Sewer Sentry
How to Solve Rainwater Inflow On Manholes
Why do we have sanitary sewer overflow during rainstorms?
A sanitary sewer overflow (or SSO) occurs when the sewer system becomes overwhelmed by additional water. Normally, sanitary sewers are designed to handle wastewater from homes and businesses, but during rainstorms, extra water from rain can enter the system.
This extra water can come from manhole covers, open or broken cleanouts, and roof gutters tied to sewer service where rainwater gets into the sewer system. When the amount of water exceeds the capacity of the sewer system, it causes the sewage to overflow, leading to spills into the environment.
How Does Rainstorm Overhelm them so fast?
Rainstorms overwhelm sanitary sewer systems quickly due to the sudden surge in water entering the system. Normally, the system is designed to handle a steady flow of wastewater from homes and businesses.
However, during a rainstorm or storm surges from a hurricane, a large amount of water can enter the system at a much faster rate than the system can hold. This quick influx of water exceeds the system’s capacity, leading to overflows and spills onto beaches, waterways, and on the streets.
What could be the negative effects?
FIRST Negative effect
INFLOW DURING RAINSTORMS
Inflow during rainstorms adds significant cost to wastewater processing at treatment plants, such as electrical, treatment, wear and tear of pumps. It also may create sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs), leading to possible DEO & EPA fines, consent decrees from the EPA, or the flooding of homes & businesses, which can bring costly lawsuits.
SECOND Negative effect
SEWER GASES
Sewer systems need to “breathe,” both into. the system and out of the system. When not enough oxygen reaches the sewer, hydrogen sulfide forms, causing the rotten eggs smell. Too much build-up of sewer gasses can a result in a fast deterioration to your sewer system, danger to employees, health issues, or even an explosion.
Have you considered manhole covers to be #1 the cause of both inflow problems & sewer gas problems?
Outdated Design of Standard Manhole Covers
In this video, a new manhole cover was just installed with no vent holes. Vent holes would create even more inflow during rainstorms, and the water from this water hose is simulating rainwater entering the sewer lid.
Possible Negative Effects
Untreated sewage contains harmful bacteria, viruses, and parasites that can cause diseases in humans, such as gastrointestinal illnesses, hepatitis, and skin infections.
Sewage overflows can contaminate water sources, posing serious health risks to communities that rely on these sources for drinking water.
Sewage overflows introduce pollutants, such as nutrients, chemicals, and heavy metals, into rivers, lakes, and oceans, leading to water quality degradation.
Municipalities incur significant costs for cleaning up contaminated areas and repairing damaged infrastructure.
The red food dye shows the flow of water better, and it’s easy to see how water from the water hose is still entering the sewer system with the manhole lid shut.
Remember, this is a brand new manhole ring and cover. An older manhole would allow even more inflow.
Sewer Sentry System Demonstration
Installing the Sewer Sentry System
A Sewer Sentry kit was installed through a hole that is drilled into the manhole cover using a rubber gasket to minimize leakage. It creates a raised vent hole approximately 5/8″ tall at its highest point.
This system can now “breathe” without allowing water to flow into the vent hole. Water flows around the vent hole instead of in it. The sewer gases will also not accumulate and create sewer gas problems with the sewer system.
A rubber gasket was glued to the manhole ring to prevent the water from entering between the ring and cover. This completes the install of the Sewer Sentry system on the manhole.
If water goes over the 5/8″ high Sewer Sentry in heavy rains, a Sewer Sentry check valve can also be easily installed underneath the Sewer Sentry.
Effects after Installing the Sewer Sentry System
The Sewer Sentry System allows your system to breathe, creating a healthier system and fewer complaints about smell by preventing reducing the production of sewer gas and the accumulation of sewer gas.
It dramatically reduces the inflow during rainstorms, and with the red dye, the water is seen flowing past the manhole to the storm water system where it belongs.
Louisiana Tech’s Trenchless Technology Center completed an independent study of the Sewer Sentry and measured an inflow reduction of up to 98%!
Let's Protect our environment and our future water supply by reducing overflows of our sewer systems
Save Money
by reducing wear & tear of pumps and doubling or tripling your pumps' lives.
Save the Environment
by preventing sewage from overflowing into our beaches, waterways, and streets where we live our lives.
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