Vehicle washing plant

Claim 1

IN A VEHICLE WASHING PLANT FITTED WITH A VEHICLE WASHING CHAMBER HAVING AN INLET AND A DRANIN, A SUMP CONNECTED TO THE WASHING CHAMBER DRAIN AND A WATER RECYCLING CIRCUIT PROVIDING WATER FOR A WASHING CYCLE AND A RINSING CYCLE, THE IMPROVEMENT WHEREIN THE RECYCLING CIRCUIT COMPRISES: AT LEAST ONE BACKWASH FILTER, SAID BACKWASH FILTER BEING SELF-CLEANING IN RESPONSE TO THE PREDETERMINED BUILD-UP OF PRESSURE AT ITS INLET; A FIRST PUMP CONNECTED BETWEEN SAID SUMP AND SAID BACKWASH FILTER INLET; A WASH WATER SETTLING TANK FITTED WITH LONGITUDINALLY SPACED GENERALLY VERTICAL BAFFLES AND A SELF-REGULATING MAKE-UP WATER INLET VALVE AND AN OUTLET VALVE ADJACENT A CLEAN WATER END OF THE TANK AND A DIRTY WATER INLET AT THE OPPOSITE END, SAID DIRTY WATER INLET COMMUNICATING WITH THE OUTLET OF SAID BACKWASH FILTER; A SELECTOR VALVE SYSTEM HAVING AN INLET BRANCH AND AT LEAST TWO OUTLET BRANCHES; A SECOND PUMP CONNECTED BETWEEN THE OUTLET OF SAID SETTLING TANK AND SAID INLET BRANCH OF SAID SELECTOR VALVE SYSTEM; A MAIN FILTER CONTAINING ACTIVATED CARBON GRANULES, SAID FILTER COMPRISING AN INLET, AN OUTLET, A LARGER DOWNSTREAM FILTER BED AND A SMALLER REPLACEABLE UPSTREAM FILTER BED; SAID INLET OF SAID MAIN FILTER BEING CONNECTED TO THE OUTLET OF SAID SETTLING TANK THROUGH SAID SECOND PUMP AND SAID INLET BRANCH AND A FIRST OUTLET BRANCH OF SAID SELECTOR VALVE SYSTEM, AND SAID OUTLET OF SAID MAIN FILTER BEING CONNECTED TO SAID INLET OF SAID WASHING CHAMBER, WHEREBY WATER FOR SAID RINSING CYCLE IN SAID WASHING CHAMBER IS WITHDRAWN FROM SAID SETTLING TANK OUTLET THROUGH SAID MAIN FILTER; AND A FILTER BY-PASS CONDUIT CONNECTED BETWEEN A SECOND OUTLET BRANCH OF SAID SELECTOR VALVE SYSTEM AND SAID WASHING CHAMBER INLET, WHEREBY WATER FOR SAID WASHING CYCLE IN SAID WASHING CHAMBER IS WITHDRAWN DIRECTLY FROM SAID SETTLING TANK OUTLET THROUGH SAID SECOND PUMP AND SAID INLET BRANCH AND SAID SECOND OUTLET BRANCH OF SAID SELECTOR VALVE SYSTEM.