Another visit

On Monday, Nov. 17th Kevin Atkinson returned to the golf course to look at possible renovations for the 2009 season and beyond. Currently we are looking at improvements to the 3rd and 7th tee boxes regarding the retaining walls. Kevin has been hired to outline a master plan for the golf course.

Finishing touches

Now that the job is almost done the contractor is using quick-dry cement for a preventative seal around the intake pipe. A final grading around the well and the project is done until the spring time.

When the snow melts we will continue with a concrete pad for the building and bring in power. Then the pumps will be placed and finally the building will be constructed last.

Setting the intake screen

Pictured here on the left is the intake screen connected to the 24" HDPE pipe. The screen sits on a level concrete pad. The screen is 1/2 inch mesh that keeps out fish and larger debris from getting into the well. Before the water is pumped throughout the golf course all water will pass through a finer filter.

After the first week...

By the end of the day Friday November 7th we were almost there. The weather was turning worse for the weekend ahead. As you can see here the new intake pipe has been installed just past the old pipe and screen. Next up on the agenda for Monday, de-water, set the concrete pad for the screen, attach the screen to the pipe and be done!

Onto the intake

If you haven't seen or dealt with C905 PVC pipe let me tell you about it. It's large, heavy and just a monster to work with. We used joint restraints just as a back up, but I don't think that stuff is moving anywhere 14 feet underground.

We used about 70 feet of it along with a 45 degree angle to get around the current pump station and under the current mainline that we were crossing.

Fortunately we had no issues with the current system. Ironically the contractor hit a 3" pipe that on our as-builts were supposed to be in a slightly different location and a 6" pipe. After fixing that and back filling it was on to the HDPE and the intake screen.

Setting the well

This proved to be a very interesting part of the project. It took patience especially in the cold. The snowy, cold and windy weather did not help however by Wednesday afternoon the well was complete.

Groundwater

As we suspected, ground water was going to be an issue. It was very difficult to keep the water out, keep the hole small and have the well level. However after two days and four attempts it was finally accomplished.

The contractor did an excellent job and got it right on. On a side note, during the digging we noticed a large amount of asphalt, pipe and other old items that was removed. It seems that this site was some sort of dump area. Who knows how long ago.

Deliveries

Tuesday morning, November 4th (Election Day). The 24" intake pipe was delivered along with all of our joints needed.

The concrete well is 6' in diameter and is 15 feet deep. There is about a 3 foot drop in elevation from the end of the pipe that sits in the pond to the well. The well has a 24" boot that the PVC C905 can fit into. We used about 70 feet of the C905 with joint restraints. The HDPE pipe came with a welded flange to attach to the PVC. (pictured above). The HDPE was placed in the water because it does not degrade from UV rays.

What about the fish?

While draining the ponds for the wet well project we had to maintain our fish. In this picture on the right Tony Giroux is placing one of almost 30 fish rescued into a bucket. Justin Gompf would then release the fish to bigger ponds or the river.

This projet also gave us the opportunity to clean some of the ponds and make some improvements to drain pipes.

From the beginning

The excavating began on Monday, November 3rd. The contractor delivered their Komatsu 270 the week before in preparation to dig on Monday morning. Carefully the excavator made its way to the site through the golf course. The contractor also had a large front end loader, trailer with supplies and a couple of trucks.

They were able to get all people and equipment into place and begin to dig by mid-day. After marking off the exact location to dig the well, the excavating began.

By 3pm the hole was 9 feet deep and they had met groundwater. I had figured as much since that was the level of the river, not too far from the site. The ponds had been drained significantly to reduce the amount of water pressure. With only a couple of hours left in the day they had decided to call it a day and begin the de-watering process in the morning.

Winter

Well it is officially winter here in Vail. We have finished the wet well. I know I have not written anything in a while but I have lots to tell. Many pictures and descriptions about what transpired through all of the muck, mud and snow. It's finally done and we can move on to bigger and better things.

I am off to Dallas for a little more research for irrigation pump stations. I write lots more when I return.

Irrigation begins

Well Monday marked the very beginning of the new irrigtion system. A 9 foot hole was dug before getting to water today. They have 7 more feet to go before setting the well. The well structure will be delivered tomorrow. They stopped there with the plans to de-water on tuesday morning. The weather was dry and nice for digging.

Almost there

Now I know that you all have been waiting for this well to begin. I have been receiving phone calls about the empty lakes and what is happening with the fish. Fortunately we have not had to move any fish yet because there has been enough water for them to survive right now. This coming week the one of the ponds will end up dry and from there we will move any fish to any of the other ponds along the course.

Oh yeah the digging, right, well it's something I am getting used to and still not appreciating, however many contractors around these parts are on their own schedule. I didn't find out until Monday morning that they wouldn't be coming until the following week. Well if anything is positive here, it gives us a little more time to prepare.

Now the staff is gone for the season, another great year and I hope to have many of them back for the following year. A lot of that depends on visas. But that is a different blog for a different time.

Daylight savings today and also another addition to the Coal Bucket Classic. This tournament was begun in 1968. It is a 9 or 10 hole tournament to mark the end of the season. Food and beer after the round and another chance for the winner to mark their name and score on the bucket. It should be a good one. The weather looks OK. I should have more tonight on the blog.