This system designed to provide up to 500L of clean water per day comprises of 3 tanks. The inlet or feeding tank is highest and collects raw water pumped by hand from a nearby source of surface water (e.g. river, lake).

The feeding tank distributes water into a larger filtration tank. The larger filtration tank contains stratified layers of washed and graded sand that will serve as the filtration media for the raw water. Clean water is collected at an outlet at the base of the tank, although it is recommended that this water is chlorinated or treated with Silver Based purification products to ensure that it is completely safe for use.

In addition to the two above tanks, a third tank, the backwash tank, located suitably to enable the thorough cleaning of the sand filter is also provided.