Black Berkey Primer

Black Berkey Primer – There are two ways to prime the Black Berkey or BOROUX Foundation™ Black filter elements. Priming must be done before you can put the Black Berkey elements or BOROUX Foundation™ Black elements in the water filter into use. Priming means forcing some water through the element under slight pressure to make sure the Black Berkey filter element gets wet on the inside (air leaves the element). This lets you benefit from a good flow rate from each element.

To prime, you can use a Priming Button (a small rubber ring) or the PrimeRite (a blue rubber spout). With these tools you can run water through the filter element using a tap. They are supplied as standard in the box with the Black Berkey elements and BOROUX Foundation™ Black elements. If you have lost them, you can order them separately from us. If priming with the tap does not work or the tap is not suitable, you can use the Black Berkey Primer offered here or the BOROUX Automatic Filter Primer Pump.

The Black Berkey Primer

The Black Berkey Primer is a hand-operated priming pump that makes it easy to prime Black Berkey or BOROUX Foundation™ Black elements without needing a tap or any other water supply. Priming saturates the elements with water before use, so that water can be properly purified throughout the whole element and the flow rate is sufficient. To use the primer, submerge the filter element in water and attach the primer to the stem of the element. Squeezing the bulb draws the water into the centre of the filter element. As soon as the element is saturated, the water runs through the primer and comes out on the other side. The Black Berkey or BOROUX Foundation™ Black element is now ready for use.

The Black Berkey Primer can also clean (or backflush) elements with air instead of water. This cleans the perforated pores of the carbon filter wall. Cleaning the elements has two results: (1) it removes the dirt that has built up in the pores during use, and (2) it reduces the time needed to dry the filters before storing them.