! 1!

Rock%Reed(Wastewater(Treatment(Cell(Project(Construction:(Document!created!by!Erik!Hauenstein,!8/14/2015!!Summary:! Starting! in! early! June! and! ending! in! late! July! of! 2015! a! rockBreed!wastewater! treatment! cell! designed! and! partially! constructed! by! Iracambi!volunteers! from! Ball! State! University! had! finished! being! constructed! by! other!Iracambistas! including! Erik! Hauenstein,! Jurre! Locht,! Toni,! Leandro! Santana,! and!many!more!volunteers!and!locals!involved!with!Iracambi.!

The! design! of! the! system! may! be! seen! on! the! report! written! by! the! Ball! State!University! students! and! their! professor.! Construction! involved! preparing! a! large!ditch!to!be!the!correct!length!of!about!9.9!m,!width!of!about!3.6!m,!depth!starting!at!66cm!and!ending!at!45!cm!(from!left!to!right!on!diagram!below),!and!it!was!leveled,!placing! about! 5! cm! of! sand! on! the! dirt! to! level! the! ground!more,! laying! down! a!plastic! impermeable! layer,! inserting! the! wastewater! inlet! “T”! pipe,! layering! on!gravel!of!various!sizes,!and! inserting! the!purified!water!outlet! “Y”!pipe.!See!below!for!stepBbyBstep!photos.!Reeds!will!be!planted!the!top!layer!of!the!cell!in!the!future.!

How! it! works:! The! concept! of! a! rockBreed! wastewater! treatment! cell! is! simple.!Wastewater!(including!blackwater)!is!sent!from!Centro!at!Iracambi!to!a!septic!tank!via!piping.!As!the!tank!fills!up!and!larger!solids!settle!as!liquids!flow!out!from!the!top!of! the! tank! into! a! pipe! that! leads! the! wastewater! into! the! treatment! cell.! A! “T”!shaped!diffuser!allows!the!water!to!percolate!into!the!system!on!the!66!cm!deep!end!where!it!pools!up.!As!the!water!pools!it!leaves!behind!waste!particles!on!the!larger!gravel.!Once!it!pools!to!20!cm!then!it!flows!over!a!hump!toward!the!shallow!45!cm!deep! end! of! the! cell,! being! cleaned! by! both! large! and! small! pieces! of! gravel! as! it!flows.! Reeds! planted! on! top! of! the! gravel! grow! roots! down! into! the! gravel! and!absorb!the!nutrients!the!water!leaves!behind!as!it!filters.!Once!the!water!reaches!the!other! end! of! the! cell! it! enters! into! a! “Y”! shaped! collector! pipe!where! it! exits! the!treatment!cell.!The!purified!water!will!be!diverted!to!a!nearby!swamp!where!it!can!slowly!be!absorbed!into!the!groundwater.!

Treatment!Cell!Diagram!(Aerial!View):!

!

!

Septic!Tank!(located!near!top!of!hill)!

Uphill!Direction!

Treatment!Cell!Ditch!(leveled)!

Wastewater!Inlet!“T”!Pipe! Purified!Water!Outlet!“Y”!Pipe!

Wastewater!Flow!out!of!Septic!Tank!

! 2!

Step!1:!Preparing!the!ditch!to!be!the!correct!length,!width,!depth!and!leveling!it.!

!

Length'~'9.9'm'

Width'~'3.6'm'

Photo!by!Erik!Hauenstein,!June!2015!

! 3!

Step!2:!Placing!sand!on!dirt!to!level!the!ground.

!Photo!by!Erik!Hauenstein,!July!2015!

! 4!

Step!3:!Laying!down!plastic!impermeable!layer.

!

Wood'planks'used'for'Ramp'for'Wheelbarrows'of'Gravel'

Photo!by!Erik!Hauenstein,!July!2015!

! 5!

Step!4:!Inserting!the!wastewater!inlet!“T”!pipe.

!Photo!by!Erik!Hauenstein,!July!2015!

! 6!

Step!5:!Layering!on!~25!cm!of!large!gravel!(measuring!from!deep!end).!

!Photo!by!Erik!Hauenstein,!July!2015!

! 7!

!Photo!by!Erik!Hauenstein,!July!2015!

! 8!

Step!6:!Layering!on!!~!25!cm!of!small!gravel.!

!

Chute&with&pipes&mounted&on&it&used&to&transport&gravel&downhill.&

Photo!by!Jurre!Locht,!July!2015!

! 9!

Step!7:!Inserting!the!purified!water!“Y”!outlet!pipe.

!

!

!

Photo!by!Jurre!Locht,!July!2015!

! 10!

Completed!Construction:!

!

!Note:&Connection&pipe&from&septic&tank&to&inlet&of&treatment&cell&will&be&added&in&the&future.&

Note:&Connection&pipe&from&treatment&cell&to&swamp&where&clean&water&is&released&will&be&added&in&the&future.&

Photo!by!Jurre!Locht,!July!2015!