SDS Ltd – Product Showcase

February 1, 2024

Intelligent Rainwater Management with SDS Intellistorm®

SDS intelligent rainwater management system provides a means to both protect property and the environment from flooding and pollution and to provide a source of non-potable water which is especially important in areas where drinking water sources are under stress.

SDS Intellistorm® technology monitors weather forecasts and instructs a rainwater harvesting tank to release sufficient of its contents prior to rainfall in order to accommodate the expected new influx of water but still maximising the availability of stored rainwater for reuse purposes.

In the course of its installations over the last few years around the UK, SDS has refined this technology to the extent that one smart harvesting tank can now provide the same attenuation capacity of up to 75 similarly sized “dumb” (i.e. conventional) water butts.

To date, the majority of systems have been retrofitted to existing properties, with the primary objective of meeting the incumbent Water Utility Company’s requirement to prevent CSO spills. They are, however, also suitable for installation in new-build properties and smaller developments, in particular where there is a mechanism in place to provide for the equipment’s long-term maintenance.

Case Study: Deal

SDS has installed Intellistorm® systems for Southern Water as part of a catchment approach to a long-standing surface water flooding problem in Deal, Kent. Houses situated at a low point in the town have experienced flooding for over 30 years; the new, smart rainwater harvesting tanks have been introduced at properties upstream of the area in order to better control the volume and timing of surface water entering the combined sewer. Of the 120 homeowners in the target area who were contacted, 46% agreed to participate and, of these, approximately two thirds chose to have a 200-litre smart tank fitted (in preference to any other devices offered to them).

Students at the University of Exeter will analyse and review the data, which the tanks’ “SYMBiotIC™” monitoring technology is able to provide, in order to measure the impact of the scheme on water attenuation consumption.

Following several months’ initial assessment of the scheme’s performance Southern Water has requested that 165 Intellistorm® rainwater management systems be installed next at residential properties in Swalecliffe, near Whitstable on the Kent coast. These will help to reduce the operation of combined sewer overflows during rainfall and also improve bathing water quality at the local coastline.

For further details on SDS Intellistorm® rain- and grey- water recycling systems please visit: https://www.sdslimited.com/products/sds-intellistorm/

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