C.P. Systems provides cathodic protection on cast-iron and ductile-iron water mains in order to prevent corrosion or errosion of the water main. Cathodic protection is the installation of sacrificial anodes at pre-determined distances over the length of the water main. The anode corrodes instead of the main, therefore extending the life of the main and assisting in the prevention of water main breaks and leaks. This process puts off, sometimes for decades, the need for water main replacement with its associated costs and major disruption to services.
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Surveying the Water Main |
Prior to installing the cathodic protection anodes, a survey along the water main is done which measures the amount of current running through the main. This indicates how susceptible to corrosion the main is, and pinpoints to a certain degree the areas that are in need of cathodic protection the most.
Installation of the sacrificial anode is done with either a vacuum excavation truck or an auger truck through a 10-inch diameter hole drilled down to the main. The sacrificial anode is then welded into place, and the hole is backfilled and re-sodded. Sometime after the installation is done, another survey of the water main is done. The two surveys are then compared side by side, and the difference in potential between the pre-survey and the post-survey shows the increase in protection of the water main.
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Augering the Hole |
Installing the Anode |
Valve rehabilitation starts by utilizing high pressure water blasting to remove the sludge that has accumulated on the valve over time. The picture on the left shows such an accumulation. The dot of blue at the bottom of the picture is actually a small portion of PVC piping showing through the sludge .
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Before |
After |
The first step in rehabilitating the valve is to remove the debris and the corroded bolts. When all the debris has has been removed and the bolts and other corroded parts have been replaced, a sacrificial anode is welded onto the valve in much the same way as in water main protection, to slow or halt the corrosion process. The entire valve is then specially coated and then wrapped for further protection.
The blue wire shown in the picture on the right is a coated copper wire which is welded to the valve on one end and attached to the sacrificial anode on the other.
In addition to cathodic protection of water mains and valve rehabilitation, C.P. Systems also offers design and consulting services, stud welding, augered anodes, trenching equipment, cable and pipe locations, soil resistivity and analysis, stray current surveys, and rectifier, commissioning, and monitoring.
| C.P. Systems | |||
| 4700 Thickson Road North | Whitby, Ontario -- L1R 2W9 | Phone: 905-655-7122, Fax: 905-655-7178 | Email:info@cp-systems.com |
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