WaterMill Operating Instructions

Congratulations on your purchase of the Water Mill portable water filtration system.  This patent pending system is made in the USA and is designed to provide an affordable and efficient method for filtering potentially harmful contaminants (both biological and chemical) from a non-potable water source in an emergency or off-grid camping situation to make it suitable for human consumption. 

A.  Introduction

The Water Mill is designed specifically to meet the following needs:

1. It is compact and portable (weighs less than 15 lbs.)
2. It is designed to fit in a standard 5-gallon dual purpose bucket for ease of storage or transport.
3. It uses standard commercially available 10-inch cartridge filters (filters can be tailored to specific contaminant needing removal).
4. It provides two-stage filtration for effective removal of most common contaminants including:
   1. Pathogenic bacteria (Cholera, Typhoid, Coliform)
   1. Cysts (Giardia, Cryptosporidium)
   1. Sediment
   1. Metals (Iron, Aluminum)
   1. Volatile Organic Components
   1. Chlorine
5. It is powered by a 12-volt pump (~25 watts) that is easily supplied by a small 10 Amp hr. battery.  A small solar panel can be used to recharge the battery or extend the battery pumping time.
6. It effortlessly provides up to 1 gallon per minute flow rate allowing larger volume of water to be processed than alternative gravity fed or mechanically pumped systems.
7. The simple design is totally intuitive to set up, operate, and take down for storage.  No tools are required for setup or filter cleaning/changeout. 

B   Precautions

1. Use good judgement when selecting a water source to be filtered.  Avoid water sources that are obviously contaminated with chemicals, heavy sediment, and/or biological waste (animal or human) products.
2. The pump is not designed for continuous duty operation.  To extend the life of the pump, best practice is to operate for up to 15 minutes and rest for 5 minutes.  If the ambient temperature is above 90 degrees, reduce the operating time and extend the rest times accordingly.  Always shield the pump from direct sunlight when operating to help minimize pump overheating.
3. Do not store the Water Mill in below freezing conditions unless the system has been winterized to remove all water from the filter housings, transfer tubes and pump.  RV antifreeze should be briefly run through the pump to protect pump diaphragm.
4. Do not store the Water Mill in direct sunlight to prevent deterioration of the filter housing.
5. Do not pump anything other than water through the Water Mill
6. Do not power the Water Mill with any source other than a 12-volt battery.  Solar panel (if used) should be connected to a battery and battery to the Water Mill.
7. Do not operate the pump without the screen inlet filter to allow debris to enter the pump.
8. Do not store the Water Mill with water in the filter housings for more than 72 hours to prevent algae buildup. 

C.  Setup:  Filter Install–The Water Mill is shipped with factory sealed filters to ensure they are contamination free.

1. Wash hands before handling filters.
2. Remove cotter pin on top of Water Mill and tilt housing to 45 degrees.
3. Remove the first filter housing (has tubing from pump to inlet of housing) by unscrewing the transparent bowl from the top and remove from the Water Mill.
4. Remove the ceramic filter from the packaging taking care not to lose the top and bottom sealing washers.
5. Place the filter (with washers) into the bowl and over the bottom sealing protrusion.  Orientation of the filter does not matter as there is no top or bottom.
6. Tilt the Water Mill at a sufficient angle to reinstall the bowl to the housing top.  Best practice is next to adjust the top to the neutral position and move the housing around until the top of the filter engages the top protrusion making sure the sealing washer is still intact.
7. Screw the bowl onto the top and tighten to hand tight only.
8. Repeat steps 1 through 7 for the second filter housing except for step 4 choose the carbon block filter. 

D. Operation

1. Remove Water Mill from the 5-gallon bucket and place on a stable level surface.
2. Attach the clear plastic inlet tubing to the inlet barb of the pump.  Tubing is attached by pressing the tubing onto the barb.  The inlet tubing has the screen filter on one end.  A clamp is not necessary because this is a low-pressure fitting.
3. Attach the clear plastic outlet tubing to the outlet barb of the filter housing.  Tubing is attached by pressing the tubing onto the barb.  A clamp is not necessary because this is a low-pressure fitting.  Use caution to keep the outlet tubing clean and free of any contamination as this is used to transfer the clean, filtered water to the potable water storage container. Do not interchange the inlet and outlet tubing. 
4. Place the end of the outlet tubing into a clean container.  Best practice is to use a food grade rated container that has a lid to store and transport the filtered water. 
5. Place the end of the inlet tube (end with the small screen filter) into the non-potable water source.  Best practice is to bucket the water from the source (stream, river, lake, pond etc.,) and then pump from the bucket. 
6. Connect the power pigtail to the pump using care to latch the connectors together to provide a watertight seal.
7. When ready to begin pumping, affix the alligator clamps to the battery taking care to connect red clamp to the positive battery terminal and black clamp to the negative battery terminal.
8. When starting and stopping the pump, remove the red alligator clamp from the positive battery terminal rather than disconnecting the waterproof connector.  Note:  Slight sparking may occur when connecting or disconnecting to the battery.  This is normal and there is no danger of electric shock due to the low voltage. 

E.  Storage:  When the Water Mill will not be operated for more than 72 hours, it is important to remove the water from the filter housings and filters to prevent algae growth.

1. Run the pump to expel as much water as possible from the housing. (Pump can be run dry with no damage)
2. Remove the housings and the filters from the Water Mill.
3. Empty the filter housings of any residual water. Take care to not let any unfiltered water in the housing come in contact with the inside (clean side) of the filter. 
4. Shake any residual water from the water filters.
5. Air dry the housings and filters for 24 hours or until all residual water is evaporated.
6. Remove the tubing between the outlet of the pump and the inlet filter housing to drain any excess water.
7. Reinstall filters and housings per section C.

Note:  Care must be taken when removing the ceramic filter for storage that the inside of the filter (clean side) does not become cross contaminated with water from the outside (unfiltered side).  Best practice is to rinse filter in a 1% chlorine bleach solution for 10 minutes before air drying and storage.  2 tablespoons bleach per 1-quart water will give a 1000+ ppm disinfecting solution.

Appendix A Supplied Filter Characteristics

1. Ceramic Filter Meets NSF Standards 42 and 53   Silver impregnated to prevent bacteria growth
   1. Maximum Working pressure……………………………….125 psig
   1. Maxim working temperature……………………………….100 degrees F
   1. Recommended flow rate……………………………………….3 to 1 gpm
   1. Recommended cleaning frequency………………………. when flow is noticeably lower
   1. Contaminant removal
      1. Pathogenic bacteria:    Cholera, Typhoid, Salmonella, Serratia, Fecal Coliform >99.99%    E coli – 100%
      1. Cysts:    Cryptosporidium Parvum, giardia Lamblia – 100%
      1. Sediment:  Down to .8 micron – 100%   .3 to .8 micron >99.99%   Turbidity > 99.97%
      1. Metals:  Iron, Aluminum

• Carbon block   5-micron Coconut Shell Carbon block
  • Maximum Working pressure…………………………….80 psi
  • Maximum Operating temperature……………………100 degrees F
  • Flow rate………………………………………………………….1 gpm
  • Replacement …………………………………………………….1500 gallons
  • Contaminant removal
    • Removes Chlorine, Insecticides, Benzene, Tastes, Odors and other Organic Chemicals

Disclaimer: WaterMill, LLC  has no Liability (and there is no Basis for any present or future action, suit, proceeding, hearing, investigation, charge, complaint, claim, or demand against it giving rise to any Liability) arising out of any injury to individuals or property as a result of the ownership, possession, or use of any product sold, leased, distributed, or delivered by WaterMill, LLC.