Romtec Utilities is a designer, supplier, and manufacturer of lift stations for all types of water pumping applications. On one recent project, we supplied a wastewater lift station during the development of the Santa Barbara County Northern Branch Jail near Santa Maria, California. This pumping system handles high flows of wastewater from the jail and from nearby residential homes. Wastewater lift stations for jails and prisons are at an increased risk of encountering solids due to the nature of a prison sewer system. This system required the addition of a large solids remover to protect the lift station and the downstream system from damage.
Romtec Utilities found this project through a public bid RFI. We bid and won the supply of the system alongside Spiess Construction Company, who won the site work and installation. The new jail is a 376 bed facility, according to the County of Santa Barbara’s website, and the majority of the wastewater being conveyed by the lift station comes from the jail. Whether it’s from contraband being disposed of or items being flushed to intentionally damage the sewer system, jails and prisons consistently have higher concentrations of solid, “unflushable” objects than a typical facility. Preventative measures were necessary to keep solids from entering the lift station and damaging the pumps and other equipment.
Once the design and installation of the lift station was complete, a large solids removal system was installed just upstream from the wet well of the lift station. A Huber manufactured RakeMax-hf Screen will continuously sift wastewater as it flows through a screen while removing any solid objects with rakes. The filter screens and rakes can both be adjusted to catch different sizes of solids. Captured solids are moved up and out of the wastewater by the rakes and into a container that is regularly emptied by personnel. This efficient screening system is perfect in this application and allows the powerful pumps inside the lift station to operate without the risk of damage from foreign objects.
For this high flow application, 20 hp Vaughan Chopper pumps were selected and installed in a duplex configuration. Vaughan pumps are very robust and will easily handle any smaller solids that pass the solids removal system. Sewage from the jail is collected and stored inside a large 25’ deep concrete wet well with an inner diameter of 10’. The warm climate of California made it necessary to apply a protective coating in the wet well to protect against corrosion from Hydrogen Sulfide Gas. Nolta mechanical floats provide reliable level sensing of the active volume levels inside the wet well. A UL-listed, alternating control panel with a cellular modem comprises the primary electrical controls for this lift station.
The lift station was recently started up and is currently operational. The jail, however, is still under construction and is expected to be completed in 2019, according to the Santa Barbara County Sherriff website. The source of wastewater is an important consideration during the design of any lift station. Including adequate protection against probable issues in the future is a cornerstone of a great lift station design. Contact Romtec Utilities today for help on the design of your wastewater, stormwater, or industrial pumping system!