Bellevue, Wash. Utility Daylighting and Repairs

Bellevue, Wash. | Retail | Hydro Excavation

Overview

This store, located in Bellevue, WA, is a staple in the community, offering a wide range of products at competitive prices. Guests can find everything they need and more at this one-stop-shop.

Problem

The property manager at this store noticed standing water around an underground downspout connection. While others in this situation may not have seen or been concerned about the pooled water, this property manager understood the risks of ignorance surrounding stormwater and was apt to contact AQUALIS. As the preventative maintenance provider for this location, AQUALIS deployed their regionalized team in the greater Seattle region to comprehensively analyze the situation.

AQUALIS swiftly responded and prepped to expose the pipe for repair and investigation. Sedimentation was theorized as the main culprit based on the reports and assessment from the property manager. A sediment and debris blockage correction would require a standard and straightforward downspout replacement in coordination with AQUALIS’ self-performing vactor and jetting cleaning services.

Once on-site, AQUALIS professionals removed the downspout and utilized vactor and jetting services to clear any sediment and other malleable blockages. Dedicated to long-term solutions with root cause identification, AQUALIS then performed an underground pipe inspection with the use of push cameras. These small cameras are inserted into pipes capturing video and images of the underground assets, allowing AQUALIS professionals to provide a more reliable assessment and diagnosis of the underground infrastructure. These images and video can relay to above-ground teams the precise location of the blockage, sediment build-up, pipe depressions, or other pipe deficiencies.

With the debris cleared from the jetting application, underground images from the CCTV rover deployment revealed that one section of the pipeline was compromised due to bending and compression in the line. However, this was not a simple blockage, and AQUALIS had to identify the root cause.

Solution

Typically caused by intrusive roots, AQUALIS’ team began daylighting the pipe and further exposing the utilities using the application of hydro excavation. Daylighting is a non-invasive process that uses pressurized water to expose underground infrastructure. Concentrated jets of water loosen and remove soil but do not risk damages to utilities. Hydro excavation uncovered that it was not intrusive roots but rather an inactive fiber optic line that had been bored directly through the stormwater line. Sadly, this is not an uncommon occurrence with buried utilities. Failure to properly map and mark underground infrastructure before installing new utility lines is a common cause of underground pipe damage across the United States.

AQUALIS contacted the utility provider and was able to work with the property manager to complete the repair and ensure that they were within compliance. This included repairing both the downspout drain pipe and the section of the impaled drain pipe.

AQUALIS’ dedication to root-cause analysis reduces frequent visits and unnecessary emergency response for a repeated deficiency. As a preventative maintenance service provider and partner to property managers, we are the first and only call for water management resource needs. With comprehensive applications to troubleshoot various concerns, our team looks for innovative applications to identify a problem efficiently. While other service providers may have jetted the system initially and not examined further, our vactor and jetting operators’ skills, in-depth stormwater knowledge, and attention to detail led to a long-term solution for this site.

Contact AQUALIS to learn how our vactor and jetting services with hydro-excavation, daylighting, and utility locating capabilities can help protect your underground infrastructure.