Cleaning (and Swinging) for a Reason

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You may have spotted the USST crew in pink shirts this month. For the 2nd year in a row, USST will be donating a percentage of all purchase orders during the month of October to support Breast Cancer Awareness and Research. USST also had the pleasure of sponsoring and participating in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Golf Tournament in Miami, Florida. The organization raises money to help the American Cancer Society fund groundbreaking breast cancer research and provide patient services like free rides to chemo, free places to stay near treatment, and a live 24/7 cancer helpline. Give us a call to learn how you can help us make a difference at (844)-765-7866 or by reaching out to us here.

How U.S. Submergent Technologies Helps You Minimize the Need for Confined Space Entry

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The need for confined space entry, and particularly permit-required confined space entry, can considerably increase the cost of maintenance for wastewater collection and treatment systems, including pipes, tanks, lift stations, and stormwater drains.  Access is one of the largest cost drivers in the removal of debris U.S. Submergent Technologies’ GritGone Process® for sand and grit removal can be performed without any interruption to your normal plant operation. Most of the time, this means that our standalone cleaning systems can get to challenging, hard-to-clean environments without requiring confined space entry.  Using our Combination3® Trucks and expertly trained crew, we specialize in accessing hard-to-reach infrastructure and can clean a wide variety of tanks and large-diameter pipe in both submerged and surcharged conditions. We’ve cleaned through a right angle and a syphon while it remained in operation, 1,000 feet of sanitary interceptor, accessed a manhole in a river, vacuumed over 25-feet high walls, and removed materials from 30-feet deep wells. Read our recent case study, covering how we removed 22-cubic yards of sand from a splitter box at a Central Florida wastewater treatment facility while it was in service and without the need for risky confined space entry.   Confined space entry: when you … Read More

21-Tons Removed from Lift Station In Operation

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ONE TRUCK, MULTIPLE SETUPS USED TO REMOVE MATERIAL, NO CONFINED SPACE ENTRY REQUIRED FOGs, sand, grit, and rag material had accumulated over time in a Central Florida lift station, reducing its overall capacity.  A buildup of material in a wet well such as this has the potential to cause several issues, including increased pump run times and wear and tear on equipment.  USST was able to perform sand and grit removal from this 20-foot deep lift station in operation very quickly.  Typically, multiple pieces of equipment would be needed to tackle this challenging issue.  Fortunately, USST’s Combination3® truck is more than just a vac truck.  Sporting a vacuum, downhole pump, jetter and extendable boom on one chassis, the Combination3® trucks have the ability to clean in wet or dry conditions in up to eight different setups. “Lift stations are one of our specialties,” said Aaron Hood, one of USST’s knowledgeable Field Supervisors.  “Our equipment is designed to clean in a variety of ways, quickly and safely.  We can remove material at an increased rate without having to put the crew down in the tanks.” In this case, the USST crew first removed FOGs and floating rags from the surface of … Read More

In the USST Spotlight: Bobby Keyes

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SAY HELLO TO BOBBY KEYES, a key member of USST’s team for almost four years who was recently promoted to one of our Foreman positions.  With a background in construction for most of his career, Bobby moved to Florida from New Hampshire in 1988 to get away from the cold and has lived in the peaceful town of Osteen with his family and horses for the past 20-years.  He enjoys tackling new challenges every day, can recite the theme song to Gilligan’s Island at a moment’s notice, and never passes up a snack of Oreo cookies and milk.  Read on to learn some other surprising details about our team member. Hometown:  Osteen, Florida for the past 20-years.  It’s peaceful, quiet, and I have 5 acres for my 6 horses and pony to run free. What I Do as a Foreman:  Oversee the job, morning setup, and make sure everything is running smoothly throughout the day.   Favorite Aspect of the Job:  The challenges I get to solve – there is something new every day. Proudest Accomplishment at USST:  I was recently promoted to Foreman, and I really enjoy the role. Work Safe Checklist:  I have a safety meeting every morning … Read More

Covered Splitter Box Cleaned Via Manhole While In Service

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74-TONS OF SAND AND GRIT REMOVAL PERFORMED UNDER CHALLENGING CONDITIONS IN CENTRAL FLORIDA Access issues had prevented a covered splitter box at a Central Florida wastewater treatment facility from being cleaned.  A large amount of accumulated sand and grit had built up over time, and the structure was experiencing reduced capacity. So how was this splitter box cleaned while in service? A splitter box serves to separate influent flow to various structures such as aeration basins or oxidation ditches and can be hard to shut down or bypass flow in order to perform regular maintenance.  “Cleaning a structure while in operation is our specialty,” said Aaron Hood, experienced Field Supervisor at USST.  “This particular splitter box was also covered, adding a layer of complexity to the project, but didn’t prevent us from being able to remove the large quantity of material in a short amount of time.” The 55-foot long by 7-foot wide structure had two access points on top of the tank.  USST crew, along with the powerful Combination3® Truck, was able to employ the jetter to jet material back to the downhole pump positioned at the manhole for removal.  The work was performed in submerged conditions, while remaining … Read More

