The question whether to use cleanable media rather than disposable media is treading in to the environmental forum, and with good cause.

The health safety to employees many times can be significant, as well as the reduction of costs to run the filter (hidden and otherwise).

Due to the new environmental regulations-- and the costs associated with waste disposal -- the manner in which industries filter to either recycle or eliminate filtration waste will change significantly over the next five years.

Importantly, this is in all industries, so be prepared.

Selecting filtration equipment is the combined result of many considerations. In addition to removing undesirable material from a liquid stream, the filtration method selected must also satisfy other requirement.

Installed costs must be weighed against operating costs. Waste disposal costs must be considered. Is continuous flow a requirement of the application, or can the filtration equipment be operated intermittently? Is worker exposure to the process liquid during filter cleaning or replacement a problem?

These and other factors must be weighed when choosing the right filtration method for a particular application.

Today, more than ever, self-cleaning filters (cleanable media) is the better methodology -- and many times the right thing to do -- for many reasons.

With cleanable systems, you enhance employee safety by minimizing worker and workplace exposure to process liquids.

You minimize or eliminate the unlimited cost and inconvenience of media replacement.

You minimize or eliminate the never-ending and ever-rising cost and hassle of media disposal.

You drastically reduce the labor costs to source, purchase, inventory, transport, change, and dispose of replacement media.

You increase the quality and consistence of filter performance and productivity.

To help reduce the confusion when you are evaluating different filtration methods/systems, I have compiled a list of questions you may want to consider:

Factors to Consider:

When selecting a filter for a particular application, the following criteria should be considered.

1. How large is the process volume? What is the flow rate?

2. Is it a continuous or batch process?

3. What are the material characteristics of the solids being removed? How large are the particles? Is the material hazardous? Can the material being removed be recycled back into the process stream at another point?

4. What are the waste disposal costs? How often do bags or cartridges need to be replaced? Can the waste volume be reduced or eliminated by switching to a different filtration method?

5. What are the labor and downtime costs for filter or cartridge replacement? Can downtime be reduced or eliminated by switching to a different filtration method?

--by Ask Filter Man

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