IMPROVEMENTS IN CISTERN FILTERS
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Ferry, of the Town and County of
Southampton, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN CISTERN
FILTERS."
Sealed the 23rd August 1872, and dated the 22nd April 1872.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Ferry at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
22nd April 1872.
I, WILLIAM FERRY, of the Town and County of Southampton, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
CISTERN FILTERS," to be as follows :—
This Invention has for its object an arrangement whereby water from
an inlet pipe is filtered before passing into the cistern. For this purpose
a filter chamber is formed of about the same depth as the cistern; this
filter chamber may either be outside the cistern or may be placed inside,
or a portion of the cistern may be cut off by a vertical partition to form
it. At a suitable height from its bottom is placed a horizontal perforated
slab, which supports the ordinary filter beds; the portion between the

page_text: bottom and this slab I call the "water chamber." The filter beds do
not quite fill the rest of the filter chamber but leave a small space at the
top for water, and from this space a pipe communicates with the cistern,
so that when the cistern is full the water in it is at the level as in
the filter chamber. The water is admitted through the inlet pipe to the
"water chamber" at the bottom of the filter, from thence the water
rises through the filter beds and flows into the cistern. The inlet pipe
is closed by a valve worked by a ball cock floating in the cistern. At
the bottom of the "water chamber" is a flushing pipe closed with
a cock.
When it is desired to remove any sediment that may have collected in
the "water chamber" this cock is opened, and the water rushing through
the flushing pipe scours away the sediment. The cistern has a waste
pipe at the top and an outlet pipe at the bottom in the ordinary way.
The flushing pipe may be connected with the waste pipe.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Ferry in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 22nd October 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
FERRY, of the Town and County of Southampton, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of April, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the thirty-
fifth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said William Ferry, Her special license that I,
the said William Ferry, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said William Ferry, 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 CISTERN FILTERS,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Ferry, my
exccutors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or

page_text: their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what 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 William Ferry, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, that is to say :-
This Invention has for its object an arrangement whereby water from
an inlet pipe is filtered before passing into the cistern. For this purpose
a filter chamber is formed of about the same depth as the cistern.; this
filter chamber may either be outside the cistern or may be placed inside,
or a portion of the cistern may be cut off by a vertical partition to form
it. At a suitable height from its bottom is placed a horizontal perforated
slab which supports the ordinary filter beds; the portion between the
bottom and this slab I call the "water chamber." The filter beds do
not quite fill the rest of the filter. chamber, but leave a small space at
the top for water, and from this space a pipe communicates with the
cistern, so that when the cistern is full the water in it is at the same
level as in the filter chamber. The water is admitted through the inlet
pipe to the "water chamber" at the bottom of the filter; from thence
the water rises through the filter beds, and flows into the cistern. The
inlet pipe is closed by a valve worked by a ball cock floating in the
cistern. At the bottom of the "water chamber" is a flushing pipe closed
with a cock.
When it is desired to remove any sediment that may have collected
in the "water chamber" this cock is opened, and the water rushing
through the flushing pipe scours away the sediment. The cistern has a
waste pipe at the top and an outlet pipe at the bottom in the ordinary
way. The flushing pipo may be connected with the waste pipe.
And in order that my Invention may be fully understood, and readily
carried into effect, I have at Figure 1 of the Drawings hereunto annexed
shewn a vertical section of a cistern filter constructed according to my
Invention. In this Figure A is the filter chamber; this is shewn to be
separate from the cistern B, but as before stated it might be a portion of
the cistern B partitioned off, or it might be within the cistern.
a is the

page_text: water chamber at the bottom of the chamber; b, the inlet pipe for
admitting water thereto; c, the flushing pipe; d, a ball cock on the
inlet pipe b, the ball floating in the water in the cistern B.
At the top
of the water chamber is the slab of slate e perforated with holes, say, of
1 inch diameter; upon this slab rest the filter beds; g is the pipe con-
necting the upper part of the filter chamber A with the cistern B; h is
the waste pipe; and k, the outlet pipe from this cistern.
By constructing a cistern filter as above described the filtering mate-
rials can without difficulty. be taken out from the top of the filter
chamber, and can be washed or replaced. Any sediment which collects
in the water chamber a can also be readily washed away without dis-
turbing the filter beds by opening the cock on the flushing pipe c.
At Figure 2 is shewn a perspective view of a cistern filter, in which the
filter chamber is formed by a portion of the cistern being partitioned off,
and in which the waste pipe from the cistern is led into the flushing
pipe from the water chamber at the bottom of the filter: In this cistern
filter there is also a small air pipe at the top of the inlet pipe 6, as
shewn; in other respects the cistern filter is similar to that shewn in
Figure 1, and the parts are marked with the same letters of reference, so
that it is unnecessary to give any further description of them.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I would have it understood that I claim, the com-
bined arrangement of cistern filter, substantially as herein described and
shewn by the Drawings annexed.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Ferry, have hereunto set 2
my hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of October, in the year