Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1883-10-15

too little grade 70 make themselves cleduslns
as now constructed, especially If the house
| drainage were allowed to discharge into them
without the interpretation of cesspools-which
| it should be our prime object to get rid of.
And with such cesspools our sewers are gen.
orally too high to get satisfactory oveifi Nv
into them.
Dwell, then, could we not get good drain
age by having a reservoir sufficiently deep at
the lower side of the city from which the
| sewage could be pumped, and start the re-
construction of our sewers from that, so as
to give them good grades and the necessary
depths?
Ayes. but not without going to very
considerable depth, and at an immense cost
for a complete system OF sewerage for the
entire city. Sewers to be perfectly self-
velocity to the sewage flowing in them of
about three feet per second. This is not at
all attsinable with Us by the method you
suggest, except at so great a cost as to make
it utterly impracticable.
Q.-What, then. would be your plan for
overcoming the difficulties which ara to be
met with?
Al cannot now give you my plan in de-
tail, but will explain so much az will serve
to make it plain. 1 should employ what is
known as Shones pneumatic sewerage sys-
tenn. By this system the difficulty of OBJ
taiaing proper grades would be overcome by
the use of compressed air. and in manner
as follows: The city would be divided into
districts, comprising say eight blocks each.
We should have in the city by such district
ing about thirty-fve sewerage districts, in
each of which the sewage arrangements
would be entirely independent of ell the
rest, except for supply of compressed air
and common outlet pipes. At the center of
each such district would be placed what is
called an ejector. This ejector would be
placed deep down in the ground, and
SO that all the sewers of the dis
trict would have q good fall toward
it. The electors are made of various
forms and sizes. The one most commonly
used is a cylindrical. shaped vessel, having an
inlet and an outlet pipe. The sewage from a
district would flow into such ejector by gray
itation. The instant it becomes filed an au-
tomato arrangement, worked by the rising
| sewage. opens a valve connected with a pipe
conveying compressed air to the ejector.
With the opening of the valve the compressed
air rushes into the ejector above the surface
of the sewage contained therein, and, press.
ing down upon the sewage, forces it out and
drives it to such outlet as is provided. The
instant the contents of the ejector are dis
charged, the sewage falling below certain
st the same instant another valve is opened,
allowing the compressed air in the ejector to
escape, when the ejector is in condition for
being filed again. In the inlet and outlet
pipes are ball valves. The instant the ejector
is filed and the compressed air rushes into it,
the valve in the inlet pipe is closed, prevent.
ing the sewage from flowing back into the
sewer the valve in the outlet. pipe is
opened, permitting the sewage to escape.
When the ejsctor is emptied the outlet
| pipe valve closes, preventing the sewage that
has been forced out from returning; the in
| let pipe valve opens, permitting the contents
of the sewers to again fill the ejector. Thus,
as L have shown, each ejsctor is filed and
emptied, hour after hour, automatically and
continuously as fast as the sewage flows to it
no attention whatever is required, and for
months at time no inspection even would
be needed, as there are no complicated work
ing parts to get out of order, the whole ar
rangement be rtrong and simple, and always
ready for work as long as the compressed air
| is provided. Compressed air would be pro-
vided as follows At some central point ma
chiuery for COMPRISING air would be erected
also receiver for containing supply Of the
compressed air to BIZ drawn upon as needed
From this central point pipes for conveying
the compressed air would be laid connecting
the receiver with the various electors. These
air pipes would not need to be of great size,
as the friction of air is much less than that of
water. and can be passed at a high velocity
through pipes with but little loss of power.
From each ejector, as above described, pipes
for conveying the sewage to an outlet would
be laid. Not separate pipe from each
ejector to the outlet, but connecting with
each other and convergipg to common out
let, enlarging gradually as the quantity of
sewage contributed increased.
Q.-ln the system OF sewerage you have
described is any provision to be made fer
| flushing?
| A-Yes. At the head of each branch
sewer there would be placed flush tank, to
contain about 200 gallons, and 90 arranged as
to be filed at least oncs in twenty -four hours.
When so filed the contents would be dis.
charged automatically by means of syphon.
The entire 200 gallons being dumped 10 a
| body into the head of the saver would fill it
nearly full, giving q good flush and CON-
pletely cleaning it at least once every twenty
four hours,
| Q.-Oi what benefit is such flushing
A.-The flushing washes out such solid ma,
terial as, during the time since the last flush,
has settled in the sewers, the or.
ganic portion of which would, unless
removed, soon enter into a state of
decomposition. Such decomposing matters
within the sewers are the principal source of
what is popularity known as sewer gas. OF
{ course in system of sewerage such as this
| there would be a much less accumulation of
sewer gas than in one 10 which there are long
| lines of sewers and large mains, all connected
| together 80 as to form complete network Of
| foul air distributors throughout the entire
| city. With the Shone system the lines of
gravitating sewer pipes in each district would
be separate from those of all the others, ESQ
that foul air or disease germs from one part
of the city could not be carried TO another
part by means of the sewers. Another ad-
vautsg, in favor of the Shone system is that
only small pipes are needed for the gravitat-
ing sewers, thus materially reducing the air
space in the sewers in proportion to the vol.
uEe of sewage, making the movement of the
air in the sewers and the ventilation of them
q much easier matter. Again, the electors
can be 30 arranged that after each discharge
of their contents the (fresh) compressed air
which has done the work of ejecting the sew
age will escape with strong rush directly
into the lower end of the sewers of the dis
trict, forcing the foul air towards and out of
such ventilating pipes as are provided.
Q-You say the cost would be about
$50 600 What would be the principal items
covered by that amount?
A. Boilers, furnsces, machinery for com.
pressing air, q receiver for holding supply
OF compressed air, and building; pipes for
conveying the compressed air to the electors,
and pipes through which the sewage would
be forced from the electors to the outlet.
Q,-You say that there would afterwards be
an additional cost of $50 TO $40 to each lot of
40x160 feet. For what would such expend-
iture be made?
A.-For the sewer pipes through the alleys,
for msn-holes. hush.tsnks, and, for each dis
trict of eight blocks, an ejector.
q As this seems remarkably low, can you
| tell why it is so!
A.-Principally because, ss only compsr.
stively small territory is tributary to each
e1ector, long lengths of sewer are avoided,
snd it is necessary to use only small pipes,
seven-inch for mains and fve-inch for house
drains being the largest that would be needed.
Q.-Supposirg your plan Tor sewerage was
adopted. what would be done with the old
sewers,
A.-They would generally be retained for
carrying off the rsi1water drainage the same
as as present, and by the same outlet,
Q-What outlet would you give. or what
disposition would you make of the sewage on
your plsn?
Alt can be disposed of in four ways-by
l., L. i