FAQ’S
Q. In which countries do you currently install PlayPump® Water Systems?
A. Currently we only install in South Africa.
Q. Who pays for the installation of the equipment?
A. The initial installation is funded by donors. These are a mix of local and overseas donors.
Q. Can I get a tax deduction for a donation that I make?
A. Yes we are a registered Public Benefit Organisation with the South African Revenue Service and can issue a Section 18a Tax Certificate to South African registered taxpayers, that means that they can deduct the amount of the donation from their income tax libability.
Q. How do you know the water is fit for human consumption?
A. A bacteriological and chemical test is done on each borehole to ensure that the water is fit for human consumption. A step down test is done to ensure that the borehole can sustain prolonged abstraction of the water and the flow is sufficient to meet the needs of the community. Each and every borehole is referred to a qualified geo-hydrologist for analysis of the water results and a recommendation of the most suitable pump settings to ensure a sustainable flow of water and ease of use by the children.
Q. Why not put water filters in to clean the water?
A. We do install filters to eliminate certain problems in the water such as bacteria and cloudiness, however, filtering elements of a chemical nature is expensive and requires additional upkeep.
Q. How do you choose who receives a PlayPump?
A. As part of our philosophy, we do not replace existing working water infrastructure, nor do we normally get involved in drilling boreholes. Further more in our experience, children between the ages of 4 to 14 are more likely to enjoy playing on a roundabout. So when we look for a potential PlayPump site we look for a Primary School with an existing borehole that has either never been equipped or that has a broken pump and the school cannot afford to mend it. In addition we also look at the physical position of the borehole. If it is in a potentially dangerous position such as close to a wall or road, or on rocky ground, we will not install on it.
Q. The PlayPump seems expensive when compared to some othe water pumps, why is that?
A. It is important to compare like with like when looking at pump prices
The price of the PlayPump includes a number of different elements, namely:-
The costs associated with finding a suitable site, liaising with the school head or community to explain what the PlayPump is and whether they would like one installed.
Borehole testings costs, this includes chemical and bacteriological testing and the Geo-hydrologists confirmation that the water is fit for human consumption. These costs have to be factored into the price.
The cost of manufacture of the equipment which includes the tankstand, storage tank and the roundabout, transport to site and installation by our trained installers.
When pricing other types of pumps they will often not have anything included for community liaision work. They have no storage capacity and often will not include testing the water. Lastly a hand pump is not able to be used as playground equipment.
Q.How is the PlayPump maintained?
A. The PlayPump is maintained by us at no cost to the school or community. The fund if this comes from different sources, but mainly via our Social Economic Development (SED) initiative. Corporate donors sponsor the maintenance of a PlayPump/s. Alternatively companies can advertise at PlayPump sites or simply make a donation to cover maintenance costs.
Q.How often do you need to maintain a PlayPump?
A. The PlayPump is a robust piece of equipment. We like to visit them every 18 months to two years to do routine maintenance. Or when a school has reported a problem
Q.How many PlayPumps are there in South Africa?
A. There are approximately 900 PlayPumps in South Africa and a further 250 in Lesotho
Q.Why do you not drill boreholes?
A. Boreholes are expensive to drill, and there is no guarantee that water will be found, will be sustainable, or if found, is fit for human consumption
Q.When you say you do Community Liaison before installing a PlayPump, what does that mean?
A. We visit the school or community, establish that there is a broken hand pump, carefully explain the PlayPump system to the school and get their agreement that they understand the process and would like a PlayPump installed. A signed Community Acceptance Form is completed and signed by the person in charge confirming the acceptance of a PlayPump.
Q. What are the benefits of a PlayPump?
A. All the feed back we have indicates that when a PlayPump is installed at a school, attendance at that school increases and often the children turn up early because they enjoy playing on it and also it is noted that cases of water born disease like diarrhoea decrease.
Also schools are able to teach and implement better hygiene and many schools start a vegetable garden to supplement the school feeding program.
Children, and girls in particular, spend less time away from school collecting water.
Clean water from a PlayPump means there is no need to boil water to make it safe to drink, this reduces the amount of wood that needs to be collected, helping to protect the environment.
Q. How much water does a PlayPump pump?
A. The amount of water varies from one borebole to another. As part of our testing we run a test to determine the “sustainable yield” of the borehole. This is the amount of water that can be extracted from a borehole over a given period of time without the borehole running dry. We will not equip a borehole that has a sustainable yield of less than 360 litres per house. Our maximum extraction rate is around 1,000 litres per hour.
