Batten Down the Hatches…

Ground view of Water Storage Tower

Hurricane season starts in June 1 and ends in November 30, with the peak of this season starting after August. Although September marks the beginning of fall, it also tends to be the most active month for hurricanes in the Atlantic.

In late August the gulf was hit by a Category 4 Hurricane, Hurricane Ida. Hurricane Ida swept through Louisiana, and Mississippi leaving damage, destruction, and losses for many. According to apnews.com, Hurricane Ida became the fifth most powerful hurricane to hit the United States. Along with this record it also became the second most damaging hurricane to hit the state of Louisiana, with estimates of 50 to 60 billion dollars in damage.

Not only did Hurricane Ida strike Louisiana and Mississippi, it became a Tropical Storm that swept through the Northeastern United States. The hurricane left the Northeastern States with record flash flooding and rainfalls.

Like many catastrophic storms, many were left without electricity or running water. Apnews.com reported three days after the storm hit Louisiana and Mississippi millions were still without electricity and state health officials stated more than 600,000 were without running water.

We have all seen the images of destruction a hurricane or tropical storm can cause like flooding roads, fallen trees, and damaged structures. But what we don’t see is the damage it can do to our Water Systems, including the water storage tanks and towers.

After a hurricane, tropical storm, or even a severe thunderstorm has impacted your area, it is critical to complete an inspection to evaluate any damages that may have occurred to your water system or water storage tanks. These powerful storms can cause numerous problems for the water tanks and towers, problems that might not be seen from the ground below. The high winds can cause damage to hatches, vent structures and air craft warning lights, and in some cases even be blown off.  Even the foundations of the water storage tanks, like homes and buildings can be affected due to the severe rainfall and flash flooding. Without evaluating the damages that can occur to your water storage tanks, you may be leaving entry ways that can allow birds, insects, and other pollutants to enter the tank.

The latest Tropical Storm to hit the Texas Gulf Coast, tropical storm Nicholas, brought flash flooding and high level rainfalls. With more tropical storms and potential hurricane to come this hurricane season it is important to stay current with your TCEQ inspections. After disasters have occurred the most important necessities that people need is shelter, light, and WATER. By doing your inspections you can be sure your water system is prepared to provide your community with SAFE water.

If you would like a free quote for your tanks email perrinsales@gmail.com

or

Call us at 888-481-1768.

Visit us at ronperrin.com for more information about us and our services!

Like our company Facebook page   https://www.facebook.com/ronperrinwatertech/

Toll Free: 888-481-1768           Direct: 817-377-4988             Fax: 817-246-1740

Advertisement

Fun in the Sun

• 

As the year summer comes to a close, many people got to take advantage of the beaches, lakes, and rivers to cool down. Travel during the summer seems to have been high, higher than last year at least. Some people opted to stay home and enjoy water attractions, and public pools near or in their own communities.  Most of us wouldn’t ever think about getting sick from a trip of relaxation, and just soaking up some sun. But according to the CDC they reported almost 500 recreational water outbreak illnesses. These reports were gathered from 2010 to 2014, and the three most common illnesses reported were Acute Gastrointestinal illnesses (diarrhea or vomiting), Skin illnesses (rashes), and Acute Respiratory illnesses (cough or congestion).

While public pools, water attractions, and water playgrounds do undergo routine inspections, a CDC study found more than 10 percent of the inspections resulted in immediate closures because of severe violations. These inspections also included hotel and motel pools, spas, and hot tubs. Despite the fact most pools and water attractions give off a chlorine scent, many can be over chlorinated. Over chlorination can lead to something minor like red, irritated eyes to something as severe as Chlorine Poisoning. Although many of us associate chlorine in water to be safe, even at the correct levels it could not be as effective as one may think. Used at the recommended levels chlorine does in fact eliminate most germs in the water in minutes. But there are some germs like Cryptosporidium (a germ that causes diarrhea) that can live in accurately treated water for days, infecting many people and even causing outbreaks. 

Recreational pools and waterpark attractions aren’t the only place that can harbor these bacteria and viruses. The water we use from the tap can potentially contain the bacteria and viruses. The water is usually distributed from water tanks and towers. These water storage tanks and towers do require an annual inspection to be done and are usually enforced by the state’s water associations. These annual inspections are important for a water utility to complete because it will provide valuable information on the condition of the water tank and the levels of sediment in the tank. 

