## 5 Conclusions  
In summary, this study demonstrates that sedimentation and biofilm-based slow sand filtration systems can significantly reduce turbidity and contaminants, making them highly effective for improving water quality in resource-limited environments. The use of locally sourced materials ensures these methods are both sustainable and accessible, while their simplicity supports practical implementation.  
A key innovation and added value of this approach is the development of a tailored model for optimizing water treatment systems in off-grid communities. This model incorporates both slow sand filtration (SSF) and sedimentation with coagulant materials, providing flexibility to adapt to local conditions. An additional aspect of the innovation is the design of a small and compact system suitable for household use, in contrast to the larger models commonly referenced in the literature [6; 7; 10; 11; 12]. Furthermore, part of this innovation is the demonstration of the feasibility of the proposed model for the Maasai community, specifically for treating water with very high turbidity levels.  
Looking ahead, further research will focus on combining these methods to maximize their effectiveness and explore their capability to remove bacterial contaminants and heavy metals (such as lead), ultimately aiming to enhance the overall health and well-being of the communities relying on these systems.  
The following supporting information can be downloaded at: [[https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/app14209467/s1](https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/app14209467/s1)]([https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/app14209467/s1](https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/app14209467/s1)), Figure S1: Sand Filtration System Turbidity Over Days And Repetitions--A system; Figure S2: Sand Filtration System Turbidity Over Days and Repetitions--B system; Figure S3: Sand Filtration System Turbidity Over Days and Repetitions--optimal ratio and amount of sand and gravel; Figure S4: System 4--Turbidity over Reputation; Figure S5: System 5--Turbidity over reputation; Figure S6: Gravel Used in the SSF System; Table S1: Well B; Table S2: Sukuro Dam; Table S3: Red Dam; Table S4: Initial assessment of sedimentation (0.05 L); Table S5: Medium Volume Container (0.5 L); Table S6: Larger Volume Container (1.5 L); Table S7: Largest Volume Container (6 L); Table S8: Small Volume Container (0.05 L); Table S9: Large Volume Container (6 L).  
Conceptualization, N.B.; methodology, N.B. and N.L.; formal analysis, N.B.; investigation, N.B., N.L., S.D., M.M., N.P., O.G. and S.P.; resources, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev; data curation, N.B.; writing--original draft preparation, N.B.; writing--review and editing, A.R.; visualization, N.B.; supervision, A.R.; project administration, N.B.; funding acquisition, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.  
This research was funded by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.  
Not applicable.  
The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article, further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author.  
[PERSON] from the Department of Biotechnology Engineering, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel.  
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.