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Photos of Water and Wastewater Construction

This blog provides general information about what to expect during construction.

This is not comprehensive and may not include all equipment or construction situations.

Water and Wastewater Terms

WATER

Service Lines are the pipes between the water main under the street and the water meter. Sizes are ¾-inch or 1-inch in diameter at the meter box.

Water Mains (also distribution mains) are the pipes under the street that serve immediate customers and neighborhoods. Sizes range 4 to 12-inch diameter pipe along public streets or appropriate rights-of-way used for distributing water to individual customers.

Transmission Mains are the pipes under the street that serve several neighborhoods and zip codes. Sizes range from 16-inches in diameter to 72-inches.

WASTEWATER

Laterals convey wastewater (sewage) from an individual building to a gravity sewer pipe in the road right of way or a Charlotte Water easement.

Manholes are the access points for inspecting and maintaining wastewater pipes.

Low-Pressure Sanitary Sewer (LPSS) helps push wastewater away from properties near steep and uneven topography (usually near lakes and creeks).  Properties with this special need also have specialized maintenance needs. 

Trunk receives waste from laterals and conveys wastewater under the street or behind buildings along easements.

Interceptor is a large pipe that gathers wastewater from other trunks or collector pipes to convey to a wastewater treatment plant. Sizes range from 8-inches in diameter to 30-inches.

Relief Sewer is a large pipe to assist the existing interceptor when flows are reaching capacity. These pipes help prevent sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs) especially during heavy rain events. Sizes range from 12-inches in diameter to 78-inches.

Force Main & Pump Stations (also known as lift stations) pump neighborhood(s) wastewater from one creek/drainage basin to another through force mains to gravity flow sewer lines so that it can be conveyed to a wastewater treatment plant.

Project Types

  • 2 utility crewmen wearing yellow safety vests and hard hats preparing to install a very large concrete transmission water main valve
    Capital Investment Project – 96-inch transmission water main valve
  • utility crewman wearing yellow safety vest and blue hard hat next to a grey backhoe helps lower a blue pvc pipe into a dirt trench
    Water Main Replacement – Crews installing new pipe to replace older pipe.
  • 2 utility crewmen wearing yellow safety vest and hard hats examine a square hole and shaft that has been cut into a roadway, A ladder emerges from the shaft and is flagged with orange and white traffic cones
    Water rehabilitation – Crew cleaning underground pipe while customers are served with an above ground pipe.
  • Utility worker wearing a yellow safety vest with the Charlotte Water logo watches an expandable fabric water pipe unrolled from the back of a white truck and lowered into the ground via tall scaffolding
    Crews will be on scaffolding installing a sock-like lining inside an existing pipe through manholes. The sock-like liner will extend the wastewater pipe’s service life minimizing construction in the area.
  • 2 utility technicians wearing yellow safety vests and orange hard hats walk along the dirt of a construction site holding a set of white schematics
    Donated Project – Project inspector inspecting developer funded projects
  • Utility technician with red shirt, orange safety vest and blue hard hat looks down at concrete meter box in the dirt with a black meter device installed inside
    New Service – Meter and meter box installed for a new customer.
 

Capital Investment Plan (CIP)

Projects identified and budgeted through the Capital Investment Plan. These include projects to serve growing service areas, enhancements at water and wastewater treatment plants and other facilities, and to reline/replace old pipes. Size of equipment and construction zones will vary.

Pipe Replacement

Replacing the water main and/or service pipes (between the water main under the street to the water meter) to reduce future leaks/repairs due to age. Typical construction zone is a few street blocks.

Water Rehabilitation

Crews clean inside of 50+ year old pipes in the oldest neighborhoods. A temporary above-ground drinking water pipe may be installed.  Above-ground water pipes serve customers while the water pipe under the street is cleaned and relined with an epoxy solution. All pipes are tested for water quality. A typical construction area is several street blocks.

Wastewater Rehabilitation

Crews clean inside the pipe and install a

sock-like lining inside an existing pipe through manholes. Think of it as a new pipe inside the old pipe. The construction area may be in the street or the backyards.

Developer ‘Donated’ Projects (Installation Development Services, IDS)

Developers install new water and wastewater pipes and then donate to CLTWater.
CLTWater inspects pipe installation and tests pipes.

New Service Tap, Street Main Extension

Customers currently on well, septic, or developing a vacant lot can apply for water or wastewater service if it is within 1,000 feet of their property. Extending the pipe to serve a new customer may take months, depending on the location of the existing infrastructure and required permits.

