DefinePK

Abstract

Background: An alternative for improving water quality is the use of an up-flow slow sand filter, which is a water treatment system with a main medium of sand, active carbon and gravel. Materials and Methods: This study aimed to analyze the quality of a water source from a well in Tallo district with parameters of odor, taste, pH, turbidity and bacterial standards in accordance with the regulation of the Minister of Health and then to analyze the effect of the thickness of the sand layer in the filter on the function of the system processing water with values of 60, 65 and 70 cm. Results: The results showed that the system has an effect in sustaining the pH value. The results also revealed that the filtering system with a sand thickness of 70 cm is the most effective for being able to raise the pH from 5.47 to 6-7. Sand thickness of 60 cm reduces the turbidity of 56-43 NTU and the thickness of 70 cm reduces it to 21 NTU. In addition, the odor detected before treatment in the filter system was eliminated as was the taste. Finally, some respondents found that no microbes were present in their water after the treatment. Conclusion: This study shows the effect of variations in the thickness of the sand layer in an up-flow sand filtration system on the effectiveness of the filter in treating water into clean water, particularly in increasing the pH, reducing the turbidity, eliminating odors and reducing bacteria.