How-to: Protect your Pump Station from Blockages & Breakdowns

Pumping Stations are located at points along a drainage system to move waste and sewerage to the sewer. Pumping Stations are designed to act as a collection point for waste, which is stored in a large chamber before pumping this material to the main sewer.

Pumping stations are designed to pump three things, the three p’s, pee, poo, and (toilet) paper. Unfortunately, various other items are disposed of down toilets and sinks, causing unnecessary blockages. This, in turn, leads to pumping station breakdowns and premature pump failures, which can also result in more serious problems, including the flooding of the pumping station.

 Avoid detrimental blockages
Domestic pipelines are typically 100mm (4") in diameter, therefore we need to be careful about what we are disposing of in our homes, in order to avoid blockages. Remember to only flush the three P’s, pee, poo, and (toilet) paper.

HOW TO DISPOSE OF ITEMS THAT ARE NOT THE 3 P’S?

What not to flush...
Here are some handy tips on how to dispose of items that we regularly find blocking pumping stations:

• Cooking Fat - Allow the fat to cool and solidify, then scrape it out; wrap it into some newspaper or tin foil and dispose of it in your appropriate bin. Alternatively, pour it into a suitable container and when it has cooled throw it in the appropriate bin.
• Sanitary towels, tampons and panty liners - Wrap well and place them in the appropriate bin. Special disposal bags are available at pharmacies and supermarkets. In public toilets place them in the sanitary disposal bin provided.
• Condoms, incontinence pads, used plasters and bandages - Wrap well and place them in the appropriate bin.
• Disposal nappies, liners, and wipes - Wrap well and place in an appropriate bin. Nappy disposal bags are available in supermarkets.
• Razor blades - To avoid injury, place razor blades in a solid container before placing in the bin.
• Medicines - Return all unused medicines to your local pharmacy for safe disposal. Always keep medicines out of the reach of children, even when disposed of.
• Used syringes and needles - Needles and syringes should be taken to your nearest disposal bank. Your doctor or pharmacy should be able to find your nearest disposal bank.
• Earbuds and flossing sticks - Dispose of in an appropriate bin. Plastic is a worldwide issue and things like earbuds and flossing sticks can break down into small fibers and make their way through the water system.
• All other waste - Wrap well, if necessary, and dispose of safely in your bin. For all other liquids and items contact your local council for details of your nearest household waste recycling centre.

SERVICE

If you are experiencing issues with a blocked pumping station, you can contact our 24/7 Service Team on 01630647200 for emergency support.

T-T Service - Our service engineers cover the whole of the United Kingdom, servicing and maintaining both Adoptable and Package Pumping Stations. Our emergency teams are on hand to help with high-level alarms should your pumping station be close to flooding.

In order to avoid emergency breakdowns, we recommend having a routine service, keeping your pumping station in optimal working condition and reducing the risk of pump blockages.

Find out more about our pumping station maintenance packages here.

We have vast experience in maintaining pumping stations that are located in problem areas, it isn’t uncommon to have a pumping station that experiences regular breakdowns, this could be due to residents using wipes or the pumping station being located in an area where debris enters the wet well.

MONITORING

We are constantly innovating our range to help with problematic pumping stations. For example, we have launched our Seer Cloud Monitoring system which has already proven a success with problematic sites.

Seer Monitoring - The Seer monitoring range is an advanced data logger that uses cloud-based technology to continually communicate pump status to an internet-based portal that has multiple notification setting functionalities.

Read more about where our Seer Monitoring system has been helping problem sites here.

PUMPS

Choosing the right pump for your station is vital to avoiding breakdowns - not all pumps are designed for solids handling, this can lead to blockages or excessive wear on pump components.

Cri-Man PTS Chopper Pump - The chopping action breaks down particle size via an extremely heavy-duty cutting action, leaving pump-able, yet manageable particles. This differs from a macerator pump, as these shred solids into fine particles via 10’s of 1000’s of cuts per minute, which are volatile to fibrous materials potentially causing environmental issues should your system break down.

MONITORING

We are constantly innovating our range to help with problematic pumping stations. For example, we have launched our Seer Cloud Monitoring system which has already proven a success with problematic sites.

Seer Monitoring - The Seer monitoring range is an advanced data logger that uses cloud-based technology to continually communicate pump status to an internet-based portal that has multiple notification setting functionalities.

PUMPS

Choosing the right pump for your station is vital to avoiding breakdowns - not all pumps are designed for solids handling, this can lead to blockages or excessive wear on pump components.

Cri-Man PTS Chopper Pump - The chopping action breaks down particle size via an extremely heavy-duty cutting action, leaving pump-able, yet manageable particles. This differs from a macerator pump, as these shred solids into fine particles via 10’s of 1000’s of cuts per minute, which are volatile to fibrous materials potentially causing environmental issues should your system break down.

To discuss our pump maintenance packages and emergency repairs services, contact our friendly team by calling +44 (0)1630 647200 or emailing response@ttpumps.com.