FAQ
Grinder Pump FAQ
Directional Boring FAQ
Farm Drainage FAQ
Grinder Pump FAQ:
What is a grinder pump?
A grinder pump is essentially a large scale garbage disposal that grinds the wastewater produced in your home from the shower, washing machine, toilet, etc. and pumps the waste into the community sewer system.
How does a grinder pump work?
Grinder pumps are placed in a tank that is either placed in custom designed storage tank indoors or buried in an easy access outdoor location on your property. Wastewater flows from the house to the tank and when it reaches a pre-set level the grinder pump turns on, grinds the waste and pumps the waste from the tank into the community sewer system. The grinder pump turns on and off automatically and is powered by a control panel placed near your electric meter.
What can I do to protect my grinder pump?
Disposing of improper substances in your grinder pump can lead to long term damage and costly repairs, no different than conventional sewer systems. However, a properly maintained grinder pump should be able to handle wastewater from your home with little problem.
How do I properly maintain my grinder pump?
If you want to keep your grinder pump running at peak efficiency it is important that you properly follow the manufacturer’s recommended maintenance schedule. If you have misplaced the guidelines for your system please follow the link included below for information on e/one grinder pumps. You can also call e/one at 518.346.6161.
http://www.eone.com/sewer_systems/service/downloads.htm
What should I do with my grinder pump when I go on vacation?
First, always leave the power to the pump on. If you plan on leaving for several days you should replace the wastewater in the tank with clean water, this will minimize odor from the tank. To replace the water, you should run an inside faucet for approximately ten minutes, or as long as it takes for the grinder pump to start working. Because of the quite nature of the grinder pumps you may have to go near the pump to verify it has started. After the pump has started you can shut the inside faucet off, the pump will shut off automatically. This process will keep the clean and odor free.
How much electricity is used by my grinder pump?
Because the pump is activated automatically and runs for short periods of time the typical annual energy consumption for an e/one grinder pump is equal to a 40-watt light bulb.
What happens if my grinder pump fails?
In the rare event that your grinder pump fails, you should immediately contact your system administrator who can walk you through the proper steps for your specific problem.
What do I do if I have a pump alarm?
If you experience a pump alarm you should contact the administrator of your system and request that they take a look at your pump and diagnose what is causing the alarm.
Does my grinder pump have a reserve capacity?
Yes. Your tank does have a reserve capacity. This capacity will vary depending on the size of your tank and your specific pump but the typical reserve capacity for an e/one Grinder Pump is 70 gallons.
What happens to my grinder pump if the power goes out?
The average power outage in the United States is less than two hours. The reserve storage capacity of your grinder pump should be more than adequate for this short time frame. If the power outage is for a longer duration there are safety features designed into your system to help assure your grinder pump does not overload. There are also generator or battery backup systems available.
Directional Boring FAQ:
How do you steer the head through the ground?
The most common way to steer is by using walk-over locating instruments. An electronic transmitter is loaded into the head or bit of the drill stem which transmits a signal to the surface. By tracking the position of the transmitter you can accurately determine the depth, and heading of the bit. To change direction of the bit you rotate the drill stem to the required orientation and push the slant-nose bit through the ground until the desired heading is achieved.
How deep can we drill?
Depth is dependant by which locating method is being used. For the most common (walk-over locating) systems, depths of up to 100’ are attainable depending upon which transmitter sonde is being used. Typically the deeper the bore the less accurate the depth becomes. Deeper drilling is possible with the use of wire-line systems.
How far can you drill?
Distance is determined by soil type, conditioning of the bore hole, the size of the drill rig, and the size of the product pipe. To date we have done bores up to 3,200’.
What is the largest pipe you can pull?
Again, pipe size is determined by soil type, conditioning of the bore hole, and size of the drill rig. To date we have installed up to 42” diameter pipe.
What is the minimum grade that is achievable with directional boring?
Minimum desirable grade for directional drilling is 1%. This is not always achievable in rocky or cobble soil.
Can you transition from high density polyethylene pipe to p.v.c. and ductile?
Yes. Manufactures make transition fittings to adapt to all types of pipe through either fusion and/or mechanical methods of joining.
Is bentonite hazardous to the environment?
No. Bentonite is a light colored clay that expands in water. Bore-gel, (Trade name) is N.S.F. and A.N.S.I. certified.
Farm Drainage FAQ:
Drainage FAQ from University of Minnesota Extension Drainage Outlet Website.
Are my soils too tight (clayey) to tile drain?
