Recycling washing water

 

Recycling washing water from portal car wash units, car washes and industrial application

The UNO declared 2003 the Year of Fresh Water, as only 0.3% of all the water on our planet can be used as drinking water!

To ensure that we use this most precious of resources consciously and sparingly, the European Parliament has introduced two key pieces of legislation – the Water Management Act and the Closed-Loop Waste Management Act (now a European Framework Directive) – which effectively restricts the use of water. The continuously rising prices for drinking water and waste water are also stimulating people to reconsider how they use water.

Washing a single car requires approximately 180 litres of clean drinking water, and the same quantity of waste water is produced. With a current water/waste water price of ?5.00/m3, this amounts to 0.90 cents for each wash. Against the background of an approach that aims to minimize the environmental impact of car wash facilities while maximizing their cost-effectiveness, these figures more than underscore the fact that washing water from car wash facilities should not simply go down the drain, but should be recycled and retained in the washing cycle for as long as possible.

NFV has developed and patented an advanced waste/process water recycler that utilizes the latest technology in an exceptionally environmentally-friendly and highly cost-effective unit which fully complies with environmental legislation. The harmonized European Water Framework Directive, which will soon come into effect in Germany, requires washing water recycling ratios of more than 80% in order to minimize the use of clean drinking water while delivering optimum washing results. Furthermore, the recycled water must fulfil hygiene regulations and must not exceed specific threshold values. The NFV Recycler fully complies with all legal requirements, in addition to fulfilling the far more stringent environmental directives which could soon be introduced. In recognition of its outstanding contribution to environmental protection the NFV Recycler received the City of Hamburg´s Innovation Prize in 2000.

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