In Texas the inspections are enforced by the TCEQ, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. While inspections are done yearly, cleanings are done as needed. 

Some tanks are on a cleaning schedule while others are seldom and even some never cleaned at all. In many of those there is a breeding ground for bacteria and viruses inside these water tanks and towers. The breeding ground is in a layer of sediment that accumulates at the bottom of these tanks and towers. 

Some water utility managers and supervisors may not know that a thin layer of sediment is enough for the bacteria and viruses to get a foothold in the water storage tank and towers. Sediment that accumulates in almost all water storage systems can be a safe habitat that can harbor a wide range of contaminants. Sediment that is allowed to build up on the floor of water storage tanks provides shelter from chlorine and other treatment chemicals allowing the intruders to grow and be a potential problem.

And even though water utility managers and supervisors do their part to ensure clean drinking water, most may not be aware that cleaning the sediment at the bottom of the tank could be a great help to them in getting better water quality results. But who wants to take a tank out of service? What if you do not need to shut your system down just to clean the sediment out? Removing the sediment while the tank remains in service is possible with the help of fully certified divers to remove the sediment at the bottom of the tank or tower.  There are only a few specialty companies like ours that only dive in potable water.

Ron Perrin Water Technologies is a company that offers water storage tank and tower inspections, and cleanings. Ron Perrin Water Technologies even offers a new service that allows you to clean standpipes, which could be very difficult to do with a diver and would usually be drained to have a cleaning done because of the height of these tanks. Ron Perrin Water Technologies combated adding this new service in which they drop a cleaning robot into the standpipe to get help clear the layers of sediment. With these services that Ron Perrin Water Technologies offers there is little to no disruption of service to the water utilities. If you would like a free inspection or cleaning quote, you can contact them at 817-377-4899. 

Visit us at ronperrin.com for more information about us and our services!

Like our company Facebook page   https://www.facebook.com/ronperrinwatertech

Discovering Tiny Tank Cleanings

My name is Robert Perrin, my father Ron Perrin built his business from an idea that all water should be safe water. There was an opportunity he saw to help water municipalities big and small ensure that their water tanks and towers could be as safe as possible for their cities and customers. I have been with Ron Perrin Water Technologies since 2011, but long before I was a part of the company I had my small hands involved in one way or another. A couple of instances would be stamping postcards on the weekends, and experiencing trade shows that would usually turn into work-cations.

One important memory I have with my father is when I was around 12 I got to go with him to see how he cleaned a tank.  I was expecting to arrive at a water plant yard and see this huge over shadowing water tower. But instead we pulled into the backyard of someone’s country home. When I got out it finally clicked that there was no water tower, there was instead a small black plastic tank. Knowing what I know today, it was probably a thousand gallons but he was set up the equipment the same way as if it were a million gallon tank just without a diver.  Needless to say the equipment overpowered the tiny tank and the tank was drained pretty quickly. The job got done and he got paid, I on the other hand got to experience how my father adapted to the situation he found himself in.

Last year a Church out in west Texas called to see if we could clean two tiny 10 thousand gallon tanks. With a diver not being able to fit, the memory of the tiny tank I got to see cleaned when I was 12 came into mind. Talking with my father, we took what we knew about cleaning and inspecting a tank and tried to come up with a solution. The solution we came up with was to scale all the equipment we use to clean and inspect down so we could ensure the tiny tanks could be cleaned properly without draining the tanks. We agreed to the cleaning job and since it wouldn’t require a diver or a crew I would be the one to test out our solution. 

I arrived at the job site and set up my equipment, I put a camera down the hatch to see what I was working with. For the tanks being tiny, there was shockingly more sediment in the tanks that I thought. I put the cleaning tip into the tank and started the pump, the hose was next to my head so I was trying to hear if the set up was working. When I heard the sediment being sucked up and moving past my head it was such an amazing feeling, it was like hearing success. It was at that point I knew, Ron Perrin Water Technologies would have a new service to offer tiny tank owners.

It seemed to work out perfectly because shortly after we acquired another tiny tank cleaning job. Once again I was able to put the set up to the test and it worked just as well as it did before. So far I have cleaned almost a dozen tiny tanks without disrupting services. It’s a great feeling to be able to offer this new service, as it adds to the other services Ron Perrin Water Technologies offers. Even though these tiny tanks are as small as a thousand gallons, it is great to know that we can ensure those tanks are performing at their best with inspections and cleanings. Everyone deserves to have their water they drink and use to be safe.