What To Expect Before Construction

2 surveyors wearing yellow safety vests stand next to a yellow survey tripod and a gps indicator on a pole

Surveying

Survey crews determine the required depth for pipes by calculating the elevations in the area. Stakes, brightly colored flagging, and paint marks may appear in your yard or on the street after a survey crew has worked.

Utility worker wearing an orange safety vest and white hard hat bends down to examine a small, round red machine sitting on the payment

Smoke Testing

Crews may blow smoke into wastewater pipes to identify potential pipe cracks (where smoke escapes). Customers will be notified in advance.

Yellow water drilling rig drills into dirt path next to a softball field

Soil Boring

Subcontractors may conduct subsurface investigations (also known as test pit or soft dig) to assess existing utilities as well as soil and rock conditions along the pipe alignment.

Utility technician wearing an orange safety vest uses a gps device to mark a spot on pavement

Locates (Spray Painting)

Utilities spray paint where fiber optic, gas, and water pipes to inform contractors before  they dig.

Recently turned earth pathway next to a black construction screen

Silt Fence

Silt fencing prevents soil /sediment from washing away.

Large white crane with cable and tackle lowers a large block behind a green construction screen at a job site

Fencing

Security and privacy fencing may be installed.

Small blue flag with Charlotte water logo marks a water line spraypainted blue on grass

Ribbons, Stakes, & Spray Paint

The project area will have various markings along the pipe alignment.  Trees may be labeled differently. Please talk to the project manager or inspector to confirm what markings may mean for the project.

Yellow excavator with a stump grinder attachment chews up a large tree stump

Clearing

The easement and temporary construction easement will be cleared of trees (with some exceptions) and restored to grass after pipe installation. CLTWater will preserve trees if possible.

A round, white concrete water utility access with a brown metal round cap sits on a large area of dirt

Easement

The easement for a project will vary based on size of pipe, required depth, and other factors.

Dozens of sections of large light green pipes being stacked by a yellow CAT excavator next to a red flatbed truck

Pipe Delivery and Storage

Pipe, equipment, soil and other materials are stored in the construction easement or road right-of-way.

1 of 2 very large sections of black pipe is lifted off of a truck flatbed as crewman with orange safety vest and hard hat helps guide.

48-inch drinking water pipe delivered to a construction area.

Sections of dark grey pipes laid out on grass next to a suburban street.

6-inch drinking water pipe along the side of the road during a water pipe replacement project.

What To Expect During Construction

2 yellow excavators with their scoops move backfill dirt along a long pile of dirt next to a large expanse of bright green lawn; in the background is a cityscape against a blue sky and in the foreground, a dark green porta-potty.

Construction Zone

Construction zones will be large enough for excavators and dump trucks to move.

Yellow cat excavator next to a large, dirt lined trench dumps a scoop of dirt into the back of a dark brown dump truck, nearby is a yellow metal septic liner with reinforcement bars sitting on the roadway

Trackhoe & Backhoe
Excavators use a bucket on a hinged boom to remove dirt in the middle of the road for a new 36-inch pipe.

Yellow Deere backhoe on a orange traffic cone lined suburban street is flagged by construction crewman wearing an orange safety vest holding orange traffic sign that says slow

Crews using a backhoe at a water pipe rehabilitation project

Grey and orange robotic macadam cutter with large circular blade sits on a residential street with an orange traffic cone

Asphalt Cutter & Impact Hammer

Equipment used to break or cut asphalt to expose the pipe.

Yellow excavator with drill-head and caterpillar tracks cuts through the macadam on a suburban street blocked by orange traffic cones

 

Utility engineer wearing white hard hat and orange construction vest stands in front of his white truck reviewing schematics maps he's spread out across the truck's hood next to his sunglasses.

Inspectors

CLTWater inspectors will verify that pipes are installed in accordance with the design and assist customers.

White and blue dump truck waits for the yellow backhoe behind it to finish filling it up. Behind both is a construction site in the roadway

Dump Trucks

Several dump trucks may assist with construction to remove and add soil, gravel, etc.

A deep trench cut into the terracotta red earth below a driveway is lined with a brown, metal septic chamber outfitted with re-enforcement rods; a utility crewman wearing yellow safety vest and white hard hat stands at the bottom with an aluminum grey ladder next to him

Trench Box

Trench boxes protect workers from cave-ins while installing, inspecting, or replacing pipes in the trench.

