Improvements in Appliances for Cleansing and Disinfecting Drains. Sewers, and the like.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 21st July, 1890
Complete Specification Left, 4th Jec., 1890-Accepted, 24th Jan., 1891
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Appliances for Cleansing and Disinfecting Drains.
Sewers, and the like.
I, JAMES COMPTON MERRYWEATHER of Greenwich Road S.E. in the County of
Kent, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
I am
My invention relates to improvements in appliances for cleansing & disinfecting
drains & passages, for the conveyance of liquids to prevent the accumulation of
sewage or animal or vegetable matter likely to generate gases & cause disease.
aware that at present the usual method of cleansing drains &c. is by flushing. This
will remove any accumulation of solid matter that may be deposited loosely, but my
apparatus is designed to detach from the pipe the matter that adheres to the surface &
resists the action of a stream of water such as is used in flushing.
1 construct a flexible pipe of india rubber or other suitable material, with metallic
nozzles placed radially at intervals.
This pipe I attach to the end of a flexible pipe & introduce the whole into the
pipe to be cleansed through a trap or other opening. I then by means of a force
pump, preferably a small hand power fire engine force into the tube a solution of a
suitable disinfectant this being driven at a great velocity through the nozzles,
dislodges the solid matter which may then be disposed of by flushing in the usual
way.
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JAMES COMPTON MERRYWEATHER.
.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Appliances for Cleansing and Disinfecting Drains,
Sewers, and the like.
I JAMES COMPTON MERRYWEATHER of Greenwich Road S.E. in the County of
Kent Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement:—
In the drawings,-Figs. 1 & 2 show one form of the apparatus which consists of a
metallic tube A, placed on a carriage B preferably on wheels & provided with an
inlet C which in the drawing is shown for the attachment of a flexible hosepipe; the
tube A is provided with a number of nozzles D placed radially in all directions, one
of which is shown in section in Fig. 6.
In some cases the nozzle may be parallel instead of tapered as shown, or holes
may merely be perforated in the body of the pipe. The carriage B is so arranged
that by slacking the nut E on either of the legs of the carriage, the leg may be
swivelled round to accommodate various sizes & forms of sewers.
The method of working is as follows:-The machine being placed in the sewer
connection is made to a hydrant or to the outlet of a pumping engine & thus water is
delivered through the nozzles with great force, & detaches from the surface the
matter that has been deposited & which resists the action of flushing. For cleansing
purposes plain water may be used, but a solution of a chemical disinfectant may be
used with advantage to destroy microbes & disease germs.
In some cases I arrange the nozzles in the pipe in an angular direction so that by
the reaction of the jets, the pipe may revolve in suitable bearings, & thus the liquid
will cover the entire circumference of the sewer Fig. 3, sbows another form suitable
for drains & is substantially similar to the above but no carriage is provided. In

page_text: some cases I form the tube of india rubber or other flexible material in order that it
may be passed without difficulty through traps & past obstructions.
In this case the nozzles are formed by holes through galvanised copper rivets as
shown in section in Fig. 5. Fig. 4 shows another forin of end, being of metal with
holes drilled, & pointed to force its way through accumulations of solid matter.
I further propose to establish in sewers a permanent system of metallic pipes as
shown in Fig. 7. furnished with nozzles as in Fig. 1 or merely holes, connection being
made either permanently to a waterworks supply system or provisions being made
for temporary connection to a hydrant or a pumping engine. In fig. A. is the
main sewer in which is fixed the main "microholiser "B. one end of which is carried
to the surface, a connection being provided for the attachment of a hosepipe to the
hydrant C, branches D may be carried off into all subsidiary drains E, and thus on
turning on the hydrant, water is delivered with great force & the drains effectively
cleansed with a great economy in water over the old system of cleansing by flushing.
In cases in which water is taken from a hydrant & it is desired to introduce a
chemical agent into the drain, in combination with the water, I use an arrangement
not shown in drawings but consisting of a pipe with valve through which a certain
proportion of the chemical liquid is forced & mingling with the water, enters the
microboliser in solution.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
1. The application of jets of water or chemical solution for cleansing or disinfecting
sewers & drains substantially as described.
2. The arrangement of moveable apparatus provided with nozzles for cleansing or
disinfecting drains substantially as described.
3. The arrangements in sewers & drains of fixed pipes perforated or provided with
nozzles for the purpose aforesaid substantially as described.
Dated this 3rd day of December 1890.
415
JAMES COMPTON MERKI WEATHER.