Home Made Berkey Water Filter

Berkey filters are gravity filters that use cleanable micro-permeable ceramic filter elements. DO NOT allow the filter to FREEZE – once frozen the filter is CRACKED and will not filter. DO NOT DROP the filter, when dropped the filter may be broken and will not filter properly. These filters are extremely effective, long-lasting and require no electricity. This article will guide you through the construction of a filter equivalent in performance to the Imperial Berkey that sells for about $250-350. Our total cost was $125.

Gather the necessary components:

• Two 5-gallon food grade buckets ($6 - Macey’s)

• Two lids for the buckets (we used Gamma lids $6, they spin on/off for cleaning & filling – Macey’s)

• A pair of Black Berkey filter elements ($80 Alert Store)

• A food grade spigot (~ $12 Alert Store)

We only used ONE (1) filter in the Center of the Pail / Lid

Process to help preserve the Berkey filter

1. Pre-filter water through a Painter’s Strainer – 5 microns - $3 Home Depot / Lowes
2. Pre-filter water through a Water Sox – 1 micron - $10 Utah Civil Defense - info@tacda.org  (The American Civil Defense Association – TACDA) 800.425.5397
3. Last of all filter through the Berkey filters – 99.99% pure water
Prices as of October 2008

Drill two 1/2" holes in the bottom of the upper bucket and two matching holes in the lid of the lower bucket. Place the lid on the bottom of a bucket and drill both holes through the lid and pail simultaneously.

 

Drill a 3/4" hole in the side of the lower bucket toward the bottom. Make sure that the hole is up just far enough for the spigot to clear when the filter is sitting on a flat surface

Assemble the lower bucket by installing the spigot and the lid with holes.

Install the filter elements in the upper bucket through the holes in the bottom.









Assemble the filter by placing the upper bucket on the lower. Be sure to line up the holes so the tubes extend through the lid of the lower bucket. Place the remaining lid on top.


Purchase filters and spigots at:

The ALERT Store Phone: (903) 636-9232 / (903) 636-9384
One Academy Blvd. Big Sandy, TX 75755 http://www.thealertstore.com/
To use the filter, fill the upper bucket with water and wait. This process can be sped up by frequently topping off the water in the upper bucket. This maintains maximum pressure on the elements.

The specifications of the Black Berkey elements can be found here: http://berkeywater.com/BerkeyLight/BB_Purification_Elements.html


• The flow rate can also be increased by adding more filter elements.
• The filtered solids remain on the outside of the filter elements and will eventually interfere with the rate of flow. Therefore, it is important to pre-filter if your source water is cloudy. The elements can be scrubbed clean with a plastic scouring pad. The Black Berkey elements last for about 3000 gallons each (6000 gallons for the pair). By pre-filtering the filter will last longer.
• Used at a rate of 2 gallons of water per person per day for an average family of 4 people. The filters should last 2 years (2 gallons X 4 people = 8 gallons per day x 365 days = 2920 gallons per year.)

Joanne and Michael Barr