Sewer project to reduce flooding underway

Lake County Department of Utilities has begun a sanitation project to reduce sanitary sewer backups in the Cedar Glen and Boulder Ridge area of Painesville Township.

The project includes installation of approximately 4,100 feet of 12inch directionally drilled force main pipe, according to Lake County Sanitary Engineer Randy Rothlisberger.

He explained that the pump stations will remain and additional utilities will be added to that area to ensure reduction of flooding during storms while also avoiding a large construction project.

“The drilled pipe will reduce construction impacts to the surrounding area,” Rothlisberger said. “In addition, a gravity outlet sewer with manholes and installation of a flow meter at the Deerfield Pump Station are included in the project.”

A force main is a pressurized sewer pipe that conveys wastewater under pressure from the discharge side of the pump. Force mains are used where gravity is not enough to move sewage or storm water runoff through a sewer line.

Pumps or compressors rely on gravity because they are used to push the sewage through the force main from a lower to a higher elevation or across landscapes where deep excavation is not feasible, like at the Deerfield Pump Station.

“Gravity flow is difficult to measure because the depth of the flow is constantly changing as the flow changes,” Rothlisberger said.

“While a force main pipe is under pressure and always full.”

The contractor has been given a notice to proceed and can begin construction as soon as possible.

The project is scheduled to be completed in September, according to Rothlisberger.

SUBMITTED Pumps or compressors rely on gravity because they are used to push the sewage through the force main from a lower to a higher elevations, like at the Deerfield Pump Station.