Contractor Ups Productivity, Stays Green With AllJetVac Combo Cleaner

For Atlantic Pipe Services of Sanford, Florida, having two Vacall AllJetVac combo sewer cleaners with Recycler attachments has dramatically improved its on-the-job productivity, while also recognizing environmental concerns.

“Two main points for me, and how I market our services, are all about going green and how efficiently we can work,” says Allan Cagle, owner of Atlantic Pipe, which markets itself as “Florida’s commercial pipeline cleaning, inspection and rehabilitation specialists.”

Cagle says he can pull up on a job site and clean pipes without having to break down and decant and get water. “All the typical things that a standard vac truck has to do throughout the day. That’s saving my client time and that’s a great selling point. I’m charging you the same as the other guys, but because I don’t have to stop, I’m at your site working at least two to three hours longer.”

Saving treated water

With a Recycler option, as water is jetted for cleaning, it is continuously vacuumed out of the pipes, put through a five-step filter process and returned to the tank to continue jetting. The process saves millions of gallons of treated water each year and eliminates the continual need to stop work for water refills. 

Those water savings are a big advantage in business growth with municipalities, Cagle says. “We sell to the service director in municipalities. They know how to get funding for work with these types of trucks if you sell them on the sustainability issue.” 

On jobs involving new construction, or when hurricanes and heavy summer rains wash a lot of Florida sand into sewer lines, Cagle has learned to adjust his operating strategy. “Thick liquid material does not easily recycle,” he says. “So, to help out on the recirculating for those kinds of jobs, I bought a 6-inch to 2-inch reducer camlock for the debris tank. We fill the debris tank 60 percent full of clean water, and also fill the water tanks with water. That way, we’re starting off recycling with all clean water, and we can recycle longer.” 

A crew-approved solution

Cagle adds that his crews find Vacall AllJetVac combination sewer cleaners to be operator-friendly. “My guys love the Parker hose on the trucks,” he says. “It doesn’t have the memory that the other hoses have. They want to curl, and my guys have to fight with it down in the manhole. The towrope is in the front instead of in the back. And Vacall doesn’t have a bunch of covers and shrouds, so the components are easy to get to for parts replacement and service.”

The design is another plus, according to Cagle. “They’ve got half the switches and components compared to other brands. A private contractor like myself looks for fewer things to maintain, fewer things to break out in the field, fewer electrical components.” 

Cagle has high praise for his dealer, too. “We have a great working relationship with GSE,” he says. “I don’t care what you buy — everybody tries to build the best — but it’s made by humans so it can break down. A salesman sells the first truck to you, but it’s the product support that sells the second one. At the end of the day, it’s the support.” 


Vacall machines have been designed, manufactured, sold and supported by Gradall Industries Inc. since the company’s acquisition in 2006. Since then, Vacall has earned a worldwide reputation for strength, versatility and quality. 

800-382-8302 | www.vacall.com



Discussion

Comments on this site are submitted by users and are not endorsed by nor do they reflect the views or opinions of COLE Publishing, Inc. Comments are moderated before being posted.