Root problem eliminated on lakeside easement

Problem / A neighborhood in Liberty, Missouri, had a heavily root-bound easement. Access was difficult, as the 1,280-foot line traveled across the backyards of houses situated on a lake. The line was laid unevenly, which gave roots more opportunity to invade. There were continual blockages, with several houses experiencing backups. The municipality put the easement on a saw, cut and flush routine program, conducted twice a year. However, they were called out for emergencies in between the maintenance visits as well, as there were constant problems.  

Solution / Duke’s Root Control applied RazorRooter II to the entire easement. The hose released and sprayed the foam in all directions, allowing it to adhere to roots and penetrate through wye connections to kill roots, without harming trees or other aboveground vegetation. 

Result / “A few months after the foam was applied in January, we ran our CCTV through the pipe, and the roots had decayed, like you see cigarette ashes crumble,” says Gary Harter, operations manager for the city of Liberty. “Our camera made it right through the pipe. We haven’t had any blockages since. This has saved our city a tremendous amount on time lost wages and expenses. We can rededicate the time we were spending to different areas of the town.” 800-447-6687; www.dukes.com

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Town finds easy solution for root intrusion issues

Problem / The town of Brandon, Vermont, dealt with continuing root intrusion issues in an 8-inch gravity sewer that originated on Pearl Street, and runs along Maple Street. The route has a couple of Crimson King maple trees that the town considers aesthetically valuable, but have large and far-reaching root structures belowground. 

Solution / RootX was deposited in the manhole at the end of the line on Pearl Street along with about 20 gallons of water. “We treat the line without having to spend about half an hour with the rodding machine and/or 15 minutes with the flusher machine dragged behind the truck,” says Stive Cijka, town of Brandon chief operator. “We have 12 river crossings and many are not in a spot to drive a truck up to with a flushing machine, but we can always carry a 40-pound box of RootX to the manhole to treat the line where our machinery cannot reach.”

Result / “There are only two of us on the crew to maintain six pump stations, 22 miles of sewer line, and a 700,000-gpd design extended aeration wastewater plant,” Cijka says. “Being I am 61 and my assistant is 55, we strive to work smarter not harder. The town manager has allowed us to buy a small pallet of RootX at a time to treat a substantial area, so in approximately 4.5 years we would have treated the whole system once.” 800-844-4974; www.rootx.com