Tile drainage has been practiced on may soil textures. Sandier soils can be drained with deeper, widely spaced tile, but tend to need sock filters to prevent soil particles from entering the tile. Soils with a higher clay content can also be drained but require tile to be placed shallower and closer together. A typical design for a Fargo clay or Clearwater clay loam soil might be a depth of 4 feet with a spacing of 25 feet, whereas tile spacing for a Ulen fine sandy loam would be closer to 100 feet. Soils where shrinking/swelling clays or peat predominate may need special consideration with regard to tile drainage.
Aren't my fields too flat to drain? How would I provide an adequate outlet for a tile drainage system?
Level fields can be drained as long as minimum grades of 0.05 to 0.1% are maintained for tile laterals. A tile at 0.1% grade has 1 foot of fall per thousand feet. On level ground this means that the tile depth would vary by 1 foot over 1000 ft. A typical drainage system provides an outlet where tile can drain freely (by gravity) into a surface ditch. Where topography does not allow for a gravity outlet, pumped outlets are used, provided a surface waterway exists to discharge the drainage water. A pumped outlet or "lift station" provides the lift required to get the drainage water from the elevation of the tile, to the ground surface and into the receiving waterway. Pumped outlets add to the initial outlay and operation/maintenance costs of the drainage system, but have proven to be economically feasible in many situations. A pumped outlet station includes sump, pump, and discharge pipe. Important design features include size and shape of sump and capacity of the pump.
What damage am I experiencing now due to inadequate drainage?
Often, the major source of “damage” from inadequate drainage relates to timeliness of field operations. Inadequate drainage can delay spring field operations from days to a week or more. Occasional wet spots also interrupt field traffic patterns and cause field operations to be less uniform. Vehicle traffic on soils that are too wet will cause increased soil compaction. Delays in planting mean a shorter growing season for the crop. Once the crop is planted, inadequate drainage can cause stunted and shallow root growth, and sometimes, complete crop failure due to excess-water stress (lack of oxygen in root zone). Planting delay, soil compaction, and excess-water stress, combined, can translate into significant crop yield impacts. The magnitude of the yield impact for a growing season depends on crop and variety, soils, and the season’s rainfall pattern.
What do the economics look like for tile drainage, for the crops that I produce?
The economics of tile drainage systems depend on crop yield response, initial capital outlay for the materials and installation of the system, and any annual operation and maintenance costs (pumped outlets) involved. While crop yield response to drainage can be assessed directly, the impacts of inadequate drainage on soil quality (structure, microbial activity, etc.) are more difficult to measure and assign economic value. Most field crops show a positive response to drainage, often with the best response from a combination of surface and tile drainage. The level of yield increase for a given year depends greatly on how poorly drained the soil was prior to drainage, and seasonal rainfall. Typical yield increases might be 10-30 bu/ac for corn and 5-10 bu/ac for soybeans. Wheat has been shown to yield only 58% of potential yield and sugarbeets 71% of potential yield when the watertable is 15”-20” below the surface for long periods of time, on a clay loam soil.
Drainage systems can return the cost of investment in 3 to 10 years.
How will tile drainage affect my overall farming operation?
Tile drainage will cause soils to warm-up and dry out faster in the spring. Fields with intermittent wet spots will dry out more uniformly. Spring field operations on tiled fields will most likely be possible at an earlier date than fields without tile drainage.
Drainage may be great in wet years, but won't I stress my crop in dry years?
It is important to remember that tile drainage does not remove plant available water from the soil. Clearly, the greatest benefits of tile drainage are realized in wet years--but because drainage promotes deep root development, crops will have better access to soil moisture in dry years. During extremely dry years it is conceivable that a tile-drained field might have less available water at some point during the growing season than an undrained field. Whether or not this would offset the early-season positive effects of drainage is unknown. In general, where poorly drained soils exist, crop yields will be more uniform from year to year with tile drainage.
Are there water quality issues associated with tile drainage?
The impacts of tile drainage are a mixed bag with respect to water quality—some positive and some negative. In general, phosphorus and sediment losses from tile drained field decrease, while losses of nitrate/nitrogen and other dissolved constituents may increase. The extent of the increase or decrease depends greatly on farm management practices.
What will tile drainage do to downstream flow and flooding?
Surface drainage increases peak surface runoff flow rates. Tile drainage typically reduces both volume and peak of surface runoff from agricultural fields. Studies show that the overall volume of water lost (surface runoff and tile flow combined) from a tile drained field may increase slightly (5-15%), compared to fields with surface drainage only. Flooding is generally dependent on peak surface runoff rate. Because tile drainage tends to decrease peak runoff rates, this suggests that tile drainage should not increase (and may decrease) the incidence of flooding. Flooding in general, is a watershed-scale phenomenon, and the effects of tile drainage at this scale are not as well understood as the field scale.
