Other Solutions

There are many other appropriate technologies which the Raintree Foundation had used, installed or implemented. The field of these technologies is spread really wide and it’s nearly impossible to mention them all. They cover a wide spectrum of applications and techniques; it’s really interesting what simple solutions are available that could help improve people’s lives.

We will name just a few which we used for water supply, water treatment and generating electricity:

Treadle Pumps (driven by foot using human power, lifting water from a depth of around 7 meters, the working principle is similar to a piston pump but without motor, mostly locally produced and cheap)

Ceramic or Clay Pod Water Filters (made out of suitable clay mixed with fine- gained organic waste which will leave after burning small pores, the water passes through the small pores and gets purified, the filter will remove up to 99% of E. Coli bacteria, but it don’t remove viruses)

Rower Pumps (a simple and cheap device, driven by human power, operates similar to a common piston pump, locally produced and easy to maintain)

Paddle Wheel (a stream driven device, using a water wheel as drive unit, could be used for pumping water through a coiled pipe, also used combined with a belt drive to generate electricity or using common piston pumps, mostly locally available and easy to maintain)

UV / Solar Water Disinfection (using the sunlight to treat the water, simply exposing water filled PET bottles into the sunlight, the bacteria will get destroyed by the UV radiances and the heat, after 6 hours in full sunlight or 2 days when it’s cloudy the water is drinkable)

Rainwater Harvesting (using the rain as a natural water source, harvesting the rainwater through rooftops, plastic covers and sheets, collecting the water in suitable storage containers, tanks or cisterns, a sufficient system which is big enough could be used to cover the need of water in dry periods)

Solar Systems (using sunlight to convert it into electric energy, needs to be installed by skilled workers, range from small micro systems for simple applications to huge facilities, generates electricity for direct usage like lamps and water pumps or could be stored in batteries to use electric devices at nighttime, mostly locally available, nearly everywhere adaptable)

That’s a small abstract from all the appropriate technologies available worldwide. There will be more solutions and technologies on the web.