Three of us came in to work the wastewater plant Sat 0800 after all working until midnight Friday. I had worked a double that day, the other two were doubling into their usual 3rd shift until a couple hours ago. As per usual at the end of a workweek, the more one yearns for an uneventful day the more likely happenstance prevents such dreams coming true.
After the usual rounds, process and permit samples, sludge measurements and answering phones with the neighbor's odor complaints (contractor's trucks parked offsite at the golf course full of melting curing compound) and leaking bypass pumps on the other side of town came the fun stuff.
I knew going in today I'd be swapping out the empty chlorine tonne cylinders for full. No big deal, simple and straightforward job requiring due care and diligence to secure a good connection. The rub was my partner noticed visual evidence of a small leak on the Cl2 bank in service during his rounds but could not get a reaction when making a check with ammonia fumes. Again no big deal, close the two cylinder valves until vacuum draws pressure to zero then tighten the nut on the manifold while backing up the pigtail.
A problem with the regulator for the SCBA we're required to don was as yet unresolved and I made a considered decision to do without. I understood the risk and barring catastrophic failure of the overhead crane there was virtually no chance of anything more than the barest whiff of chlorine... as long as I did my job. I made my supervisor aware of my plans, he was OK and offered to back me up with the whip fix after my partner and completed the cylinder swap. No work is done in there without back up. Good idea in a room with 12 - 13 tons of 100% liquid Cl2.
I still got a phone call and will have to meet with the superintendent on Tues. No problem, we'll holler at each other for a bit then work the problem. We have a good understanding of each other.
Things went as planned and I switched the system to manual then walked away until the vacuum drew down. I stepped outside, lit a smoke and thought about what I had just done. Went back in and sure as Sally I goofed. I had manually switched to the full tonnes I just installed. Easy fix, just switched them back only adding about 10 psi to the 110 I started with.
Knowing I had 20 - 30 minutes to kill before zeroing out it was time anyway to measure afternoon blankets (sludge level in the clarifiers). Dipped the four on the east then headed for the four on the west. As I reached the top of the distribution box I saw that all four rakes on all four clarifiers were approaching all four catwalks in unison. No way to drop that 20 ft. tube without in fouling the structure. I may have been able to dip two if I really hustled.
Hell no.
I unkinked my neck and shoulders and walked to the south side of the box, took off my hat and while facing the freshening SE breeze closed my eyes and tilted my head to the warm sun. For a few moments I left that place behind. Another long week in a series of long weeks since Oct. might have never happened. For a short time I was somewhere else. With the sound, but not the scent of mixed liquor pouring over the weirs I may as well been standing by a spillway off of the Little Tennessee river.
I thanked the Lord for this brief respite, reminding me I work to live, not the other way around.
The rest of the day went well, the fix worked first try, easy ride home and the beer was cold.
Apologies for probably my longest post, I just truly wish all here experience their own version of a moment of peace.
Good Night
After the usual rounds, process and permit samples, sludge measurements and answering phones with the neighbor's odor complaints (contractor's trucks parked offsite at the golf course full of melting curing compound) and leaking bypass pumps on the other side of town came the fun stuff.
I knew going in today I'd be swapping out the empty chlorine tonne cylinders for full. No big deal, simple and straightforward job requiring due care and diligence to secure a good connection. The rub was my partner noticed visual evidence of a small leak on the Cl2 bank in service during his rounds but could not get a reaction when making a check with ammonia fumes. Again no big deal, close the two cylinder valves until vacuum draws pressure to zero then tighten the nut on the manifold while backing up the pigtail.
A problem with the regulator for the SCBA we're required to don was as yet unresolved and I made a considered decision to do without. I understood the risk and barring catastrophic failure of the overhead crane there was virtually no chance of anything more than the barest whiff of chlorine... as long as I did my job. I made my supervisor aware of my plans, he was OK and offered to back me up with the whip fix after my partner and completed the cylinder swap. No work is done in there without back up. Good idea in a room with 12 - 13 tons of 100% liquid Cl2.
I still got a phone call and will have to meet with the superintendent on Tues. No problem, we'll holler at each other for a bit then work the problem. We have a good understanding of each other.
Things went as planned and I switched the system to manual then walked away until the vacuum drew down. I stepped outside, lit a smoke and thought about what I had just done. Went back in and sure as Sally I goofed. I had manually switched to the full tonnes I just installed. Easy fix, just switched them back only adding about 10 psi to the 110 I started with.
Knowing I had 20 - 30 minutes to kill before zeroing out it was time anyway to measure afternoon blankets (sludge level in the clarifiers). Dipped the four on the east then headed for the four on the west. As I reached the top of the distribution box I saw that all four rakes on all four clarifiers were approaching all four catwalks in unison. No way to drop that 20 ft. tube without in fouling the structure. I may have been able to dip two if I really hustled.
Hell no.
I unkinked my neck and shoulders and walked to the south side of the box, took off my hat and while facing the freshening SE breeze closed my eyes and tilted my head to the warm sun. For a few moments I left that place behind. Another long week in a series of long weeks since Oct. might have never happened. For a short time I was somewhere else. With the sound, but not the scent of mixed liquor pouring over the weirs I may as well been standing by a spillway off of the Little Tennessee river.
I thanked the Lord for this brief respite, reminding me I work to live, not the other way around.
The rest of the day went well, the fix worked first try, easy ride home and the beer was cold.
Apologies for probably my longest post, I just truly wish all here experience their own version of a moment of peace.
Good Night
