IMPROVEMENTS IN TANK FILTERS, PART OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS IS APPLICABLE FOR ATTACHMENT OF CEMENT TO OTHER METAL SURFACES
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Burney, of Millwall, in the County of
Middlesex, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN TANK FILTERS,
PART OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS IS APPLICABLE FOR ATTACHMENT OF CEMENT
TO OTHER METAL SURFACES."
Sealed the 13th May 1875, and dated the 20th March 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Burney at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
20th March 1875.
I, GEORGE BURNEY, of Millwall, in the County of Middlesex, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN TANK FILTERS, PART OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS IS APPLICABLE FOR ATTACHMENT
OF CEMENT TO OTHER METAL SURFACES," to be as follows:-
My improvements relate partly to the construction of tank filters and
partly to the arrangement of the filtering materials, whereby to reduce
the cost, to enable the filters to be more easily cleansed by unskilled
persons with less washing, and thus avoid the necessity of cleansing

page_text: greatest facility for removing and cleansing or replacing the filter block
or tray.
I paint by preference the inside of the larger tank with oxide paint,
which is perfectly innocuous, or if desired it may be coated with Roman
or Portland cement, for which purpose I use keys at suitable intervals
formed of concave washers or cups, or strips slightly rising from the
surface, either rivetted, screwed, bolted, or soldered at intervals in tho
inside of the tank. The same method is also applicable for attaching
cement to other metal surfaces.
Where speed of filtering is required a small filter can be used for
rapidly filtering by securing the man-hole of the tank and placing the
supply tank on a higher level and leading a pipe into the filtering tank.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said George Burney in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 20th September 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
BURNEY, of Millwall, in the County of Middlesex, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twentieth day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the thirty-eighth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said George Burney, Her special licence that I, the
said George Burney, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said George Burney, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to
time and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN TANK FILTERS, PART
OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS IS APPLICABLE FOR ATTACHMENT OF CEMENT TO OTHER METAL
SURFACES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George
Burney, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what

page_text: manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed
in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said George Burney, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement, reference being had to the accompanying Sheet of
Drawings and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to
say) :—
My improvements relate partly to the construction of tank filters and
partly to the arrangement of the filtering materials, whereby to reduce
the cost, to enable the filters to be more easily cleansed by unskilled
persons with less washing, and thus avoid the necessity of cleansing
loose charcoal or other filtering material, while the filtering apparatus is
made to occupy only about five per cent. of the interior space.
I employ either Atkins' Patent filtering blocks or movable trays, or
boxes filled with sand, charcoal, or other filtering material, which can
thus be easily taken out and cleansed or replaced by other trays or boxes
kept in readiness for use.
In most cases I make a complete tank of small size for the filtered
water, which I place in one end of the unfiltered water tank, the draw-
off cock passing through both with a thick washer between and screwing
into a nut in the filtered water tank. In the bottom of this tank I fix
the filtering block or tray, and cement or lute the same, and on the lower
part of the filtering block or tray I place a sheet of white felt. The
bottom of the tank projects some inches below the block into another
tray, perforated and filled with sand, in which the bottom of small tank
is embedded.
The unfiltered water passes down through the sand and rises through
the filtering material into the smaller tank, where it is drawn off.
The dirt or sediment in the water is deposited in the bottom of the
larger tank, which has a cock or plug by which it can be swept out as
often as required, and what little cleaning is needed can be done by any
person in an exceedingly short time.
The above-described arrangement of the filtering materials may also bo
reversed if desired.

page_text: This improved mode of construction allows of the smaller tank being
tinned inside or coated with enamel, or lined with china or glass slabs,
which are preferable in a sanitary point to galvanizing or cement.
According to another arrangement I make a ledge at one end of the
large tank a few inches from the bottom, under which ledge I place
the said tray of sand, and on the ledge I fix by bolts or otherwise
the filtering block or tray with suitable luting. On the side next
the unfiltered water are fixed eyes, and on the sides of the tank
sloping angle iron ledges, the object being to make a triangular space
for the filtered water, which is closed and kept from contact with the
unfiltered water by a lid luted and having hooks fitting into the aforesaid
eyes at lower end, and wedged down upon the said sloping angle irons.
by wood wedges or other tightening appliances from cleats on the side of
the tank. This lid is made removable, and gives the greatest facility for
removing and cleaning or replacing the filter block or tray.
Where speed of filtering is required a small filter can be used for
rapidly filtering by securing the man-hole of the tank, and placing the
supply tank on a higher level and leading a pipe into the filtering
tank.
I paint by preference the inside of the large tank with oxide paint,
which is perfectly innocuous, or if desired it may be coated with Roman
or Portland cement, for which purpose I use keys at suitable intervals
formed of concave washers or cups, or strips slightly rising from the
surface either rivetted, screwed, bolted, or soldered at intervals on the
inside of the tank. The same method is also applicable for attaching
cement to other metal surfaces.
une fist arrange-
ment described. a is the tank for the unfiltered water. It is closed at
top with the exception of an aperture at one end corresponding in shape
and size to the tank for the filtered water, which is introduced thereat,
as shown. The tank a has also a man-hole c and a hole closed by a
plug & at bottom for cleaning out the tank. The filtered water tank b
is also closed at top and provided with a man-hole closed by a suitable
cover. The tank is open at bottom but divided horizontally by a filtering

page_text: block e fitted therein at a short distance from the bottom, as shown, the
block being luted and fixed by angle irons screwed to the sides of the
tank b. f is a sheet of white felt covering the bottom of block e; g is
a tray of perforated sheet metal placed in the bottom of tank a. The
tank b stands in this tray, its lower edges 6¹, which embed themselves in
the sand as shown, being curved upwards or otherwise formed to give
passage to the water beneath them. The tray 9 is separated from the rest
of tank a by a partition / to prevent the sediment deposited at bottom
of tank a clogging the perforations of the tray. The unfiltered water in
tank a passes in the direction of the arrow down through the sand in
tray g, and also through the perforations in said tray and beneath the
edges b¹, and rises through the sand, felt f, and filtering block e into
the tank b, whence it is drawn off through cock i. The filtered water
tank being comparatively small may by merely disconnecting cock i
be removed bodily for cleansing the bottom of filtering block c and
renewing the felt, and the tray 9 may also be readily removed with its
contents and refilled with sand. The sand being contained in a removable
tray is taken out in bulk, whereby the labour of shovelling it out is
avoided.
Figures 2 and 3 show a face view and cross section of one form of key
for fixing cement to tanks and other metal surfaces. is a "key," con-
sisting of a concave strip of iron enamelled on the concave side, and
fixed as before described to the metal surface m, a number of these strips
being provided at suitable intervals to retain the cement n, as shown.
Other forms of keys described may be substituted for the strips 7.
Having described the nature of the Invention and the manner of per-
forming the same, I declare that what I claim as the Invention to be
protected by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,―
1st. The employment of an independent and removable tank for the
filtered water, open at bottom and provided with a filtering block (or its
equivalent) and felt, the said tank standing in a perforated tray of sand.
within another tank of unfiltered water, as and for the purposes set
forth.
2nd. The method of dividing off a portion of the unfiltered water
tank to receive the filtered water by a lid or plate and filtering materials
arranged and fitted in the tank, substantially as described,

page_text: 3rd. The means of fitting or keying cement to metal surfaces shown
and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Burney, have hereunto
set my hand and scal, this Eighteenth day of September, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
five.