Lift station headaches...
Lift station headaches...
(OP)
Hello, first time post. My fellow co-workers are taking an ass kicking on a regular basis due to in my eyes an improperly designed lift station. Daily the pumps are locking up due to debris such as clothing and bed sheets. Would sewage grinding pumps tackle this type of problem or would they also fail?
Does anyone have options for this type of situation? The facility is a jail and the officers nor upper management want to make any efforts to stop the debris from going down the drain. Thanks for any and all suggestions
Does anyone have options for this type of situation? The facility is a jail and the officers nor upper management want to make any efforts to stop the debris from going down the drain. Thanks for any and all suggestions





RE: Lift station headaches...
If not, a trash type pump with a recessed impeller might work. Pretty much whatever goes through the line will go through the pump
<<A good friend will bail you out of jail, but a true friend
will be sitting beside you saying " Damn that was fun!" - Unknown>>
RE: Lift station headaches...
I wouldn't want to clean that strainer! Clothing and bed sheets might be the pleasant discoveries.
RE: Lift station headaches...
What has happend in the past is the pumps both fail due to debris in the impeller, but the water keeps rising and eventually going into an adjacent building and floods the basement.
It's an everyday problem that requires visual inspections twice a day to prevent disaster. I'd like to provide upper management a solution. It would cost money up front but so far with all the overtime, engineering, failures and disasters we need another option that truly works.
Thanks again for any and all help.
RE: Lift station headaches...
What size pumps are you talking about 2" or 20" and are they inline pumps or pumping from a collection pit?
RE: Lift station headaches...
Sheets / rags are tough. Comminutor will grind a 2x4 no problem. Not sure if the sheet would bind the comminutor though. Look at JWC Enviromentals Channel Monster. They list correctional facilities as a common user.
RE: Lift station headaches...
So if you have site constraints, this may be tough.
Flygt 'N' series pumps might be another option. They handle rags pretty well.
RE: Lift station headaches...
RE: Lift station headaches...
You can build a tank with screens. Enough screens to take a while to plug it. Cleaning it won't be pretty though.
Other option I can think of is a vac pump. Vac's can pretty much suck anything. I've seen rags, shoes, hard hats, coyotes, etc...
<<A good friend will bail you out of jail, but a true friend
will be sitting beside you saying " Damn that was fun!" - Unknown>>
RE: Lift station headaches...
This option would need more space than the comminutor vault though. You would also be creating a solid waste stream that would now need to be disposed of.
RE: Lift station headaches...
RE: Lift station headaches...
RE: Lift station headaches...
Maybe you could even save the sheets, clothes, shoes and recycle them back into the facility for the inmates to use. Sorry for the rant, that sort of waste is just unacceptable to me.
RE: Lift station headaches...
I guess what it all comes down to is the fact that the maintenance guys for the jail need to check and clean the strainer basket twice a day so the pumps don't lock up.
They used to have a stainless steel pin directly behind the toilet which would catch large items that were flushed, such as sheets, shoes and other clothing. But the maintenance guys were constantly having to pull the clean out behind the toilet and remove whatever it was the inmate flushed.
Again thanks for all the help.
RE: Lift station headaches...
These guys make them. I am sure there are several other companies out there as well.
http://www.jwce.com/products/detail.asp?id=5
Again, the sheets are tricky. You need to specifically mention that to them.
RE: Lift station headaches...
this is one of the many to give an inication of design
ttp://www.duperon.com/trashrack/how_it_works.htm
RE: Lift station headaches...
RE: Lift station headaches...
I have heard of some design modifications in the plumbing that prevent the big stuff from getting to the pumps and allow the culprit's cell to flood (poetic justice).
Most screens are too difficult to maintain. Good luck!