03/24/2024
USSI WEEK IN REVIEW #3
USSI has smoke tested over 30 million feet of sewer system in Florida, Texas and Georgia. Though Florida is our main operation, smoke testing is standard around most of the country as a way to carryout SSES (Sewer System Evaluation Survey) needs for any utility.
First Question asked is "What is smoke testing".
Smoke testing is a service where we blow smoke into the sewer system through a manhole. The smoke is pushed through the system. When the smoke comes out of the ground we consider that a defect in the sewer system. The defect is documented with GPS, image and a 19 point report is done identifying what the defect is, the severity and size of the defect. Utilities are required to survey at least 10% of their sewer system each year in Florida. By having smoke testing done this lets the utility know where there are defects and then they can go about making repairs as needed. The intent is to smoke test to find defects, fix the defects thereby reducing rain water from entering the sewer system. Side note, when rain water enters the sewer system it gets mixed in with the actual sewer form houses and businesses. All the sewer flows to lift stations which then pump the sewer to the Wastewater Treatment Plant. Wastewater Plants treat the water by eliminating the solids and then usually use chlorine to disinfect the water before it discharged back to water ways or is deep well injected into the ground below an aqueduct. This is a costly process, so be eliminating water from entering the system, it reduces treatment and cost. If you are a customer of a utility, its in your best interest to reduce water flowing into the sewer system because it can impact your sewer rates.
How is smoke testing Done?
It's a very simple process where our crew will remove the manhole lid and then place the smoke machine over top of the manhole. The smoke machine as shown in the videos below is essentially a lawn mower engine on a round plate that then has an inverted propeller underneath. The spinning propeller pushes the smoke through the system. Crew members then walk along the sewer line looking for smoke coming out of the ground. It takes generally 10-15 minutes for smoke testing to complete. When they are done surveying, they turn off the machine and go to the next manhole.
Why smoke test instead of other methods like CCTV (Closed Circuit Television)?
CCTV is where a camera is set down into the manhole and it then goes from one manhole to the next using a camera to visually record the sewer line itself. There is quite a process involved with CCTV. Generally the sewer line must be jetted and cleaned prior to the camera being sent down the line. Then someone must record the entire video documenting and making recommendations for repairs. As effective as CCTV is, it has limits in that it is a slow process with about 3-4,000' feet done per day. CCTV does the sewer mains only, if you want to inspect the lateral you would need to do a lateral deployment of the CCTV unit which is limited to about 30-50', which is usually not all the way to the cleanout on the property. Additionally cost of CCTV can range from $3.00 to $6.00per foot. This becomes extremely costly when doing CCTV on large scale. Smoke testing averages $.40 to $.60 per foot just for comparison.
Smoke testing is great since it goes up the lateral and vents out of the roof vent. Our crews at USSI average 30,000' per day when smoke testing. Our reports are entered and delivered to the utility within 48 hours.
Will the smoke harm me or my pets? No, the smoke used is essentially special effects smoke that is used at concerts/plays and Halloween displays/setups. It is a highly highly refined vegetable oil that leaves no residue.
Why don't utilities smoke test themselves?
Smoke testing is critical for utilities to do on an annual basis. We know that utilities have a great many task to do every day and smoke testing is not easy to do. Door hanger notices must be put out 48-72 hours on every house and building within the smoke testing area. Must have a minimum of three men on the crew to do smoke testing effectively. Rain can delay the smoke testing along with mechanical issues that can arise. By contracting smoke testing out to USSI, we do EVERYTHING, so the utility doesn't have to. We put out the door hangers, call police and fire every morning, smoke test, put together the reports and then submit all final data in CSV, KML, Shapefile, PDF and XCL. We make smoke testing look easy, but that is only because we have a massive amount of experience.
Contact [email protected] for any questions. We have annual piggyback contract in Florida.
