Sewer Rehabilitation

Cleveland Utilities’ ultimate goal through their sewer rehabilitation efforts is to have a reliable, water-tight sanitary sewer system, with no type of inflow by roof drains, storm drains, basement drains or infiltration from broken sewer pipes and leaking sewer manholes resulting in wet-weather overflows. Cleveland Utilities is responsible for the rehabilitation of 378 miles of sanitary sewers that range in pipe sizes of 6 inch diameter through 54 inch diameter and 8,476 sanitary sewer manholes. The type of pipe materials used in our sewer system will vary from clay, concrete, cast iron , ductile iron, high density polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride ( PVC ) depending upon the era in which the pipeline had been constructed. The manholes in our system will vary from brick and mortar manholes to the pre-cast concrete manholes that are utilized in today’s sewer construction.

Cleveland Utilities has 3 full time crews devoted to inspection, maintenance and rehabilitation of the sanitary sewer system. The television crew will select a section of pipe line and TV it to visually locate any broken or defective pipe. The TV crew will document all of the service tees for future reference as the TV work is performed. The rehabilitation crews will take the information gathered by the TV inspection and excavate down to the sewer main and perform point repairs by replacing the broken section of pipe. Annually the television inspection crew will TV and clean approximately 40,000 L.F. of sewer main.

Cleveland Utilities also performs rehabilitation of the system by bidding 1 to 2 rehabilitation contracts annually. During these projects contractors will typically rehabilitate 10,000 to 20,000 feet of sewer mains, 150 sewer services and 75 to 100 manholes. Between Cleveland Utilities and the rehabilitation crews will complete an average of 50 sewer main point repairs, rehab 180 sewer service lines from the sewer main in the street to the customers’ property line and rehab or replace 100 sewer manholes annually. Cleveland Utilities also raises an average of 150 manholes annually that have been paved over during resurfacing by the City and County.

Cleveland Utilities is continually looking at new methods of trenchless technology and ways to upgrade and better rehabilitate their sanitary sewer system. Cleveland Utilities coordinates our sewer rehabilitation work with the Public Works Department, so we can make any necessary repairs prior to the streets being resurfaced. Through Cleveland Utilities’ sanitary sewer rehabilitation efforts we not only comply with the requirements of the Tennessee Department of Water Pollution Control, but provide a safe and clean environment for both the people and wildlife in the Cleveland and Bradley County area in which to work and live.