Portable filtration apparatus and method of using same
A lightweight, portable filter system that is especially adapted for use in commercial kitchen cleaning services such as hoods used in commercial kitchens is described. The invention is defined by a container adapted for holding a filter and which has a drain opening that may be connected to the usual drain. A filter is suspended in the interior of the container with a special structure that allows for quick and easy insertion of the filter and removal of the filter when it is spent and the top of the filter is open to define a relatively large opening. In use, the tarp that is used to isolate a hood during cleaning is tucked into the opening into the filter so that effluent that flows from the hood during cleaning, and the cleaning fluids (water, degreasers, etc.) are channeled into the filter. The material used for the filter is selected for the particular type of cleaning that is being done, and in any event removes the desired compounds from the effluent stream. The liquids flowing through the filter flow into the container, out the drain opening and into a drain or where ever the effluent properly is intended to flow.
1. Portable filtration apparatus for use in cleaning a fixture, comprising:
a tarp adapted for attachment to said fixture to thereby enclose the fixture and thereby define a flow path from said fixture to a tarp open end;
a container having an open end and a closed end;
a drain valve in the closed end of the container;
a support plate adapted for covering the open end of the container and having an opening formed therein;
a filter in the container, said filter suspended from the support plate and extending downwardly through the opening therein and into the container, said filter having an open end and a closed end;
wherein said flow path extends into said filter.
2. The portable filtration apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the filter defines filter media selected to entrain desired compounds removed from the fixture.
3. The portable filtration apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the opening in the support plate is defined by an inwardly and downwardly sloping shoulder that defines a first diameter at an upper perimeter and a second diameter at a lower perimeter, the first diameter larger than the second diameter.
4. The portable filtration apparatus according to claim 3 wherein the filter includes a ring around the open end and the ring has a ring diameter intermediate between the diameter of the first diameter and the second diameter.
5. The portable filtration apparatus according to claim 4 wherein the filter is suspended from the support plate with the ring on the sloping shoulder of the support plate.
6. The portable filtration apparatus according to claim 5 in which the support plate defines a perimeter and including a seal around the perimeter that defines a seal between the support plate and the container.
7. The portable filtration apparatus according to claim 6 including a clamp for fixing the support plate to the container.
8. The portable filtration apparatus according to claim 5 further including a retaining ring in the open end of said filter.
9. The portable filtration apparatus according to claim 8 in which the retaining ring includes an inwardly and downwardly sloping shoulder that is angled at approximately the same slope as the shoulder of said shoulder in said support plate.
10. The portable filtration apparatus according to claim 9 in which the ring is captured between the retaining ring and the shoulder in said support plate.
11. The portable filtration apparatus according to claim 8 wherein the retaining ring stabilizes said tarp relative to said container.
12. The portable filtration apparatus according to claim 1 in which the fixture is a kitchen hood.
13. A method for filtering effluent resulting from cleaning a fixture comprising the steps of:
a) effectively enclosing said fixture with a tarp and defining a flow path through said tarp from said fixture to a tarp open end;
b) providing a filter for receiving effluent from cleaning the kitchen hood, the filter including a container having an open end and a closed end, a drain valve in the closed end, a support plate adapted for covering the open end and the support plate having an opening formed therein, and a filter in the container, said filter suspended from the support plate and extending downwardly through the opening therein and into the container, said filter open at an upper end thereof; and
c) inserting said tarp open end into the open upper end of said filter so that said flow path extends into said filter;
d) cleaning said fixture so that effluent flows through the flow path and into said filter.
14. The method according to claim 13 including the step of retaining the tarp relative to said container.
15. The method according to claim 14 including the step of filtering select compounds from said effluent with said filter.