the lake eg. grass, pieces of mud , twigs etc.. It has 6 little mesh covered screen filters inside and when they clog up with dirt and particles, the filter automatically backwashes to clean the screens.
3. Multi-Media Filters
These filters remove the finer dirt particles in the water after the hydac filter.
There is 1 layer of gravel, 2 layers of sand and 1 layer of anthracite inside and the together this is all called ‘Media’. The dirt in the water sticks to the media.
These filters are back-washed daily to remove all this dirt that has stuck to the media.
4. Basket Filter
One Of These Baskets Is Inside (see below)
This Basket filter helps to remove any more dirt or particles that are in the water and help protect the membrane filter.
5. Membrane Filters
There are 28 membranes in the skid (inside pipework) at Killeen water treatment plant. These filters are very specialised because not only do the remove any remaining dirt in the water, the also remove colour, taste, smell but most importantly any bacteria or ‘bugs’ that are in the water e.g. Cryptosporidium – a microscopic bacteria which makes people very ill if in the water they drink.
These membranes are very expensive and the people who run the plant have to make sure they are looked after very well. They are washed out every day with a soap and some chlorine. They are also given a very deep clean every year- this clean involves using very hot water, special chemicals and takes 8-12 hours.
The water that comes off these membranes is now called fully ‘Treated’ water. This treated water flows into a storage tank called a reservoir outside the plant.
So you now have your TREATED water which is clean, colour and odour free and very safe to drink ….
BUT it’s still at the treatment plant – how does it get to your homes????
6. Flow by Gravity
The treated water flows along a series of pipes from the tank at the treatment plant to your homes
Q: So how do we make sure the water stays clean and safe as it leaves the water treatment plant on its journey to the your homes??
A: We dose chlorine into the treated water tank. This chlorine keeps the water disinfected.
Now you know where it comes from!!!!!
This pump doses the chlorine into the water in the reservoir.
Now you know where your domestic water comes from!
Killeen Water Treatment PlantDo you know where your tap water comes from?
The Water Treatment Plant
This water treatment plant is open since 2009 and this is where the water from your taps comes from. This water is called ‘treated’ water because it has gone through many processes in the water treatment plant before it reaches the tap in your homes.
The water that comes from the Lough Cumnel is called ‘raw’ water. The raw water flows from the lake down the mountain to the treatment plant.
Lough Cumnel is where we get our ‘Raw’ water
The raw water flows into the drum filters where lots of the heavier dirt is removed. The cleaner water the flows into an underground chamber and from there it is pumped into the raw water tank at the side of the treatment plant.
The water at this point may be cleaner but it is still called raw ‘untreated’ water.
Drum Filter
Q: So What Happens This Raw Water Then?
A: This raw water must then enter the Water Treatment Plant to be further filtered, cleaned and disinfected
Inside The Water Treatment Centre1. Raw Water Pumps
These pumps are used to pump the Raw Water from the tank around the treatment plant through pipes
2. Hydac Pre- Filter
This filter removes the main dirt that comes from the lake eg. grass, pieces of mud , twigs etc.. It has 6 little mesh covered screen filters inside and when they clog up with dirt and particles, the filter automatically backwashes to clean the screens.
3. Multi-Media Filters
These filters remove the finer dirt particles in the water after the hydac filter.
There is 1 layer of gravel, 2 layers of sand and 1 layer of anthracite inside and the together this is all called ‘Media’. The dirt in the water sticks to the media.
These filters are back-washed daily to remove all this dirt that has stuck to the media.
4. Basket Filter
One Of These Baskets Is Inside (see below)
This Basket filter helps to remove any more dirt or particles that are in the water and help protect the membrane filter.
5. Membrane Filters
There are 28 membranes in the skid (inside pipework) at Killeen water treatment plant. These filters are very specialised because not only do the remove any remaining dirt in the water, the also remove colour, taste, smell but most importantly any bacteria or ‘bugs’ that are in the water e.g. Cryptosporidium – a microscopic bacteria which makes people very ill if in the water they drink.
These membranes are very expensive and the people who run the plant have to make sure they are looked after very well. They are washed out every day with a soap and some chlorine. They are also given a very deep clean every year- this clean involves using very hot water, special chemicals and takes 8-12 hours.
The water that comes off these membranes is now called fully ‘Treated’ water. This treated water flows into a storage tank called a reservoir outside the plant.
So you now have your TREATED water which is clean, colour and odour free and very safe to drink ….
BUT it’s still at the treatment plant – how does it get to your homes????
6. Flow by Gravity
The treated water flows along a series of pipes from the tank at the treatment plant to your homes
Q: So how do we make sure the water stays clean and safe as it leaves the water treatment plant on its journey to the your homes??
A: We dose chlorine into the treated water tank. This chlorine keeps the water disinfected.
Now you know where it comes from!!!!!
This pump doses the chlorine into the water in the reservoir.
Now you know where your domestic water comes from!