When a city uses a reservoir to hold water, one of the problems they have to worry about is algae. An algae bloom can really wreck the local ecosystem and it also causes problems for water filtration. There’s more to it than just preventing the algae from clogging a filter. Oxygen from algae can collect in the water much like how carbon dioxide collects in soda.
A common process in water purification is adding a chemical that binds with contaminants. These little bundles then sink down to the bottom of the tank to leave cleaner water on top. That water is then siphoned away, but when there is trapped oxygen in the water bubbles will rise to the surface. That interferes with the settling of contaminants, which in turn slows down the amount of clean water a treatment plant can produce. In a drought situation, this can be very harmful to the local community.
The problem can be controlled by preventing algae blooms or introducing fresh water to dilute the over-oxygenated water, but algae blooms can happen quite suddenly. All that’s needed are enough nutrients and sunlight to grow.
Are you fighting algae blooms or over-oxygenated water? Speak with our water filtration experts at Metro Water Filter to find out what you can do to make your water cleaner.