An aerated treatment system uses a blower to keep oxygen flowing through the tank so the bacteria can treat the wastewater, and an irrigation pump to send treated water to the dispersal field. Without power, the blower stops and treatment slows. The pump chamber fills and the high-level alarm, if it has a battery, starts sounding. Keep using the house as normal and the system can overflow, which nobody wants near the back door.
The blower and pump are small loads that run often, well within what the battery and fuel cell are designed to supply. With the inverter in UPS mode they do not stop when the grid drops, so the tank keeps treating and the pump chamber keeps emptying. That means the family can keep flushing, showering and running the washing machine through a multi-day outage, and the system does not need a reset afterwards.
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The electrolyser's water draw is small and separate from the wastewater system, and the water the fuel cell makes goes back into its own loop. Your septic system still needs its regular servicing and any council inspection your area requires, so keep those up. Charging happens on cheap night-rate power or from wind or micro-hydro, and with round-trip efficiency of 30% or less, it is backup, not cheaper running.
No. The blower and pump are small loads that run often. They sit easily within 15 kW continuous output alongside the rest of the house through an outage. They are the kind of load the system handles without anyone noticing.
It is designed not to have a reason to. The battery and inverter work in UPS mode, so the blower and pump keep running and the pump chamber does not fill up.
No. Keep the regular servicing your system needs and any council requirements in your area. The system only keeps the power on; it does not maintain the treatment plant itself.
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