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The 3 Top Industries That Need Oil Water Separators

oil water separator, enviro concepts

Oil Water Separators (OWS) are a legal requirement for most facilities that generate waste containing hydrocarbons, oil and grease. Most industries need the Oil Water Separators to efficiently remove suspended solids, oil and grease from their wastewater before the water can be fit for sewage discharge or taken into further processing for reuse. In this article, we focus on car and truck wash industry, mechanical workshops and mining industry to illustrate why an OWS is an essential ingredient in wastewater processing for these businesses.

What is Oily Water?

Wastewater containing fats, oils and grease is classified as oily water. After the first stage of removing suspended solids from wastewater, the OWS usually becomes the second stage of filtering the wastewater. Oily water could be a result of wastewater from mechanical, energy, food and beverage industries or any business that washes fleets of vehicles. Oil Water Separators are excellent for wastewater management as well as affordable for this initial stage of treatment, removing oil and grease, larger suspended solids and free floating hydrocarbons from wastewater.

Mine Industry and Heavy Vehicle Washdowns

The mining sector uses the Oil Water Separator to treat wastewater generated from washing large trucks, steel tracked mine vehicles or any heavy equipment caked with mud, clay and dirt. Oily water sources from mining processes can be found workshops, fuel storage areas, washbays and refueling bays. Mine sites also have several processing plants and stations like mineral processing, power stations, rail and port facilities that also contribute the production of oily water. The wastewater has to pass through an Oil Water Separator to be treated in order to prepare the water for discharge or reuse.

Mechanical Workshops

Whether it is a car dealership, mechanics workshop, panel beaters or service stations, wastewater containing oil and grease have to be treated on the premises to make it environmentally safe for discharge. The storage and washing down of vehicles and equipment can produce wastewater with pollutants such as petrol, diesel, kerosene, coolants, solvents, brake fluid, motor oils, lubricating grease, sediment and heavy metals. Wastewater from washbays require pre-treatment with Oil Water Separation systems prior to being discharged into sewers or septics.

Businesses with Fleets of Vehicles

Any business that owns a fleet of vehicles generate oily water from the large number of washdowns daily. For buses and coach operating facilities, or truck and transport services, managing fleet wash requirement is an essential part of daily operations. Whether it is a tanker, long-haul, farm or service trucks, truck wash companies need to wash their vehicles regularly to keep their assets in good working condition and maintain a professional appearance. Such regular washing creates large volumes of dirty water and solids. One of our clients who is a large car rental company also faces the challenge of managing wastewater created by regular washing. Enviro Concepts provides a range of cost-effective and efficient Oil Water Separators for small to large amounts of washdowns that these businesses have to face.

Types of OWS

Depending on your industry application, oil concentration and your requirements of water usage and performance, Enviro Concepts can offer you a standard, high-quality and cost-effective solution. The chart below shows some of the readily available options we can supply to our clients:

Capacity of OWS Type
16 L/min or 0.96m³/h Coalescing Plate Separator
30 L/min or 1.8 m³/h Vertical Gravity Separator (VGS)
50 L/min or 3m³h Tube Separator
100 L/min or 6m³/h Coalescing Plate Separator
100 L/min or 6m³/h to
3300 L/min or 198 m³/h
Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF) Range

The SIOS System

The Enviro Concepts Solid Interceptor Oil Separator or SIOS system is a top selling packaged system. It is a skid mounted, pre-engineered and pre-assembled system with an OWS, compliant pump, tank and fitout. The Solid Interceptor Oil Separator (SIOS) system is used by our clients to remove up to 95% of the oils and grease in their waste water. Treated water is then discharged as a trade waste (sewer) and the settled solids are trained back to the gutter for ease of collection and disposal.

Which Oil Water Separator is best for me?

Depending on your need, our engineers can advise you on the type and capacity of OWS for your water treatment. If you need more information, contact us for a free consultation and we will get back to you within 24 hours!