A year and a half ago, VIC International, with its engineering and manufacturing joint venture associate, Schubert Environmental Equipment, sought to address the problem of adequate water treatment for stone fabricators without “over costing the problem” with ultra high efficiency water cleaners. The result was an inclined plate mechanical separation clarifier (no chemicals) with the new timed double mud drop (patent pending).

Schubert Environmental researched and tested plate material and angles and flow rates to come up with the SlurryCleanTM concept. This unit, available in galvanized or stainless steel (never painted), cleans the water to a very light grey color. This allows for recirculation of the water to all plant machinery. It is recommended to use city water for the center spindle feed on CNC equipment. (In fact, CNC manufacturers discourage or disallow the use of any treated water back to the center spindle feed). This also is a constant “adder” supply of water to make up for the closed loop loss in evaporation and mud absorption.

As the slurry water enters the top of the unit (11 to 13 feet tall, depending on the size of 50-, 150-, 200-gpm units), the cleaned water is pushed over the top at the opposite end to two cleaned water tanks where pressure pumps return it for-re use. The water is equal to used sink water and could be sent down the municipal water treatment sewers if recirculation is not wanted.

At the same time as the water is cleared, the timed automatic double-flow or single-flow mud drop is constantly operating with special precise timers to keep the collected slurry (which has a “milk shake” consistency) dropping into dehydration bags, where the last of the water is sweated out, and the firmly packed mud is accumulated for easy handling and bag replacement.

The operating costs are only the required pumps that are standard for a water treatment system, with no high-pressure pumps required to push through filters. The unit uses a minute amount of compressed air to open the mud drop twice per hour and a simple 110-volt controller for the timers.