The Black Berkey Primer™ for Priming or Purging Black Berkey Elements

For Priming or Purging(cleaning) Black Berkey elements

If your filters stop working or filtration slows down significantly
Your primer tool will include these components
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The Black Berkey Primer™ is a hand-powered priming pump that makes it possible to prime Black Berkey™ Elements easily offline, without the need for faucets or hose connections. Priming the Black Berkey™ Elements saturates the filters with water prior to their use, allowing for clean water production anywhere.
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The Black Berkey Primer™ also purges (or back-flushes) the Black Berkey™Elements using air instead of water to clean the proprietary pores of the compressed carbon filter wall.
Purging the Black Berkey™ Elements accomplishes two tasks:
  1. It clears the pores of debris that has accumulated with use,
  2.  reduces the amount of time & effort needed to dry the filters prior to storing them. In addition, those who may be having difficulty priming their elements in a small sink, can use the Black Berkey Primer™ instead.
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    PRIMING WITH THE BLACK BERKEY PRIMER

    The Berkey Primer is the best way to prime the filters due to it thoroughly compressing water into the micro-pourous cavities inside the Black Berkey filters

    illustration video on the Primer Tool compressing water into the filtration element

    Valve orientation of this tool is crucial, refer to the image. The valves must be installed in the same direction as shown in the image. Refer to the blue section of the image for priming. Red section for purging

     

    While priming (pumping the black bulb) you should achieve achieve a steady water stream discharging from the 90 degree black fitting. Your filters will be primed. (If the black bulb doesn't want to expand after squeezing, you have to loosen the primer hex nut that attaches to the filter to break an air lock, the tool needs to breath)...
    After priming, gently shake filter from side to side and you should hear or feel some water gushing about inside. The filter will be heavier. This will indicate success, if you cant hear water inside swishing about,  prime again.  The fillers hold about 2/3 cup of water
     
    Once you figure out the primer/purger tool, you will love it.
     

    side note...attaching valves incorrectly can result in stretching (damaging) the clear hose which means when the valve is attached correctly, the valve may not stay attached within the clear hose. if this mistake has been made, just simply cut the stretched part off and re attach valve correctly.

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    PRIMING WITH THE TAN BUTTON (washer)

    Here are instructions and images to aid in the priming of black berkey filters, but first an image of how to properly hold filter when priming. 

    Press the priming button up against a sink faucet so that the priming
    button creates a seal between the faucet and the Black Berkey water filter.  It is helpful to add the wingnut while priming so you can achieve a good grip resulting in a compression type connection with the faucet.

    • Attach wingnut to black filter and place fingers under the wingnut so you can achieve a good grip.
    • Place thumb over top of faucet so you can compress tan washer to tap
    • turn on tap with low pressure and saturate filter. After 10 to 20 seconds it should be primed perfectly.

       

      video on how to prime filters with tan washer