OCR Text |
Show Requirements for the recycling and reuse of water by all newly constructed commercial laundries and vehicle wash facilities. Public Law 102- 575, Subsection 207( f)( 2)( E) This subsection deals with commercial laundries and vehicle wash facilities. Commercial Laundries Background Water recycling in the commercial laundry industry involves the reuse of effluent from a wash operation. Commercial laundries also generate revenues based on rental of uniforms, linen, diapers and other items as well as the laundering of items. Methods of water recycling in commercial laundries include direct reuse, reclamation and reuse, and closed loop reuse. Direct reuse involves using wastewater from one phase of operation to supplement fresh water in another wash or rinse phase. Direct reuse is sometimes referred to as partial reuse, meaning the source of some of the total water usage is water that has been " used" previously for the same or another operation. Reclamation and reuse indicate that some form of treatment is involved to partially clean up the water prior to reuse. The method, amount and efficiency of treatment required is dictated by the reuse application. Reclamation systems can be fairly simple and may include just gravity settling of particulates. In other cases, settling and filtration are employed to remove particulate matter. Closed loop systems are more complex and may include the use of chemicals to facilitate contaminant removal in conjunction with more sophisticated treatment units such as ultrafiltration. Closed loop treatment systems generally consist of several operations and processes and remove more contaminants. The costs of the several types of systems vary directly with their complexity. Closed loop systems approach 90 percent reclamation of water, but tend to be more complex and require more skilled operators than the simpler systems. Generally, the two types of washers currently in use in commercial laundries are tub washers and tunnel washers. Tub washers are batch process single load machines that prewash, wash and rinse within a single container. Tunnel washers advance batches of laundry through a series of compartments that perform a wash or rinse cycle with less water than standard tub washers. Dirty laundry at the mouth of the tunnel is washed with recycled rinse water from compartments at the opposite end of the tunnel. Heat exchangers preheat incoming makeup water with the heat from the outgoing wastewater. The wash water temperatures are typically 140- 150° F. A summary of the water use per pound of laundry by the different types of washers is given in Table 1. The average water use in the laundry industry has been reported as 3.3 gallons/ lb. Water use and wastewater |