2019 FRWA Conference Recap

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AWARD WINNERS & BEST TASTING WATER CONTEST RESULTS Another FRWA Conference has come to a close.  This was USST’s 6th year attending the conference, and we enjoyed visiting with customers and friends who stopped by our booth, as well as checking out the Best Tasting Water Contest and industry awards.  If you couldn’t make it, please feel free to reach out with any questions you have or issues you may need to address.  We’re happy to discuss your facility’s needs, help solve a problem, or even chat about your favorite sports team.  Contact us here. See you at next year’s 2020 conference! Best Tasting Water Contest Results Utilities from across the state of Florida gathered on August 5-7 at the 2019 FRWA Conference to compete for the title of Best Tasting Water.  The contest first took place in 1989, and contestants are judged on four factors:  taste, odor, color and quench factor.  When judging the water samples, judges assign each sample a number, and it takes the panel about 30-45 minutes to complete the tastings, make their decisions, assign points, and determine a winner. This year, the City of Stuart took first place in this year’s contest, making it the third … Read More

Florida Braces for Flooding as Downpours Continue

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HEAVY RAINFALL, FLOODING, AND THE IMPACT ON COLLECTION AND TREATMENT INFRASTRUCTURE Heavy downpours continued over the weekend, making this summer one of the wettest some parts of Florida have seen in a long time.  Last week, drivers needed rescuing from their cars stranded in rising waters in Orange County when more than 4-inches of rain fell.  In Miami-Dade, nearly 6-inches fell in one hour, causing flash flooding while flood warnings were issued across most of West, Central and South Florida. What’s different about this type of flash flooding and rainfall and the impact it has on wastewater treatment infrastructure? Most Floridians are familiar with daily summer thunderstorms, but these storms have been lingering longer and dumping heavy rains multiple days in a row.  When the ground becomes this saturated with water, it has nowhere to go.  “What is most unusual about this pattern is that rain will be an all-day on-and-off rain rather than the once or twice a day severe thunderstorms,” Weather.com meteorologist Jonathan Belles said.  Showers and storms will be possible in the middle of the night too, which is not typical of summer.” So how does rainfall impact wastewater infrastructure? During periods of severe rainfall such as … Read More

Oxidation Ditches Cleaned of 630-Tons of Sand and Grit

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15-YEARS OF BUILT UP MATERIAL REMOVED IN MOUNT DORA, WHILE IN OPERATION Two structures at the Mount Dora Wastewater Treatment Plant were overdue for cleaning, having built up a significant amount of sand and grit as well as other debris over the last 15-years.  USST crew mobilized to the site armed with the versatile Combination3® Truck, well-prepared to handle the multiple setups needed to complete the project. A large oxidation ditch measuring approximately 50-feet wide by 330-feet in length was the first structure the crew tackled.  While the structure was in full operation, USST utilized the Combination3® Truck’s downhole pump and 49-foot extendable boom combined with the GritGone Process® to remove approximately 287-tons of sand and grit material.  Because the tank did not have to be taken offline or drained down in this case, confined space entry was not required. Next, the USST crew turned to the second structure needing to be cleaned, an oxidation ditch and grit removal chamber measuring approximately 40-feet wide by 130-feet in length.  A drain down was necessary to effectively reach the material, and all work was performed via confined space entry by the USST crew.  The Combination3® Truck’s powerful vacuum technology was utilized to … Read More

Capacity Restored to Blocked 60-Inch Stormwater Pipe

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HOW 32-TONS OF SAND AND GRIT REMOVAL WAS PERFORMED IN SURCHARGED CONDITIONS U.S. Submergent Technologies (USST) recently performed sand and grit removal services for Miami-Dade’s Department of Transportation and Public Works on a 110-foot section of 60-inch surcharged stormwater pipe which was experiencing reduced capacity due to a buildup of sand. Aaron Hood, one of USST’s veteran Field Supervisors, lead the USST crew through the Miami-Dade project from start to finish, beginning with a pre-cleaning inspection, the removal of sand, and wrapping up with a post-cleaning inspection to confirm the work performed.  To prepare for the cleaning, an inspection was performed using USST’s pipe profiling sonar unit on their combined Sonar/CCTV truck with PACP Certified operator to give the crew visibility to conditions inside 60-inch pipe.  USST’s underwater sonar image provides a preview of sediment build up, visibility to sections of pipe that may be in need of maintenance, and better prepares the crew for the project ahead. “The inspection was performed through an access point in the right of way requiring a Maintenance of Traffic permit, said Aaron.  “One lane of traffic was closed in order to access the upstream manhole.” USST’s unique Combination3® Truck with extended boom, downhole … Read More

Splitter Box Cleaned While in Operation

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22-CUBIC YARDS OF SAND REMOVAL PERFORMED IN CENTRAL FL A Central Florida utility was experiencing reduced capacity in a splitter box due to a significant buildup of sand and grit.  Wastewater treatment facilities typically employ a splitter box to separate influent flow to various structures such as aeration basins or clarifiers.  This Central Florida splitter box had a visible level of sand above the water line that needed to be cleaned, and the structure measured approximately 40-feet by 25-feet.  The utility was also unable to divert flow or take the structure offline, adding another level of complexity to the project. USST crew mobilized to the site, bringing with them a powerhouse of equipment, the Combination3® Truck, outfitted with extended boom, downhole pump, and jetter.  While the splitter box was in full operation, USST utilized the GritGone Process® to remove 22-cubic yards of sand and grit.  Because the box did not have to be taken offline or drained down, risky confined space entry was not necessary. “Cleaning in submerged conditions while in operation is our specialty,” said Denver Stutler, Jr., USST CEO.  “Not having to drain down structures and keep our crew out of confined space allows us to solve problems … Read More