Grit Removal Solutions Designed for the Treatment Needs, Budgets, and Space Limitations of Smaller Wastewater Treatment Plants

Advanced Grit Management^® is Now Available for Smaller Treatment Plants!

Smaller wastewater treatment plants make up the vast majority of WWTPs in North America, yet many advanced treatment processes are only a viable option for much larger plants. Hydro International's Compact Line of grit removal solutions are specifically designed to be the ideal fit for smaller treatment plants.

Bigger is Not Always Better

Historically, equipment manufacturers have focused product development on the needs of larger plants with increasing treatment capacity. This has led to innovations in process treatment efficiency very focused on the needs of higher volume plants.

As smaller plants know, large plant systems don’t always scale down to fit their site. All too frequently, the push for bigger and better treatment processes has left smaller plants in the lurch. Forced between selecting oversized, over-budget treatment processes or reliance on smaller, outdated, and inefficient treatment processes; smaller plants were often forced into choosing the latter.

Technological advances continue in all aspects of wastewater treatment. However, many of these technologies are out of reach for smaller treatment plants. With many emerging technologies specifically designed for big plants, too often they are too big or too expensive for the treatment needs, flows, and budgets of smaller plants.

Smaller plants are no less important in maintaining the quality of life that people rely on from effective wastewater treatment. Working with smaller treatment plants, Hydro International identified a consistent demand for the same levels of protection and performance that larger plants are privileged to, but on a scale that could fit within a small plant footprint.

Identifying Small Plants’ Needs

To better understand how Hydro International could better help solve problems for smaller treatment plants, we set out to identify what was most important to them. We surveyed a number of smaller plants to learn more about issues that were critical in their equipment selection process. The key needs that were common in nearly all of the feedback follow:

• High performance with very low maintenance
• Flexible installation options to fit within existing plant layout
• Smaller footprint and lower cost

Simply scaling down larger systems can lead to inefficiencies with many elements overbuilt, and over designed to be cost-effective for smaller treatment plants. This is a big reason why many emergent technologies are not well suited for smaller treatment plants and why we created our Compact Line of Advanced Grit Management^® solutions.

Grit King^® Compact Separation & Washing

The Grit King^® Compact performs both grit separation and washing which saves space and reduces costs. Additionally, the all-hydraulic operation of the Grit King^® Compact combined with its extremely flexible layout options made it the ideal solution for small plants with limited space and budgets.

The Grit King^® Compact is an advanced hydrodynamic separator that augments gravitational forces to effectively separate grit from water with no moving internal components and requires very little maintenance.

Flow is introduced via a tangential inlet causing a rotational flow path around the dip plate. The flow spirals down the wall of the chamber as solids settle by gravitational forces as well as forces created by the rotating flow. The grit collects in the grit sump at the bottom of the unit as the center cone directs flow away from the base, up and around the center shaft into the inside of the dip plate and out the effluent pipe. The concentrated grit underflow is pumped to a Decanter or SpiraSnail^® Compact unit.

The internal components, made of synthetic materials and stainless steel, arrive on site with inlet and outlet connections pre-configured for easy installation. The Grit King^® Compact is typically provided with a dry pit or self-priming grit pump and a control panel to complete this Advanced Grit Management^® system.

Grit King^® Compact with SpiraSnail^® Compact Dewatering 

 Grit King^® Compact with Decanter Dewatering 

SpiraSnail^® Compact - Dewatering Screw 

The SpiraSnail^® Compact uses the same shafted screw design as the original SpiraSnail^® but has a smaller footprint and is also shorter than the standard SpiraSnail^®. Stainless steel construction and a heavy-duty screw provide years of reliable service while eliminating the need for washwater. By limiting design influent flows to ≤ 125 gpm (7.9 L/s) the SpiraSnail^® Compact can achieve 95% capture of all grit 106 micron and larger. 

SpiraSnail^® Compact Dewatering Screw

Decanter - Compact Dewatering Bin

Hydro International’s Decanter grit dewatering bin is a simple non mechanical dewatering device that is very cost-effective. When paired with a Grit King^® Compact, small plants can now enjoy the protection of a proven Advanced Grit Management^® system at a price point that is within easy reach.

The Decanter comes in multiple compact configurations designed to seamlessly fit within your existing plant layout or local disposal truck configurations. Options include both front-loading and rear-loading as well as a self-dumping version.

The Ideal Grit Systems for Smaller Plants 

With Hydro International’s Compact Line of grit removal products, the benefits of Advanced Grit Management^® are no longer out of reach for even the smallest treatment plants.

The result is a new Grit King^® based system specifically designed for smaller plants, the Grit King^® Compact. The Grit King^® Compact is the ideal solution for smaller treatment plants that require high performance grit removal.

Download a brochure covering Hydro International's Compact line of grit removal here.