FAQ's

ONE MAIN REASON: to reduce the consumption of fresh potable water to flush resort toilets. The resorts new potable water purchase cost will also offset the OPEX of operating WATERMINER, and in extreme water distressed locations, may even be cheaper than purchasing new fresh potable water. There are also important soft benefits to reducing a businesses water consumption footprint such as resort acceptance of local governments and local residents. 

• Alternatively, conventional bio-chemical and barrier type sewage processing provides a larger and very “live bacteria” sludge; which is what creates most of the odours from conventional sewage treatment plants. 
• If you are currently operating your own onsite bio-chemical based plant, the removal of influent sewage flows will mean only grey water is flowing to your plant.  Potentially adding years of service life to your current plant asset.
• Consider running a small WATERMINER flushing Re-Use pilot, treating your staff facilities first, to confirm the WATERMINER effectiveness. 

The WATERMINER technology was designed, developed and engineered in British Columbia, Canada and is now owned and manufactured by Valence Water Group Inc., Victoria, BC. ( www.valencewater.com).  AYSTAR’s founder and owner is the original inventor and developer of the WATERMINER technology and so has a great understanding and confidence in the product.  AYSTAR has received an exclusive license to pursue new markets in the Caribbean, Portugal and Italy, however, all other parts of the globe and markets are open to AYSTAR as well.

IMPORTANT: Please, at VALENCE CEO request, direct all initial product and market enquiries to AYSTAR only.  

The WATERMINER is a unique globally patented electro-chemical (EC) wastewater treatment technology and device which combines electro-coagulation with electro-oxidation (EO):  in the SAME reactor housing.

Conventional EC science and theory is over 100 years old and has been used extensively to treat difficult wastewater streams.  EO science and theory has been known for some 40 years and has been installed to treat some of the most difficult recalcitrant wastewater contaminants.

WATERMINER combines both of these sciences in a way that makes both the EC and EO treatments complimentary to each other, and improves the overall performance of both; compared to conventional EC plus EO processes having separate and distinct EC and EO reactors. 

This dual science process enhancement, results in a full treatment of the water, in only a few seconds in the reactor itself.  It is this amazing process efficiency that allows us to have a 15 minute on/off capability; allowing for, if needed, very quick batch processing of varied influents.

There are two basic options for installing WATERMINER at your resort.

Fee-For-Service (F4S): meaning AYSTAR and our associates will provide and install all plant equipment and operating requirements per a typical BOO type of arrangement. Partial or complete service redundancy per the resorts requirements will also be taken in to consideration. AYSTAR will work with the resort owner to identify any work, assets or manpower best suited, and least costly when supplied by the resort; and remove these costs from the mutually acceptable final agreement.

SIMPLE PURCHASE OF WATERMINER PLANT MODULE: In this case the resort will submit its water flows and characteristics to AYSTAR for preliminary compatibility analysis and equipment sizing.  Partial or complete service redundancy per the resorts requirements will also be taken in to consideration. 

Once a preliminary design has been drafted between AYSTAR and the OEM manufacturer, a draft sale proposal will be presented to the resort management or owners.  AYSTAR, and its local vendor civil engineering vendors installation services, will also be considered and adopted as needed into the sale agreement. 

Once all plant parameters and a price are agreed, the resort will present a PO to AYSTAR who will initiate its own PO with the OEM plant manufacturer.  Delivery to resort will typically be 24 to 38 weeks depending on the global shipping and parts supply issues at time of order. 

YES. As an electro-chemical process requires a small amount of conductivity in the influent. A small NaCL brine tank is added to the inland plant design. The WATERMINER PLC, sensors and small pumps dose a small amount of the brine in to the feedwater to produce the prescribed and required conductivity.

It really depends on permits, design engineering, resort acceptance timing, and then global supply issues related to pumps, sensors, PLC’s etc etc.. 

But for scope and scale:  with engineering 6-8 weeks, acceptance 4 weeks, OEM build time of 26 to 34 weeks and steamship delivery of 4-6 weeks, we will be looking at a minimum of 36 weeks to a maximum of 58 weeks. 

Commissioning and start-up is typically a 3-4 week period.  

NOTE: delays at the resort end for permits and civil works are an unknown timing window though permits to reduce fresh water consumption could come relatively quickly. 

The WATERMINER module is fully automated with standard Allen-Bradley PLC control; other PLC systems may be available on request and with additional customization cost.  There is a daily 45 minute to 1 hour need for an operator to makeup polymer tanks, general sensor cleaning and to deal with the static sludge dewater bag disposal; there is no daily or weekly WATERMINER reactor maintenance;  though once every 4-6 weeks a single disc-shaped sacrificial anode must be installed in the reactor itself in a one hour operation. 

