Educational

How to Protect Your Precast Concrete Manholes From Hydrogen Sulfide Corrosion Precast concrete manholes were first introduced in the mid-1950’s, and by 1970 were widely adopted as the preferred structure for manhole installation in sewer and drainage applications. Those 1970-ish manholes are now 50 years old (hard to believe!), which is probably close to the original, intended design life. It is common for the published ‘war-stories’ or case histories to be about ancient hand-hewn stone structures built by artisan craftsmen, and those manholes do exist in some of our oldest cities. But most of what we deal

Manhole Appreciation Day, Anyone?   Much like Rodney Dangerfield who “got no respect”, by and large manholes don’t get much respect either. They’re located under the street where they are run over millions of times per year by cars, snowplows, bikes, and pedestrians. They might even be buried in a right-of-way, or covered and lost entirely. Manholes definitely fall into the category of “out of sight, out of mind”. But have you ever thought about where our collection system would be without the manhole? While “man-way” sewer access dates back to ancient Roman times, something akin to

Common Sense, Good Sense, and Sewer Sense Common sense, good sense, and sewer sense are important attributes for those of you involved in the operation, maintenance, and rehabilitation of wastewater systems. It is simply common sense to acknowledge that the manhole and lift station parts of your sewer infrastructure that are 30 to 50 years old, which had an original design life of 30 to 50 years, are probably in need of some attention. In our experience, it is good sense to rehabilitate rather than replace those structures. Why? It will solve your problems with infiltration and

Culvert Lining Rehab Means Better Than New at a Fraction of the Cost OBIC is best known for its work around wastewater structures such as manholes, lift stations, and WWTP facilities that help municipalities mitigate their infrastructure issues. Another infrastructure issue equally “out of sight and out of mind” is stormwater culverts. Culverts installed 30 to 50 years ago are now failing at an alarming rate. Thousands of corrugated metal culverts are so significantly rusted and deteriorated that flooding or collapsed roads are very real possibilities and scenarios. A collapsed culvert is potentially a much greater problem

What are the Benefits of No-Dig Technology? The history of no-dig (trenchless) technology in the United States dates back to the mid-1970’s. OBIC’s owners have been in the no-dig business for nearly 20 years. It’s what we do. It’s how we think about wastewater rehabilitation. But just because we think that way doesn’t mean we shouldn’t slow down a little, review the basics, and “dig” into the benefits of no-dig technology. Instead of open cut excavation to gain access for repair or replacement of the structure, as the name suggests, no-dig allows for those repairs with minimal

Hidden Cost Savings with OBIC Wet Well Rehabilitation In previous blogs, we have talked about OBIC’S quick cure times providing a fast return to service. Where this benefit really manifests itself is the substantial cost savings provided for a wet well rehab project. A day in the life of a wet well rehabA typical 6’ diameter by 10’-20’ deep lift station can be fully relined by an OBIC certified installer in a single day. Depending on the circumstances, this can sometimes be done without bypassing. Below is a typical schedule for this type of wet well rehab project.8:00 a.m. OBIC

What Are The Pros And Cons Of Manhole Rehabilitation? Our team at OBIC has decades of experience in sewer system rehab, construction and operation. Our combined experience includes everything from collapsing sewer manholes to deteriorating pipes and everything in between. As a matter of fact, there is not much we haven’t seen, heard and rehabilitated. While we take pride in our accomplishments and enjoy telling stories of some of the most challenging projects we have tackled, we have also learned a lot over the years. It is that experience and knowledge that helps us to expertly mitigate the varying maintenance

What Does Sewer System Inflow and Infiltration Mean? Our No-dig Sewer Rehab Solutions Can Help When groundwater or stormwater enters dedicated sanitary sewer systems, inflow & infiltration is occurring. Most inflow & infiltration, or I&I, is caused by aging infrastructure that includes manholes and sewer pipes. While this may seem like a hopeless, inevitable problem, there are steps that communities can take to protect their wastewater systems. Infiltration is when clean groundwater enters the sewer collection system. A great example of this is when heavy rain or snowmelt penetrates the ground and raises the groundwater level. That

Different Types Of Industrial Coatings And Their Applications In Latin, obic is the root word for barrier. When we founded our company in 2017, we couldn’t think of a better name for our products. Regardless of whether we are working on a manhole rehabilitation project, restoring an aging stormwater culvert or keeping drinking water safe with water treatment structure repairs, OBIC products are all designed to provide a long-lasting, cost-effective barrier of protection. Made of a flexible polymer that is environmentally friendly, OBIC coating systems are spray applied and cure in minutes. This makes them ideal for