Five Key Tools for Municipal Water and Sewer Workers

22-06-2022 - Water Sewer

The job of a municipal water and sewer worker is not easy. Accessing those water and sewer systems takes a lot of grit and elbow grease. While these jobs are not the most glamorous or cushy, they do provide a significant service to the community without which access to clean water would be limited. Getting dirty may be part of the job, but there are ways to reduce the dirt and the labor in order to make the job a little easier on the worker. The following are five key tools to help make a municipal water and sewer workers life a little less complicated.

Manhole Cover Lifter

Manhole covers are a necessary part of our water and sewage systems. These covers are designed to protect our water systems from access by unqualified individuals. Manhole covers are incredibly heavy for that specific reason. The weight of some manhole covers can exceed 900 pounds. Without the proper tools, most manhole covers are not easily lifted by the average human being. Companies like US SAWS have manufactured manhole cover lifters to reduce the effort needed by municipal workers to lift manhole covers and access water systems in order to make necessary repairs and conduct required maintenance. Because of the varying sizes and weights of manhole covers across the country, US SAWS has developed different lifters for different sized manhole covers. For covers weighing 300 pounds or less, the Supreme Duty Collapsible Dolly Magnetic Lifter is the perfect tool. Equipped with rubber wheels and a supreme duty magnet, this lifter is ideal for covers up to 36 inches in diameter, and it breaks down easily for quick storage. Manhole covers weighing up to 600 pounds may be easily moved using the Aluminum Heavy Duty Collapsible Dolly. This cover lifter is also ideal for covers up to 36 inches in diameter, comes equipped with eight inch hard wheels, it also relies on a supreme duty magnet. This system is perfect for uneven textured surfaces and provides dual position lifting points. Heavy manhole covers weighing about 900 pounds require an even stronger lifter. The Curved Heavy Duty Magnetic Lifter makes fast work of those heavy manhole covers while protecting workers from back injury. This lifter is equipped with eight inch hard wheels and lifts using a mega duty magnet. It also folds down for easy transportation and storage.

Valve Exerciser

One task of waste and water workers is securing the quality and quantity of water accessed by the community. In order to ensure the access and flow of water remain consistent and steady, regular maintenance is required for all the systems. Perhaps the most crucial component of our water and waste systems are the valves located throughout the systems. Valves are critical to regulating, directing, and controlling water. It is important that is valves do not become stiff and rigid I must be exorcised in order to maintain flexibility in order to prevent issues with backflow. Many of these valves are not in easily accessible locations. U.S. Saws has developed battery powered valve exercisers to make the job easier on municipal water workers. One such valve exerciser is the VEX-400. This powerful and portable valve exerciser uses 18 Volt batteries and a Metabo drill motor to get the job done, providing workers the benefit of a heavy duty powerful tool that can be used in tight and awkward locations Pump.

Utility Pump

One great foe of every water worker is the problem of standing water. Standing water Makes it difficult for workers to access many underground structures including meter pits and valve boxes. It is essential that the water is removed so that the workers have a way to access their work site. One easy way to do this it’s through the use of a utility pump. U.S. SAWS is a proud supplier of the Dewalt Battery Powered BP1520 Battery Pump. This powerful pump has a PVC body and housing protecting it from rust, corrosion, dents, and bends. It is powered with either a 20 Volt DeWalt or 18 Volt Milwaukee battery and with its slim design works well in tight spaces that are off in the bane of a municipal workers’ day. This powerful tool can pump 15 gallons a minute and weighs only 6 pounds making it the perfect tool for backbreaking work.

Hand-Held Saws

What water workers toolbox is complete without a saw? At some point water workers will be required to cut pipes in confined underground spaces. Most saws are powered electrically or using gas; however, tight and confined spaces make using electrical or gas powered saws less than perfect options. U.S. Saws has developed air powered handheld saws. this technology not only makes the job easier for the worker, but protects him or her from harmful fumes emitted buy gas powered saws. One such saw is the HS-125 Hand-Held Air Powered Saw. This air powered saw has no combustible parts, requires low maintenance, and has a lightweight design. It has a maximum cutting depth of five inches and is ideal for confined space cutting. An added bonus of this super saw is that it allows for wet or dry cutting, making it a highly versatile saw for any workers toolbox.

Belly Saws

The 5th tool required to make water and sewer workers lives simpler is the belly saw. The belly saw is the perfect tool for cutting pipes in what conditions and its design makes it safer to operate than most other saws. From the guard design that covers the blade to the straps that attach directly to the pipe in order to prevent kickback, the belly saw is a utility worker’s best friend. of course there are different belly saws that are dependent on the size of the pipes that need to be cut. One such saw is the US SAWS Air Powered Belly Saw. This offering from U.S. SAWS varies depending on the sides of the pipe and comes and offerings that range from 8 to 24 inch pipes, 24 to 48 inch pipes, and 48 to 72 inch pipes. The fact that these saws are air powered only increases the benefit to the workers, relieving them from harmful fumes and allowing them access to powerful tools in wet conditions. This saw make easy work of PVC, ductile iron, cast iron, and other heavy duty materials through the use of its Tiger Tooth blade. With its safe and accurate cuts the air powered belly saw is a must have for every municipal worker.

