Tonka Water Awarded Contract for Water Treatment Plant in Marshall County, WV

Tonka Water has been selected to provide a water treatment system in Marshall County, WV. This system will feature Tonka Water's vertical pressure filters and cost-effective Iron Man media for the treatment of iron and manganese. 

Click here to learn more about Tonka Water's vertical pressure filters.

Tonka Water Plant Refurbished in Long Prairie, MN

Tonka Water recently completed a refurbishment for the Long Prairie, Minnesota water treatment plant by casting a new monolithic underdrain into the existing gravity filter and replacing the media retaining nozzles and media in order to extend the operational life of the plant for years to come.

Frankfort, Illinois Awarded APWA Project of the Year

by Steve Montray
Tonka Equipment Company

The Frankfort, Illinois water plant, designed by Robinson Engineering, was awarded an APWA Project of the Year.

Before the water treatment project began, the Village of Frankfort faced high levels of iron in Well #7 and started looking for a way to provide clean drinking water for the community. Robinson Engineering, Ltd. was commissioned soon after with the design and construction observation. During the contracting process, Robinson Engineering saw an opportunity for Frankfort to save money by dividing the project into two contracts; one contract for the filter manufacturer and the other for the installation of the filters. The Village saved roughly over $50,000 with two separate bidding contracts. 

Make Backwash More Effective

by Rick Boyum
Tonka Equipment Company

Improve your overall filter performance and help reduce backwash frequency by optimizing every backwash.

Increased backwash frequency is recommended for:

• Excessive headloss (debris buildup in media)
• Diminished effluent water quality

About once a month:

• Gather a sample of backwash water halfway through Simul-Wash™ or a backwash.

Filter Media Core Sampling

by Jeff Emerson 
Tonka Equipment Company



Let’s take a look at how to assess the health of your filter media!


Filter media has a typical life expectancy of 10–15 years. Based on your raw water quality and filter maintenance, media life can be shorter or longer.  Knowing the quality of your filter media will help to understand many performance and operational issues.  Tonka provides media analysis for filters or softeners at any time. Taking an accurate core sample is a critical step in having your filter media analyzed for quality.

When Should Filter Media Be Cleaned?

by Dave Anderson
Customer Service, Tonka Equipment Company

Tonka has been asked this question by plant operators: 
"Should I chemically clean my filter media?"

On the surface this sounds like something that should be beneficial, but it may not be right for your filter.  This is especially true if you have Greensand™ or Ironman Sand™ filter media.


Greensand™ and Ironman Sand™ are coated with an active, beneficial coating of manganese dioxide which, when charged, oxidizes manganese as water flows through the filter. Unfortunately, chemicals that are used
to clean media of other precipitated compounds (calcium and magnesium hardness deposits, for instance) will remove the beneficial active coating on the Greensand™ or Ironman Sand™. For this reason Tonka strongly recommends against chemically cleaning filters that have Greensand™ or Ironman Sand™.


If you have concerns about media cleaning or your media not performing, please call our customer service department at 1-800-530-1887, and we’ll help you assess your needs and evaluate your filter operation.

Delivering High Rate Media and Low Backwash Waste

by Alan Schneider
Tonka Equipment Company



The Spanaway Water District, located near Tacoma, Washington, needed a solution to manganese problems at a 900 GPM well, and a filter design that would fit into their new treatment building layout. They also wanted to minimize the backwash waste set up for discharge into a small infiltration basin. The District had previous failures of off-the-shelf standardized skidmounted vertical pressure filter systems, so they contacted Tonka, looking for a fresh, more robust approach.

Protecting Your Filter Media from Mudball Formation

by TJ Stroebl
Tonka Equipment Company

Marble size mudballs on the surface of a filter

Mudballs! 
The word sounds innocent enough, but mudballs indicate problems in your filter bed. These solids accumulate within a filter and agglomerate into a ball of solids combined with the filter media.  These masses block the passage of water, causing higher velocity filtration and uneven distribution.  Ultimately, they affect filter performance and effluent quality, while shortening filter run lengths—all signs of problems.

Maintenance Tip - Time for a Spring Tune-up!

by Steve Kari