• Contact Us|
  • Terms & Conditions|
  • Team Members
  • Products
    • Product Catalog
    • Ductile Iron Pipe
    • Request Product Information
    MJ Mechanical Joint

    View the different joints and sizes we offer for ductile iron pipe.

  • Learning Center
    • Specifications
    • Submittal Sheets
    • Installation Guides
    • Downloadable Tip Sheets
    • Iron Strong Blog
    • Training Opportunities
    • Archived Catalogs
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Videos
    • Pocket Engineer
    DIP Production

    We provide all the necessary product-related information to our customers.

  • Sales & Support
    • Sales Team
    • Distributors
    • Treatment Plant Sales
    • Customer Service
    • Sales Operations
    DIP MJ Joint

    Our sales team strives to exceed customer expectations every day.

  • Corporate Responsibility
    • Code of Conduct
    • Environment
    • Health & Safety
    • Community
    • Awards

    A clear vision from our leaders, places environment, health and safety at the core of our business.

  • About Us
    • Company History
    • Executive Team
    • Locations
    • Associations
    • Contact Us
    McWane Ductile Iron Pipe

    We are a proud and experienced manufacturer of ductile iron pipe products.

  • Communications
    • Publications
    • McWane News Articles
    • Press Releases
    • Media Contacts
    Ductile Iron Pipe

    We strive to keep our team members, customers, and vendors informed of all happenings at the company.

  • Careers
  • Home
  • Learning Center
  • Iron Strong Blog
  • Ask The Ditch Doctor - Seeing Eye to Eye with The Inspector's Camera
Back to Blog

Ask The Ditch Doctor - Seeing Eye to Eye with The Inspector's Camera

By Jerry Regula, ENV SP, NACE CT   11/06/2020  In Installation Technical

Dear Ditch Doctor,  

The county engineer is requesting that we dig up and replace sections of a newly installed Ductile iron pipeline as a result of comments or notations made by an internal video inspection camera operator. I've looked over the “issues” he's noted and can't for the life of me make out what he's talking about. 

Candy Striping? Voids in the Lining? Gaps in the Joint? WHAT??? It all looks just fine to me. This seems like standard stuff that appears to bother this operator more than the others who have obviously seen similar things in other lines we've built. 

However, those other folks said nothing. I've attached a bit of the inspection video below. What should I do from here? This could result in a whole lot of money spent and in a real disruption to newly paved roads for no good reason. 

Sincerely, 

Spinning in Springfield 

Engineers inspect a TR Flex pipeline.

Dear Spinning, 

Unfortunately, your situation is not so unusual these days. It seems with the growing use of internal inspection cameras on pipelines over the past decade or so, there is just as much misunderstanding of what people are actually seeing versus what really is or is not there.

Bright Lights Cause Big Shadows

The bright lights used by these cameras and the confined spaces in which they are used, along with curved surfaces everywhere, is a perfect recipe for the birth of unintentional misinformation. This is especially true with the small diameter pipes commonly used in many water and sewer systems.

The bottom line is that many camera operators have little or no experience, from a manufacturing perspective, with the products they inspect. This lack of knowledge makes it difficult for them to decipher real problems from false perception.

 
wizard of oz sewer video_1

Stripes and Spiraling are Normal

The "candy stripes" that you mentioned, also called spiraling in the paint or lining, are nothing more than the nature of the beast. Refracted light in a closed space can alter the view of the same thing on different surfaces. In this case, sewer flow remnant striping. Spiraling can be seen in every centrifugally cement-lined pipe, given the right combination of lighting conditions and camera travel speed. 

You see, the cement lining is deposited in the pipe by a screw auger traveling the length of the interior while the pipe spins slowly. It is then set in place and smoothed out by rotating the pipe at much higher speeds once the cement delivery lance is removed. This compacts the cement lining to a remarkable degree yet does not diminish the fact that it was placed initially "like a long ribbon."  This is the same situation for the seal coat inside and the pipe wall itself.

Should a Ductile iron pipe ever fail (under ridiculously high pressure, etc.), it would fail on the helix (along its unseen seam). This would be very similar to a Pillsbury™ dough cardboard container when you pop it along the visible seam. That's because the molten iron is delivered into the spinning mold inside a centrifugal casting machine. 

Don't even get me started on things some call "voids" or "misses" within a pipe. When dug up and examined, these are typically no more than meaningless surface variations in localized places along the lining. These variations cannot be avoided at times, given the cement's fluid nature when placed and set in the pipe.

