The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-07-15
AS BAD AS LAST YEAR
Captain Hooker's Device for Re-
lieving Passaie Water of
Its EMBELLISHMENTS.

serving citizens within the past lew weeks
| that the Passaic water again has the ter
rible taste it had last summer, but the
fearful odor that compelled people to ab-
stain from its use then has been abated
to some extent this year,
The absence of the disagreeable smell
may be attributed to a splendid device
arranged at the Belleyille reservoir by
Street and Water Commissioner Hooker
under the supervision of Chief Engineer
Miller.
Some time ago ''The Jersey City News
told of Commissioner Hooker's plan to
build aerators at the reservoir. That
plan has been carried out, and is prov
| ing even a greater success than Mr..
Hooker anticipated. Under the old ar
| rangement at Belleville the two pipes
through which the water was pumped
from the wells into the reservoir were
so constructed that they discharged in
each case two feet under the surface.
The result was that the water was in
constant state of agitation from the
time it was drawn from the wells until
deposited in the reservoirs at High
Service 1t was given no chance to set
tle and it was practical 1mposslblllty
for the air or sunlight to reach it,
ed on the smaller discharge pipe, which
empties about 100000 gallons daily into
the Belleville reservoir. He raised the
end of the pipe by adding a length of
pipe measuring five feet. That brought
it three feet above the surface of the
water To the top of the pipe he next
adjusted an aerating table, fourteen feet
in diameter, filled with thousands of
holes AS the wa poured out over
the table it ran through the sieve-iike
holes and was exposed to sun and air.
The experiment was so successful that
the Commissioner decided to give the
table an elevation of five feet above
the surface of the water, thus giving
the .sscreened" water a. greater fall and
more opportunity to purify itself by the
exposure to the sun and air. The adj
ditional fall was satisfactory, and work
ed so well that it was next decided to
place table about forty feet square
on top of the main discharge PIPE,
through which 100000 gallons are fore
ed daily. The large table was COM
pleted some weeks ago and the result
is gratifying.
tHoOKERs FALLS"
The Commissioner has practically es-
tablished a little "Fallsy of ais own in
the northeast corner of the reservoir.
The spray from the aerat,ng tables is
caught up by the wind, t-.-d when the
sun is shining hundreds of reflections
similar to a rainbow may be seen around
the tables. One only has to stand on the
side of the tables with the wind blowing
in his direction to appreciate what
service they are doing. The smell from
the water as it rushes through the
screens is fearful, but it is a satisfaction
to know that it is being blown ce@ and
that the water is full of life and ac
tivity when it empties into the reser-
voir.
All of the city officials have inspected
the tables, and many property owners
have examined them and declared that
they certainly materially assist in maxi
ing the water fit for consumption. Ev-
cry gallon drawn from the river passes
over those tables and is given a sun
bath and is exposed to the wind before
it again enters the pipes to cross the
meadows.
The tables cost only a small sum and
the expense of erecting and building
them was paid for out of funds saved by
Commissioner Hooker in the management
of the pumping station. The tables are
not expected to make the water pure
or improve its taste. They are simply to
do away as much as possible with its
fearful odor At the pumping station on
Saturday everything was in shipshape.
There were no men standing around with
their hands in their pockets waiting for
work to come to them Its case of
work here now or get out" said one of
the employees. Acting upon a. suggestion
of Engineer Miller's, Commissioner Hook
er has made another great improvement
| at Belleville and one which had to- to be
the engines on the north side of the road
were built they We're set full against
some machines had forced the wall out
of plumb and it was only kept in its
place by wooden beams. The workmen
were in constant danger of having the
building fall down on them. Recently
| the laborers at the works Were set TO
| the mortar was removed a new wall was
| built in the rear of the engine room;
a new steam conveyor built free ana ana
are in a condition and more play is given
'Ae '9tsi aiNoflHER S5ii1IiHFT SAVING DEVICE.
An engin sering device which saves
| missioner Hookers, is also in evidence.
Wat Water sess used in in operating the engines
| has been pumped first to the reservoir
and then drawn off again for the use
of the engines. Engineer Miller could
| see no good reason for pumping water
up hill and then drawing it Off for the
use of the engines and he accordingly
4
under the engine room and the million
gallons of water that are used daily by
fhe engines are sucked from the wells
without an ounce Of additional pressure
being placed upon the engines. All of
these small improvements count. This
one in particular as it gives the city one
million gallons a day more to use than
heretofore.
the station is that the mains across the
meadows are too small: Engineer Miller
is compelled to stop the engines eight
hours a day because of the inadequate
carving capacity of the mains. High Ser
vice will stand all he can pump, but the
pipes across the meadows won't carry it;
The new lot of 10000 tons of soft coal
is now being slowed at the station.
Commissioner. Hooker saved the city
there win be q saving of $1,000 more, or
S3S 900 in ALL That sum saved on one item
| IS not to be sneered at by taxpayers.
There are hundred. or more improve
made at Belleville. He spends most Of
| improvements. He is now trying to get
rid of one of the old Worthington pumps
| chat eats M eleven tons of coal in
pumping 100000 gallons Of water, En-