It floats like a butterfly and stirs like a bee – a SolarBee that is.
A SolarBee mixer was installed on the Upper Tākaka wastewater treatment plant oxidation pond in mid-April.
The establishment of duckweed on the ponds has become a big problem due to the lack of water movement.
Our new SolarBee, which is the second unit to be used in New Zealand, pulls in water at the desired depth from all corners of the pond, providing effective mixing to a predetermined depth.
These mixing machines are designed to operate 24 hours a day on solar power, utilising digital logic for power management, and have auto-reverse, plus anti-jamming features.
The purpose of the SolarBee is to keep the water in the pond moving, reducing the growth of duckweed which smothers the pond surface and significantly reduces ultraviolet disinfection.