CLOSED CIRCTJLATESTG SEA-WATER SYSTEM 



31 



PiGUKE 2. — Part of the lower level of the basement pumproom. Sea-water system components in- 

 clude the two small centrifugal pumps which move water from the main storage tanks to the 

 filter tanks (A, B), one of the two centrifugal main supply pumps which pump water from the 

 main supply tank (base visible on left) to the fifth floor of the building (C), and parts of four 

 pil)es. Two of these pipes are backflush drain lines for the filter tanks. The other two are 

 bottom drain lines for the filter tanks. The bottom drain for the main supply tank is visible to 

 the right of the lower ends of these four pipes. 



ber hoses are avoided, Tygon tubing being 

 used preferentially. 



In operation of this system no attempt 

 is made to maintain or control water qual- 

 ity over long periods. The most sensitive 

 of the organisms kept in the system (octo- 

 puses, sea urchins, etc.) are used as indi- 

 cators of deterioration. When signs of 

 trouble appear (animals acting abnor- 

 mally or dying) all water in the system 

 is replaced with new sea water. The old 

 sea water is drained from the storage 

 tanks in the basement by pipes connecting 



with sewers. The new sea water is added 

 via Transite pipes opening through the 

 sidewalk outside the building (fig. 1, F). 

 We charter stainless- steel milk-tank trucks 

 to transport sea water to the system from 

 Marineland of the Pacific, Palos Verdes, 

 Calif. Sea water replacement is necessary 

 only about once every 2 to 3 months. 



One of the major reasons for the rela- 

 tively long period of maintenance of 

 water quality despite a heavy load of ani- 

 mals is the efficiency of operation of the 

 sand filters in the basement. These fil- 



