Small Scale Digesters

Small Scale DIgesters

Micro digesters are suitable for individual households (rural, urban or informal settlements), schools, clinics and smallholdings/farms.

We offer 3 types of micro or household scale digesters:


1. The DIY Biobag Digester

The Biobag digester is manufactured in South Africa from high quality reinforced PVC and is shaped in the form of a cylinder.  The Biobag comes in a variety of sizes from the standard 10m³ unit all the way to the large 50m³ unit.  It is simply installed in an excavated trench directly in the ground if soil conditions are favourable or it could be placed in a brick & mortar constructed trench.

DIY Biobag Digester

 Left Image Installation directly into the ground          Right Image Installation in a constructed trench

The daily amount of organic waste a Biobag can be fed with will primarily depend on the size of the Biobag and to a lesser degree on the type of organic waste available.  As a guide, the 10m³ Biobag could be fed with around 100kg of waste slurry per day, which could produce around 3m³-5m³ of biogas.  
The Biobag is a cost-effective option when compared to fixed dome brick & mortar digesters (Chinese digester) or in-situ cast concrete (Puxin) digesters of similar size.  Installation is simple and can be done by semi-skilled labour with minimal training. A further advantage is that the Biobag comes in a kit form with all components packaged in a less than 1m³ box, making it easy and cost effective to transport.

Cost indication: From R23 000.00 (excl VAT) for a DIY Kit (PVC digester bag, 30m gas piping & fittings, in-line pressure pump, desulfurizer) for the 10m³ unit to R55 500.00 (excl VAT) for the 50m³ unit.  Price is supply only, ex works Johannesburg.

 

2. The BP6 BiogasPro Digester

The BiogasPro is a prefabricated biogas digester designed and manufactured in South Africa specifically to meet the waste management needs of households and farms in Southern Africa.  It can be used in a rural context to produce biogas for cooking or heating, in an urban context as a sanitation and/or energy generation technology or in general as an integrated waste management system. The BiogasPro is appropriate for all households, rural clinics, schools and community centers.
The BiogasPro is highly reliable, with no moving parts prone to failure and all manufacturing quality assurance is performed in a controlled factory environment and therefore comes with a 3-year factory guarantee. It differs from all other small digesters in that it is fully prefabricated and incorporates unique design features that allow for co-digestion of multiple feedstocks.
The BiogasPro standard unit comes in a 6m³ size and has the capacity to digest up to 50kg of cow manure or 35kg of general food waste.  Biogas production as for any other type of digester is primarily dependent on the type of waste and the temperature.  Under ideal conditions, the digester could produce up to 2m³ of biogas, with a capacity to store 1m³.
The BiogasPro is designed to be installed below ground level which allows for gravitational feeding of feedstock directly from animal stalls, household sewerage or manually via a bucket or wheelbarrow.
The BiogasPro is a solid plastic structure similar in size to that of a 5000L JoJo water tank – it is therefore important to take note of the challenge in transporting the unit in terms of space and cost.

The BP6 BiogasPro Digester

Cost indication: The BiogasPro retails for R37 500.00 (excl VAT) supply only, ex works Johannesburg.


3. The Homebiogas micro digester

The latest addition to our domestic scale digester range is an easy to install, portable soft DIY digester designed and manufactured in Israel. It comes in 3 different sizes, a small 2m³, the medium 4m³ unit and the larger 7m³ unit.
The entire unit is delivered in 2 compact cardboard boxes and can be installed in 2-3 hours.  Comprehensive and easy to follow installation and operation manuals are supplied, with additional videos which can be viewed on YouTube.  A full flush toilet system is available which can be coupled directly onto the digester to provide an excellent sanitary solution.


Over 20 000 HomeBiogas systems have been successfully installed in over 92 countries worldwide. HomeBiogas has strict safety standards, has ISO 1400 and ISO 19001 certification, is patented and has international product liability insurance.  Homebiogas and its agents have successfully partnered with some of the world’s leading sustainability organizations such as USAID, EU, UN, WWF, Peres Center for Peace, SNV, and the International Red Cross.

The Homebiogas micro digester

Cost indication:   (Price is supply only ex works Johannesburg)
    • 2m³ Unit: R16 500.00 (excl VAT)
    • 4m³ Unit: R21 500.00 (excl VAT)
    • 7m³ Unit: R28 500.00 (excl VAT)
(Price includes gas piping, gas filter and a single plate biogas stove - excludes the toilet option)