Valparaiso City Utilities - Water Department HYDRO EXCAVATOR

Municipal Hydro Excavator

Less than one (1) month after purchasing the excavator, the benefits became apparent during a repair project in downtown Valparaiso. Using the hydro excavator, the field crew was able to locate and isolate the leaking service within a shorter period of time and without causing any damage to the water service line or other surrounding utilities. The excavation area was much smaller than if the crew had used the department's backhoe.

As it turned out, the field crew, while using the hydro excavator, uncovered not only the water main, but also three (3) services lines tied to an old single galvanized water line called a "spider", a gas main, and an old wooden water main. One crew member stated that they did not know that the multiple service lines or the gas line were there. He felt that if they had used the backhoe, they would have probably taken out one or more service lines, and could have hit the gas line as well. They would have then had to shut down the water main to isolate the service leak, which would have cut water service to 20+ homes.

Instead, using the hydro excavator allowed them to simply "spray and vacuum" the excess water, sand, dirt, and debris from the surrounding utilities without causing any damage.

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