U.S. SAWS is a leader in the underground tool industry. Contact us today to discuss updating your tool box!

Everything You Need to Know About Valve Exercisers

28-04-2021 - Water Sewer

Why Do We Need Valves and Valve Exercisers?

Valves are crucial to the transportation of municipal water from place to place, as well as in sewage processing and plumbing systems. Even the human body has valves! From the age of the Romans and their aqueducts, valves have been used to control the flow of water to households. While valves are vital to regulating, directing, and controlling the flow of water, valves are also used with gases, solids, and slurries. Modern-day municipal water and waste agencies use valves to direct water flow, adjust water pressure, shut down water access, and prevent backflow. The public water systems are vital to a community’s infrastructure, and the citizens depend on the uninterrupted supply of potable water. Should a valve fail to prevent backflow, an entire community’s water supply will become contaminated and unusable until properly sanitized. When those valves fail, it is up to the municipal workers to access the faulty valve(s) and repair and/or replace it.

The best way to avoid damaged valves is through the user of a valve exerciser. Much like a treadmill helps exercise your heart (and all of its valves), a valve exerciser is a tool used to turn valves on and off repeatedly to ensure the valve does not become stiff and malfunction. Valve exercisers are vital to the uninterrupted flow of water for cities and surrounding communities. Without this maintenance, valves will wear and not be able to fully do their jobs. Nobody wants a backflow of sewage in their drinking water. To ensure faulty valves are not an issue, municipal agencies will create valve exercising programs where workers conduct valve turning with their valve exercisers to loosen and then tighten the valves down again to ensure they are functioning optimally and have not seized or suffered from corrosion. Regular use of valve exercisers helps keep the valves limber and free of debris.

Advances in Technology

Valve exercising is not as easy as it may appear. It can be back-breaking work that has to be done with precision. Thousands of people rely on the proper functioning of those valves that are being exercised. Valves are not always placed in the most easily accessible locations. As a matter of fact, to avoid non-municipal affiliated people from tinkering with the valves, many are placed in hard-to-reach areas. This makes accessing valve exercisers difficult for the workers and their valve turning. The early 2000s saw truck-mounted valve exercisers that were both inconvenient and expensive. In an effort to alleviate some of the expense and size of the truck-powered valve exerciser which was needed to access and turn some stiff and corroded valves, companies like U.S.SAWS have developed technology like lightweight, battery-powered valve exercisers. The portability of these valve exercisers makes turning valves a much simpler task. As valve exercising research and development has grown, it has allowed advances in other repetitive valve operations as well, such as hydrant exercising.

The U.S.SAWS VEX-400

The U.S.SAWS VEX-400 is a perfect example of a solid, portable valve exerciser with the power and safety features needed for successful valve work. These exercises are made of alloy aluminum and hardened steel which use a Metabo drill motor as its power source. Safety features include a trigger handguard, stable foot base, overload protection, and a shear key that will break before the gearbox, preserving the integrity of the exerciser and its user. This device has a rotation counter that tracks turns rotating in either direction, comes with three batteries for a full day’s work without the need for recharging, and has multiple extensions allowing the user access to a wide range of valve depths. This powerful tool also has variable torque settings ranging up to 400 peak ft/lbs. After use, it breaks down for easy transport in its carrying case.

U.S.SAWS has a valve exerciser to meet any municipal worker’s needs from the portable and powerful VEX-400 to the Deluxe Valve Exerciser Package – Hydrant Kit. Contact us today to discuss your options.

Pipe Beveling Tool Selection

03-06-2020 - Water Sewer

Beveling cut ends of water main pipe after an in-field cut is required to reduce the chances of damaging Bell end gaskets during installation.

The difficulty in the beveling process is keeping a consistent and smooth finish while using basic hand tools.

Mechanical beveller’s have advanced with the use of battery-powered tools in high speed cutting heads making the job extremely easy and fast.

U.S.SAWS manufactured several tools for beveling PVC pipe in the trench allowing for quick installation and excellent results .

Because of changes in pipe size in classification having a tool that is adjustable in offered in many forms to fit tools like battery-powered grinders, gas-powered saws, eliminate the need for difficult handwork.

Field repairs often allow little room to access the ends of cut pipe. The U.S.SAWS bevel tools allow tight access with very little clearance required.

