Initial results and reflections

We have all learnt a lot so far, and the current reflections on the design and the approach are:

1.  Lifting the roofs - We should add handles to the short edge of each of the roofs to enable easier lifting and removal.  They could even be hinged and propped in future iterations.
2. Delivery process - We need to think about how to safely unload and pour in sludge from barrels/ containers on a pick-up truck.  There was only one major slippage when we were watching, but it resulted in a 150L container falling about half a metre and splashing many of the sweepers – one even got some in their eye.  Luckily we had a tubewell on site and amongst all the resultant shouting and arguments, they could all wash before recommencing work.
3. Treating and controlling the effluent runoff – particularly when the sludge is first poured into the beds, a significant amount of water drains through the beds and into the soakaway.  Should we control this flow, and only allow it to drain at a certain rate to try and enable treatment of the effluent as it passes through the bed, or should we build an accompanying reedbed to capture and treat it?
4. Defining ‘sludge’ – this is a tricky substance to define, and our first batch, delivered by vacutug was only the wastewater component of a septic tank’s contents.  The next was mixed sludge and wastewater, and the last I think we got somewhere near what we were expecting.
5. Increasing temperatures - our first few days of results show temperatures topping out in the high 30's for the plastic roofed beds - we'd need to hit 50+ for 5 days for pathogen reduction. We'll have to wait for the results from the lab to see what kind of die off we will achieve here.  

Oh and by the way, I'm now comparatively famous in Faridpur...