Save Your Relationship with Your Inspector

To help your bottom line and preserve your working relationship with those who govern your projects, I would suggest involving an outside professional. Such assistance is typically available free of charge from the pipe or fitting manufacturer with whom you deal. That person can help you politely explain the "that's not what you're seeing" situations to the inspector, the engineer, or others. Ask your local salesperson or supplying distributor. They can get you in touch with the person you need. 

Sincerely, 

The Ditch Doctor 

Check Out All Our Digital Offerings

  • More articles and videos from our Iron Strong Blog
  • Training Opportunities with McWane Ductile
  • The McWane Pocket Engineer
  • Engage with us on LinkedIn
  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter

Subscribe to the Iron Strong Blog

Share on social media

  • Print this Article

Jerry Regula, ENV SP, NACE CT

Jerry Regula, "JR" is a product engineer with McWane Ductile. Jerry’s responsibility is to provide technical support for water professionals at all levels including engineers, private water companies, contractors, municipalities, and water districts.

Jerry has been with McWane Ductile for more than 30 years, starting on the ground floor. Jerry has been involved in nearly all facets of the foundry, providing him with extensive experience in manufacturing, installation, and design of ductile iron water products.

Jerry is a NACE Certified Corrosion Technician, Envision Specialist, and member of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Jerry enjoys spending time with his church where he is a speaker and treasurer, as well as spending time with his wife Susan and their two daughters, Katelyn and Shannon on their farm in Ohio.

“Many people do not realize how their water gets to them or how blessed we are to have clean drinking water,” says Regula. “I am honored as a water professional to do my part in ‘Building Iron Strong Utilities for Generations.’”

Jerry’s favorite quote: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

jerry.regula@mcwaneductile.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jerry-regula-6a87b8138/

  • Learning Center
  • Specifications
  • Submittal Sheets
  • Installation Guides
  • Downloadable Tip Sheets
  • Iron Strong Blog
  • Training Opportunities
  • Archived Catalogs
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Videos
  • Pocket Engineer
  • Blog
  • Categories
  • Environmental & Safety
  • Installation
  • Our Company
  • Products
  • Services
  • Technical

Careers

Apply or view job opportunities

Search Careers

McWane Pocket Engineer

McWane Pocket Engineer

The one tool you never want to be without

Learn More

Buy American

Your trusted provider of guaranteed American-made waterworks products.

Learn More

Recognized as a proud member

  • ISI Member
  • DIPRA Logo
  • American Water Works Association
  • Water and Sewer Distributors of American WASDA
  • National Association of Water Companies
  • Water Environment Federation WEF
  • Products|
  • Learning Center|
  • Sales & Support|
  • Corporate Responsibility|
  • About Us|
  • Communications|
  • Careers

McWane Corporate

  • About|
  • Our Businesses|
  • Responsibility|
  • Environment|
  • Safe Operations|
  • Communications|
  • Careers|
  • Multimedia Library
Learn about McWane’s Environmental Focus

© 2021 McWane Ductile. All rights reserved

Privacy Policy | California Privacy Notice | Terms & Conditions | California Transparency in Supply Chain Disclosure | Sitemap | Contact Us

  • Products
  • Product Catalog
  • Ductile Iron Pipe
  • Request Product Information
  • Learning Center
  • Specifications
  • Submittal Sheets
  • Installation Guides
  • Downloadable Tip Sheets
  • Iron Strong Blog
  • Training Opportunities
  • Archived Catalogs
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Videos
  • Pocket Engineer
  • Sales & Support
  • Sales Team
  • Distributors
  • Treatment Plant Sales
  • Customer Service
  • Sales Operations
  • Corporate Responsibility
  • Code of Conduct
  • Environment
    • Protecting the Environment
      • Our Environmental Legacy
      • Investments
      • Environmental Management System
      • ISO & State Certifications
      • Environmental Excellence
      • Pollution Prevention Challenge
    • Sustainability for Generations
      • Sustainable Products
      • Sustainable Operations
  • Health & Safety
    • Culture of Safety
    • EHS Policy
    • McWane EHS Program
    • Ergo Cup
    • ISN & Contractor Safety
    • EHS Awards
  • Community
    • McWane Commitment
    • Partnerships
    • Community Advisory Panel
    • Charitable Giving Guidelines
  • Awards
  • About Us
  • Company History
  • Executive Team
  • Locations
  • Associations
  • Publications
  • Contact Us
  • Communications
  • McWane News Articles
  • Press Releases
  • Media Contacts
  • Careers
  • Team Members