For pipe sizes 6 inches through 12 inches, US Saw’s Recommends the use of an 8 flute or 16 flute cutting tool. These 2 beveller’s have identical cutting profiles but are designed for either low power hand tools (16 flute) or high powered gas construction saws (8 flute). These cutting heads meet requirements of ASTM standards and AWWA installation standards For proper bevel dimensions. For pipe sizes, 16 inches and larger US Saws recommends the 3 flute beveller version used on a gas-powered saw.

Because these cutting tools work on a variety of sizes it is a one size fits all application. Most other manufacturers require the purchase of multiple tools for different sizes of pipe making the process expensive and the loss of parts a reality.

Underground Cutting Made Easy and Safer

14-01-2020 - Water Sewer

Public Utility companies have used a variety of cutting tools for In-trench repair in the past, such as gas construction saws, reciprocating saws, snap cutters, and other means to remove sections of a damaged pipe. Today’s workforce recognizes the need for a safer and dedicated equipment designed to solve this job. Because of this, workers today are moving away from conventional handheld rotary blade machines because it can be problematic to operate in confined spaces with tools that are attached to the pipe.

For over 30 years, U.S.SAWS has been an innovator of pipe cutting chainsaws and water line maintenance. We offer advantages of modified grinding systems that can reduce the risk of injuries. With the development of specialized cutting blades, emissions-free air-powered equipment, and attachment systems to reduce the risk of kickback in the trench, U.S.SAWS designed the “belly saw.” The belly saw was designed to cut the bottom part of a pipe in the trench. We do this while having the saw straps physically to the pipe with a roller assembly that allows the saw to move freely around the diameter of the pipe while making a straight Burr free cut. The most popular version of this tool can cut diameters from 6 inches to 24-inch diameter ductile iron pipe. Also available in sizes are 24-48” and 48 inches up to 72-inch diameter pipe. One of the primary advantages of operating with this saw is that the depth of cut is limited to an inch and one quarter, thus preventing the blade from dragging in residual water in the pipe and reducing horsepower applied in the cutting process. The belly saw is the most cost-effective, fastest, and safest pipe cutting saw in the market today.

Pipe cutting chainsaws have revolutionized utility work in the last 10 years. The ability to cut ductile iron, cast iron, PVC, AC pipe, and other materials gives this machine a unique advantage. Because the air chainsaw operates with pressurized air, it can work underwater and in extremely wet environments with no disadvantage. To make this tool more useful and safe, U.S.SAWS created the pipe mounting device that fixes the saw to the pipe while being cut. This device allows the saw to make a bottom-up cut, which offers several advantages in the repair process. Residual water drains out the bottom cut, the bar moves away from the operator during the cut, thus avoiding kickback while cutting. There is also minimal effort on the operator by using this system, and a small tab of pipe can be left at the Top securing the workpiece until final removal is required.
Removing gas powered in handheld devices from the trench has been the U.S.SAWS mission for many years. With the development of these two machines, operators have a clear advantage in safety and convenience while making underground repairs.

Picking the right magnetic manhole lifter saves time & the risk of injury

06-01-2020 - Water Sewer

Removing manholes can be harder than you think. Not only are these lids heavy, they often do not have adequate pick holes or lifting holes.
Manhole lids can weigh up to 200 lbs or more, add that to being wedged or frozen in place with sand, corrosion, and asphalt, removing them can be very challenging.

There are many use cases where workers need to create their creative methods for removing a lid, such as crowbars, shovels, screwdrivers, and even worse—fingers.

Using a dedicated manhole magnetic lifting tool not only saves the risk of injury, but it also saves time. Operators that need to open over 12 lids per day for grease trap or stormwater collection inspection know that ease in lifting and replacing lids is essential for efficiency and reducing the chance of injury.

U.S.SAWS manufactures two distinct types of lifting systems:

First, a fold-out dolly that uses a switchable magnet. This system offers a significant mechanical advantage to lift lids easily. This system is best if the operator needs to lift the lid free and clear of the opening. Some lids have flanges or casting lugs under the bottom edge that catch and prevent removal with drag out systems, like utility hole hooks. The additional benefit is that more than one magnet could be used at one time for lifting extremely heavy lids or unusually shaped objects. These have a range of average 100 lb lids to 500 lb lids.

The Second lifting system is designed to take up less room in a truck and is a “slide-out” style lifter. U.S.SAWS calls this the “Break and Take” line of magnetic manhole lifters. These lift the edge of the lid and unseats the lid. Then the operator slides the utility hole lid out of the opening. This method is beneficial for flat bottomed lids up to 300 lbs.

With a variety of magnetic tools to assist daily operations, U.S.SAWS leads the industry with tools and equipment for safer and easier manhole lifting needs.

Category: Water Sewer