Wastewater Pipe Construction

Streetside in a suburban neighborhood, a large yellow backhoe with a crewman wearing yellow safety vest and white hard hat looks at pile of brown backfill dirt; nearby is a large yellow crane lowering a green section of pipe into a trench

Large Equipment

24-inch wastewater pipe project under a street.

Large yellow, automated dump truck with caterpillar tracks filled with chunks of grey rock, moves from gravel path towards a dirt path overlooking 4 large metal run-off pipes below

Creek Crossing

Contractors may create a safe creek crossing for equipment. Large pipes keep the creek flowing underneath.

3 utility crewmen wearing orange safety vest and blue, yellow and white hard hats work with the help of a large chain to lower a large, grey concrete cap onto a large, grey concrete water junction chamber half-buried in the muddy ground

Manholes

Manholes vary in size depending on the amount of wastewater generated by a community.

Drinking Water Pipe Construction

2 utility technicians wearing orange safety vests and white hard hats stand near a yellow fire hydrant to turn a large metal pole called a key. They are standing on a grassy street corner in a suburban neighborhood with a white utility truck behind them

Valves

Crews may use drinking water valves to temporarily turn off water to a pipe.

4 utility crewmen wearing yellow and orange safety vests and white hard hats test a yellow fire hydrant using a large wrench causing water to pour out of the hydrant and turning a mechanism in the ground with a large steel tool called a key

Fire Hydrant Flushing

Crews may flow hydrants to test or maintain water quality.

Utility technician with red shirt, orange safety vest and blue hard hat looks down at concrete meter box in the dirt with a black meter device installed inside

Meter Box Installation

A new water service installation includes: pipe near the property line, meter, and meter box. The property owner is responsible for connecting plumbing to tailpiece leaving the meter box.

New, yellow fire hydrant, installed into a small dirt trench, sits on black steel piping that connects into the main water system via a steel joint with a red cap

Fire Hydrant Installation or Replacement

Fire hydrants are installed to provide emergency water service.

large yellow excavator with heavy gauge rope attached to its bucket lowers a very large section of white pipe into a trench in the ground, nearby a utility technician wearing a yellow safety vest and white hard hat stands on recently dug rocks guiding the pipe into place by pushing on it

A 72-inch water transmission pipe to serve several neighborhoods.

Construction worker guides a section of black metal pipe lowered by a crane into a dirt trench lined with a rust-colored, metal septic system casement

24-inch drinking water pipe installation.

Utility technician with a hard hat examines a small trench curbside along a suburban street; behind him are a dozen orange traffic cones, a red excavator and a yellow backhoe with a pavement drill; both are driven with crew members with hard hats

6-inch drinking water pipe replacement project, including new service pipes to each water meter.

What Does Tunneling (Boring) Look Like

Bright blue, metal lined construction pit with reinforcement rods is cut into the ground next to a parking lot; a large yellow crane with 2 crewmen work nearby

CLTWater may tunnel under major roads to reduce lane closures. Tunneling requires entry and exit pits. Tunneling takes several months to complete. Some boring operations may be smaller to go under a large tree or driveway.

Section of brown, cylinder underground tunnel digger on a truck flatbed with 2 crewmen standing on top 4 others standing nearby; a large pile of excavated earth is behind them

Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM)

Some tunnel boring machines uses disc cutters to fracture rock.

2 utility crewmembers with hard hats look down into a wood-lined, deep construction pit with a large white section of utility pipe at bottom

Tunnel boring machine at the bottom of the photo.

Technician in brown clothes and tan hard hat stands on a truck flat bed working to affix hooks onto very large section of brown, steel pipe

The pipe is installed inside a metal casing to
protect the pipe, the street, and other infrastructure above the tunnel.

From the perspective of utility tunnel, view of a utility technician standing below ground, wearing a yellow hard hat reviewing plans via cellphone using a white metal cart as a table

View from inside the tunnel looking at the entry pit.

Large white crane with cable and tackle lowers a large block behind a green construction screen at a job site

Cranes may be required to move equipment and dirt.

What Does Rock Blasting Look Like?

5 black, thick, rubber blasting mats are laid on the ground by a blue and yellow backhoe. A large, red metal, V shaped, gravel spreader and 2 utility technicians with orange safety vests ad white hard hats are nearby

CLTWater may contact customers to conduct a pre-blast survey to record building details.

A seismograph monitor records blast vibrations to
verify they are within safe specifications.

