TAMPA, Fla. — As the city of Tampa continues to work to improve its wastewater infrastructure, crews took time Tuesday morning to conduct a smoke test in neighborhoods in hopes of finding flaws with sewer system pipes.
The test started at 10 a.m. in the neighborhoods of Armenia Terrace, Four Lands and Al Dana Park – which are all located to the north of Sligh Avenue, south of West Violet Street, East of N. Himes Avenue and west of N. Rome Avenue.
Smoke testing is an effective and cheap way to find defects in the existing wastewater system, Tampa's Wastewater Department Director Eric Weiss explained.
For the testing, a contractor set up a "big blower" over an existing manhole in the street and blew non-toxic smoke into the wastewater system – which Weiss compared to a fog machine at a rock concert.
"It doesn't hurt anything, it doesn't smell, doesn't leave any residue and ideally that smoke should come out of the roofs of the businesses and homes at their roof vent," he explained. "So if you see that, [there are] no defects."
But if it comes out anywhere else, the director said that's likely a sign of flaws like broken pipes, drains connected to wastewater or plumbing hazards.
According to Weiss, it's important to find the location of the defects because that's where rainwater or groundwater gets into the city's wastewater system and causes several issues:
- Rainwater eventually gets into the wastewater system and finds its way down all the way to the wastewater treatment plant.
- The city incurs additional operational costs such as chemicals and electricity to treat that water before it's passed on to residents.
- Water leaked in can take up all the capacity of the wastewater system and can cause a wastewater overflow out of the manholes, into the streets and find its way into the waterways in Tampa.
"It really could be a public health hazard for the residents, their families and the environment," Weiss explained.
The city of Tampa has been doing smoke testing for around 15-20 years with how easily it can be done throughout neighborhoods, according to the director.
