Oil water separators (coalescing plate separators) are enhanced gravity systems required to remove oils and solids from water. Commonly used in vehicle wash bays and mechanical workshops, oily water is pumped through to an inlet chamber where solids settle out and oil immediately rises to the surface. After the oily water is separated, an oil baffle prevents it from entering the outlet weir. The waste water is then discharged to sewer, the solids to the in-built hopper and waste oil to a drum underneath.
Typical sized separators treat between 1,000 and 3,000 litres per hour (larger flowrates are available). A diaphragm pump, which is normally electrically driven mechanical, but can be air-operated, is used to pump the in-flow at a controlled flowrate matched to the separator. The major manufacturer of oil water separators is KCPS which All Pumps has extensive experience supplying, installing, servicing and maintaining.