Blasting is a standard construction procedure for removing rock when other methods are not effective.

Holes are drilled to insert the dynamite charges into the rock.

Residents may hear a warning horn, a muffled noise, and slight vibration or rumble similar to a slammed door or thunder.

What Does Water Rehabilitation Look Like?

When pipes exceed 50 years of service, CLTWater can extend their service life through rehabilitation. Crews will clean and add a new interior lining. First, the contractor will install a temporary above-ground drinking water pipe and test it for quality. Once the above-ground pipe is approved, customers are connected.

Utility technician in a yellow safety jacket drives a large, yellow John Deere backhoe excavating dirt from a trench on a street into the back of a white dumptruck; 2 additional utility technicians wearing yellow safety vests and white and blue hardhats stand nearby with push-broom, shovel and 5 orange traffic cones
Crews dig at strategic locations reducing the inconvenience to customers.
Yellow fire hydrant stands on a green, grassy, corner curb with grey hose hooked up to it; hose runs under red ramp to prevent pedestrian tripping as it snakes its way to the sewer drain streetside next to the curb
The above-ground pipe will have small ramps.
2 utility technicians with yellow safety vests and white and blue hard-hats stand in a street-side job site that is several feet below ground with a large piece of brown, metal piece of equipment next to them
Crews clean the inside of the water pipe before adding a new lining.
Utility technician operates a dark grey and red instrument panel with a video screen; he is controlling a camera that snakes its way through underground pipes
Crews will inspect the inside of the pipe using a small camera on wheels.

What Does Wastewater Rehabilitation Look Like?

Crews will be on scaffolding, installing a sock-like lining inside an existing pipe through manholes. The sock-like liner will extend the wastewater pipe’s service life, minimizing construction in the area.

Utility worker wearing a yellow safety vest with the Charlotte Water logo watches an expandable fabric water pipe unrolled from the back of a white truck and lowered into the ground via tall scaffolding
Crews will be on scaffolding installing a sock-like lining inside an existing pipe through manholes. The sock-like liner will extend the wastewater pipe’s service life minimizing construction in the area.
2 utility managers kneel on white material on muddy dirt by the back of a semi-truck and next to a yellow excavator's caterpillar tracks and yellow scaffolding
Large diameter pipe rehabilitation project.

What Does Restoration Look Like?

  • On a suburban street with leafless trees and several houses, 2 yellow, large excavators on caterpillar tracks guided by 3 technicians dig a long, deep trench of dirt
    wastewater pipe construction inthe street with two excavators with a ternch.
  • Brownish green grass and a recently repaved black road along a suburban street with 5 houses and trees
    restored area showing repaved road and new grass
  • Yellow fire hydrant installed curb-side sits next to a tan, round meter cover and is surrounded by golden-colored straw and recently turned dirt
    All construction and restoration by CLTWater contractors includes a one year warranty.
  • 2 men wearing yellow yellow safety vests and hardhats ride on the back of a large, yellow LeeBoy Path Master paving machine watching as black macadam poured onto the roadbed is paved flat
    Subcontractors or Charlotte Department of Transportation (CDOT) Street Maintenance may repave a larger area than the trench after the project is complete.
 

What Do Charlotte Water’s Visible Utility Structures On Private Property Look Like?

  • Yellow fire hydrant, removed from its round base, sits on a brownish green grass strip between sidewalk and curb
    Fire hydrants are installed within 1,000 feet of every existing property served by Charlotte Water.
  • Small, vertical, rectangular green metal box with a silver padlock sits on a green pipe installed onto a small, concrete pad next to a light brown lawn area near 4 trees
    photo of a water sampling station (green) The purpose is to monitor quality of water within the system.
  • 2 brown, metal, round meter lids are installed next to each other in brownish-green grass
    photo of grass and two circles in the lawn that are the meter lids so that crews can turn water off to a water pipe to replace or repair a pipe.
  • Light green rectangular, metal, vented box with on a black stand is installed on a green lawn. A Charlotte Water logo on a sticker appears on its roof.
    Auto-flushers are used on dead ends or locations to flow water where water flow isn’t optimal to maintain excellent water quality.
  • Cast iron, round rust-colored brown manhole cover with the words Charlotte Water Works and the number 372 imprinted on it along with circular lines; the cover is surrounded with a grey, concrete collar and brownish grass.
    Manholes are installed flush with grass if in a maintained yard. If the manhole is installed in a floodplain, it may have a vent coming out of it or may be raised.
 
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