WorldWide Drilling Resource

57 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® JANUARY 2015 Fourth Time is the Charm by Tracy Keck Hose Solutions, Inc. A village in Northwestern Ohio is supplied with excellent water from five underground wells stored in two modern, aboveground water towers; one holding 250,000 gallons, the other 750,000 gal- lons. The village water treatment and distribution system has over 1.4 million gallons per day capacity. Present usage ranges from 1.2 million gallons per day. The current water treatment plant is de- signed for 2.25 million gallons per day. So, you can imagine the importance of an efficient well system. There have been some problems along the way. Dan at the water treat- ment department explained the history to me. The drop pipe was epoxy coated and there were issues with water leak- ing through the threads. This damage necessitated the change to galvanized pipe, only to realize the same effects at the seams. Okay, the town had enough of this galling and pitting steel, so the pipe was replaced with interlocking PVC. Well, the threads weren’t a problem this time, but the torque was causing big problems near the motor, and the PVC could no longer be trusted. Dan had come to the realization flex- ible drop pipe may be a solution to his well field problems. This product is used widely by municipalities and utilities in his area. References were called, and the pipe was installed. There is a double-ring clamp fitting with a standard NPT thread at the top and one at the bottom. No more 20-foot sticks threaded together. The continuous length of polyurethane pipe expands and contracts slightly under pressure, not allowing any scaling or corrosion. Dan commented, “I like the ease to pull and set pumps. I am also comforted by the product carrying a 50-year warranty.” There were three pumps, all set at 140 feet. Two sets were 6-inch drop pipe with 40-horsepower motors, and one set was 4-inch drop pipe with a 30-horse- power motor. The installation was rapid and safe as a simple pair of lifting clamps was used by the contractor with their existing rig. For added security a cen- tralizer was installed around the check valve above the pump and motor. All problems have been solved. With drop pipe changes, it looks like the fourth time may very well be the charm. Tracy Tracy Keck may be contacted via e-mail at michele@ worldwidedrillingresource.com