Resort plant staff need only be trainable and conscientious;  though some water chemistry and or PLC experience could be beneficial.   Any local plant operator licensing requirements would also be applicable. 

Additionally, per industry standard, WATERMINER has remote viewing, operating and PLC updating capabilities that for a core part of the REACTORLINK automated polymer, anode replacement and OEM oversite program for the equipment. 

NOTE: uniquely WATERMINER is a near instant on/off wastewater treatment process so the resort can schedule plant operating at the most opportune time of the resort staff, or to achieve any “off peak-load” time electrical cost benefits. 

This is a very big bonus of installing the WATERMINER system.  WATERMINER produces ~80% less sludge than conventional bio-chemical plants and the WATERMINER sludge is 90% disinfected, creating substantially less to near zero odours. 

At 1,000,000 litres per day the WATERMINER dry sludge volume output would be about 3.5 to 5kg depending on influent contaminant loading.  The WATERMINER proprietary sludge clarifier is installed within the WATERMINER container module, and discharges to a simple static sludge dewater bag system in these smaller packaged plant systems, for eventual disposal as approved in your region. 

YES.  Subject to the final formal contract language, with REACTORLINK in force there is a power and OPEX guarantee provided as well as 2 years parts and labour.  After the 2nd year and so long as REACTORLINK is still in force and in good standing a further to years of parts is included.

Further, there are additional warranties on all support valves, pumps, sensors, motors, PLC’s, HVAC systems etc. by the respective manufacturers of same. 

It will be AYSTAR’S intention to have the OEM builder of WATERMINER platforms confirm local supplier support for all support equipment, and select where appropriate, these parts brands for installation in your resorts custom plant build.

The resort scale modular platforms require 240 to 360v 3ph/4w electrical mains; though custom power configurations are available to meet local realities.  Processing power consumption is a very stable due to the unique gap control design of the WaterMiner reactor. 

The other two consumables are Fe/Al coagulant ( supplied as a single solid disc anode) and a proprietary high performance  sludge polymer; in occasions where ocean seawater is not available to provide any needed conductivity a dry NaCL is required to supply an onsite brine tank. 

Note: desalination plant water brine is a likely, near free, source of dosing brine.  

REACTORLINK  is an exceptional and proprietary iron/Al coagulant anode, polymer consumables restocking program which includes  extended warranty, processing performance commitments, bi-annual servicing and training program.  The anode and polymer consumables are automatically shipped to the resort, and stored until needed at AYSTAR’s cost, based on alerts sent to AYSTAR/VALENCE from the PLC advising that it is time to replenish one or both of these items.  The replenishment algorithm takes in to account the special shipping lag times of the actual platform location.

Ideally, it also provides a mutually agreed and guaranteed OPEX cost program to the resort.   

• There are basically 2 ways to put WATERMINER to work at your project: Fee-4-Service (F4S), straight purchase of WaterMiner plant modules.

  F4S

  • In a F4S based WATERMINER installation, an “ALL-IN”  processed water OPEX depending on total flows and which assets and services the resort wishes to provide itself. 
  • As a modular plant solution, it may be appropriate to design increased flows in the WATERMINER support equipment so that an additional WATERMINER module can be easily and quickly added to the system at a later date.  Additional future processing capacity may de desired to add water-feature Re-Use and or to treat all/most of the resorts remaining grey water as well  to further reduce regulated phosphorous outputs should they come to pass.  Having the needed pipe sizes and tankage built into the original “basis of design” for additional treatment flows may prove to be very appropriate though it would add to the original F4S fee requirement.
  • AYSTAR, with the lead from Valence’s technical group, will, with the approval of our client, engage with local qualified civil construction vendors to provide all the site development and final installation project works.

   

• Please contact us to open a dialogue on the complete scope and needs of your project from which we can work up a mutually agreed “All-In” Fee-For-Service proposal.

   Straight Purchase

  • For a resort WATERMINER purchased installation our OEM technicians will explore your unique application considerations and propose the properly scaled WATERMINER treatment module along with a mutually agreed ReactorLink consumables supply & support package.
  • The WATERMINER module purchaser will provide at their cost all site and project design and installation requirements – with technical review comments from AYSTAR/VALENCE if requested – as well as all overhead and OPEX consumables not specifically included in the REACTORLINK