7994-R1_MechanicFalls_20-21_AnnualReport_Text_4C_Web

WATER DEPARTMENT

The Mechanic Falls Water Department 2021

What a strange world we are living in. We have all had to adapt to “the new normal”. Things that we have done routinely have taken on a new meaning. We have always tried to read our meters every quarter. This is the first time that we are aware of that we estimated our winter readings. All went well. Any discrepancies were taken care of at the next billing cycle. We have tried three times now to replace one of our trucks. Finally, we have one ordered. Stock that we normally order is not readily available. Contrary to belief, we do have the ability to disconnect services in the winter. This is not true for the power companies. We did however have to adhere to some temporary rules this year. We have started to store our records on GIS. (Global information system) This will allow us to keep track of all our services, mains, and hydrants electronically. And share our information with those that need it.

We did the “WATER MAIN FROM HELL PROJECT” this year. When we realized the Highway Department

was going to rebuild a part of Highland Avenue this year, we

received permission to install about six-hundred feet of twelve-inch water main and a new fire hydrant. We discovered just how difficult getting products were. We have been using a plastic pipe called “Bionax”. It is easy to handle and is less expensive than ductile iron. Bionax comes out of Canada. After waiting as long as we could, we had to switch our plans to ductile iron to stay within the Highway’s schedule. Even the

ductile was difficult to secure. At the start of the project, we encountered a lot of ground water. We expected this and were prepared to deal with it. The trenches were very unstable. We had our trench boxes to keep us safe. But cave-ins were frequent. Then, just as we thought we had a handle on things we ran into two large boulders that our equipment couldn’t handle. We had to bring in larger equipment and using a wrecking ball to reduce the size of the boulders

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