Storing water is necessary in many industries, especially during this time of intermittent supply and water restrictions. With many available options, the right storage can be difficult to find. Simon Cotton, owner of Silver Solutions and Water Bladders, offers a unique solution to aid businesses with their water storage needs.

The Water Bladder is a reinforced PVC ‘sack’ that can be used to store, and transport liquid, not just water. The Water Bladder can be used for wine, fertiliser, cane juice, blood, transformer oil, diesel, and other agricultural fluids. These bladders range from small custom sizing to 500 000 ℓ and are easier to transport than stationary tanks, for example, the dry weight of the 200 000 ℓ bladders weighs only 220 kg, and when folded it measures under one cubic meter.

“The idea is convenience, no construction, no hassle, a long lifespan and basically just an easy setup, ensuring the bladder meets the exact needs of the job. All that is required is a clean, levelled out surface” says Cotton. While traditional storage relies on set sizes, Water Bladders can be completely customised.

“One of our clients is a kennel association, and they wanted custom “ice” bladders to help keep the dogs cool during shows. We can supply many sizes for virtually any need,” adds Cotton.

The advantages of a Water Bladder

The variety on the market today may get businesses to think about their storage solutions and the water bladder does come with some good advantages that make it an attractive option.

Cotton expands, “When we talk cost, the price per litre is really low compared to other storage products. No construction costs to prepare are a big advantage and in general larger bladders can come in under 35 cents a litre for total storage.”

Some of the advantages are:

• Zero sun penetration, the inner is completely black ensuring the water does not heat up with the sun and because the water always sits against the inner, whether the tank is half empty, the temperature remains constant.
• No algae growth. The environment inside the bladder is sterile and thus does not promote algae growth.
• No evaporation.
• Zero toxicity, as there is zero sun penetration there is no plastic erosion.
• Easily repairable, if needed.
• Easy to connect to downpipes, boreholes or irrigation systems.
• Can be supplied with fittings suitable for the correct connections to a variety of pipe sizes from 50mm up to 300mm

The product is also manufactured in South Africa and comes with a 10-year warranty, looking to the long term for water storage, and is fully backed up with service and after-sales support.

“The relatively low weight of the Water Bladders makes them easy to transport and can be delivered anywhere. We have clients from all over South Africa and Africa, with an agent in Perth, Australia as well,” states Cotton.

The chemical resistance of the product ensures a spread of different fluids that can be stored in PVC material. Specialized materials such as TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane) are used specifically for petrol and diesel storage.

Practical use

These bladders are used by multiple large companies such as Sasol, Coca-Cola and Sanlam primarily as backup water supply, but can adapted to many different uses.

“In addition, in terms of smaller scale use, the bladders are regularly employed by pool repair companies who pump the water into the bladder, repair the pool, and pump it back, saving water in the process. The scale is really from as small as needed to as large as needed. Multiple bladders on one site can be easily connected together as well,” says Cotton.

These Water Bladders have been used in abattoirs to store and transport blood, or a company transporting molasses. The customisable nature of these bladders allows them to be deployed for a variety of applications.

Cotton explains that Sanlam had a tunnel under their offices and requested a custom Water Bladder to be fitted in the tunnel, “we made a custom 20m x 3m bladder to fit into this space which they otherwise wouldn’t have been able to use as efficiently.”

Not just a storage solution

The solutions offered by Silver Solutions go far beyond just storage. They also offer dam liners to line earth and concrete dams that have leaks, including a loose liner to sit atop a dam to prevent evaporation.

“We have also developed an “instant dam” option where the dam perimeter walls are made using water bladders, and once secured, sheets of HDPE liners are welded together and used in between the perimeter bladders. No other construction is required, such as mass excavations, soil removal etc,” says Cotton.

Cotton concludes with “The easy-to-use and versatile bladders are a strong option for water storage, especially for custom needs where a traditional tank won’t cut it”. Price is always an issue in life, as is life span – water bladders satisfy both of these needs.”