The City Director came to Phillip Clark, water supervisor for Tavares, Florida, with details of a surplus in the budget. “What can we add to our fleet to work smarter and not harder? What out there in the industry is new and innovative?" he asked.

Clark is constantly researching and reading about what is innovative and groundbreaking. He says at times there isn’t much to be found, but he saw a Vac-Tron at work on the side of the road and had to investigate it. He scheduled a demo and saw how productivity would greatly improve with the use of a low profile, trailered vacuum excavator. So, it was presented to council to be able to add an invaluable machine to their fleet. Council agreed and approved.

One of the many tasks his crews must handle is checking meter boxes and cleaning around the roots and debris that collect inside. This routine usually takes an entire day to handle just six or so boxes. Due to the sprawling roots, shovels are used to dig, and it has been an inefficient process. 

Another task is repairing leaks in water lines and removing the water and dirt to allow for a clear area to work. A sample that Mr. Clark shared was a recent water break under a concrete driveway that had to be broken away to reveal the repair project. It was a 2-inch water break located 3 feet beneath 2 feet of concrete driveway.

As for all cities, locating underground utilities is a constant project where in the past typically a probe is used. Finding these lines with a probe can be dangerous and time consuming.

Challenges

- It took up to a day to clean out and view half a dozen meter boxes

- Exposure to bugs, snakes and other elements

- Excavation for small leaks, removing water to find the source of the leak

- Safety when digging around gas and power lines

The solution

To upgrade from traditional methods of digging to a Vac-Tron increased efficiency. Adding a trailered vacuum excavator by Vac-Tron proved to be a well-made investment. The Low-Profile Series has full potholing or daylighting and cleanup capabilities with a 300-gallon debris capacity, manual spin-wheel door and two 50-gallon water tanks.

Results

- Easily removes water and dirt for a more productive way to repair water line breaks

- Works as a mobile pressure cleaner as well without having to have a power source

- The city will see a quick payback, according to Clark

- Keeps the team away from reptiles and insects

- A much safer way to dig

- Using a Vac-Tron only took 30 minutes to clean the same six boxes that used to take all day

For more info or for a free demo visit www.vactron.com or call 888-822-8766.