Spiral Water Technologies develops and sells high-performance products for high solids filtration and concentration applications. Since 2012, we have focused on a singular mission—designing a self-cleaning water filter outperforms traditional backwash systems for industries with high and variable Total Suspended Solids (TSS). Today, more than 200 of our self-cleaning automatic filters are in use worldwide, helping customers maintain flow, reduce downtime, and lower wastewater costs.
Here, we’ll look at how self-cleaning filters work, how ours stand out from others on the market, and some common applications for them.
The Basics: How Self-Cleaning Filters Work
Self-cleaning filter systems continuously remove suspended solids without the need for disposable cartridges or manual cleaning. The basic concept is simple: water flows into the filter housing, where a screen or mesh captures particles larger than the rated micron size. As debris builds up, a cleaning mechanism—typically a backwash or suction scanner—activates automatically. Solids are removed, and the filtration process continues without stopping the flow.
In process-heavy industries, this type of automation is essential; however, not all systems can handle the same range of solids. Standard self-cleaning filters may clog or stall when solids exceed design tolerances. That’s where Spiral Water stands apart.
Spiral Water’s self-cleaning filter uses a patented internal mechanical cleaning process that maintains pressure and flow even under heavy loading. Unlike suction or backwash systems, it doesn’t rely on pressure surges or pulsing. The result is consistent, clog-free performance even with highly variable solids content.
Why Spiral Water’s Filters Are Different
Most standard self-cleaning filters perform well with stable process flows and low solids content. But in real-world conditions, especially when Total Suspended Solids (TSS) levels rise above 300 ppm, these systems often struggle. Spiral Water’s self-cleaning filters are engineered to handle variable and high solids environments without clogging or pressure loss.
At the core of Spiral Water’s design is a patented mechanical cleaning mechanism that scrapes solids from the filter surface using hydrodynamic agitation. This prevents fouling and supports continuous operation—even at solids concentrations up to 10,000 ppm. Spiral’s T1000 filter removes between 50% and 90% of suspended solids over 50 microns, far beyond what typical backwash designs can manage.
These filters operate at low system pressures, require no external pumps, and maintain a compact footprint that’s easy to retrofit into existing equipment. They also scale efficiently for everything from vertical farming to industrial gas processing. Smart controls support filtration from 15 to 1000 microns with minimal oversight.
Applications for Self-Cleaning Filters
Spiral Water’s systems are already improving performance across multiple industries:
- Food & beverage: Removes contaminants and impurities from incoming process water and outgoing wastewater; Reduces BOD, FOG, organic wastes, and TSS before discharge.
- RNG and biogas: Used in pre-filtration for water gas scrubbing, feedstock conditioning, and anaerobic digestion pressurized dewatering.
- Industrial wastewater: Manages variable solids up to 2% in concentration.
- Aquaculture: Removes fish waste and biosolids from recirculating systems.
- Vertical farming: Keeps irrigation lines clear of organic buildup.
These systems help operators avoid downtime, reduce surcharges, and support water reuse.
Discover the Power of Spiral Water’s Self-Cleaning Automatic Filters
In industries with high solids and variable water quality, Spiral Water Technologies helps customers reduce downtime, improve efficiency, and maintain flow with minimal maintenance. We’ve redefined how self-cleaning water filters perform under high solids loading. Unlike standard systems that depend on backwash or reverse flow, our patented mechanical cleaning design uses internal agitation to keep filters clear, even under extreme TSS conditions with removal rates up to 90% for particles over 50 microns.
Contact us to learn about us and how our innovative systems can support your process, or if you’re ready to get started, request a quote today.
