Six Advantages of GEI Works Dewatering Products

What is dewatering? 

Dewatering – The process of removing water from a solid material or particulates. Dewatering is made possible through the use of various dewatering equipment, such as belt presses, centrifuges, geotextiles, or rotary vacuums. Dewatering is also referred to as unwatering, water control groundwater control, sludge dewatering, construction dewatering, or construction site dewatering.

 Taurus dewatering products by GEI Works

Our dewatering products are made from a rugged, needle punched, nonwoven geotextile fabric. Dewatering filter bags, drain filter socks and sludge tubes are an easy, economical solution to control the amount of sediment that leaves a factory or job site. These dewatering products help you stay in compliance with stormwater regulations. Dewatering products also filter non-stormwater such as: water from cofferdams, water diversions, ground water and water used during construction projects.

Advantages of geotextile dewatering bags

Cost Effectiveness
Dewatering bags are a small investment compared to more permanent mechanical dewaterers as a result of their disposability. This is achieved through a simple design of a hose coupling and a water-permeable geo-textile.

Portability
When not filled, GEI Works dewatering bags can be folded easily and stored for future use. Once sediment has filled the bag, it can be picked up and transported, depending on weight, to an appropriate dumping location. Or, the bag may be allowed to dry on-site and then cut open to reintegrate the solids into the surroundings.

Product Availability
Given the foldable design and cost, water control bags by GEI Works can be manufactured and shipped in very short time frames.

Ease of Use
Dewatering bags can be set up or transported away by just one person. With their simple design, all you have to do is unfold the bag, attach the hose, and begin dewatering!

Ease of Particulate Recyclability
Although the bags are not reusable, the separated particulates can find use in a variety of applications, including landscaping and agriculture. For example, dewatered silt is high in nutrients, making it an ideal soil amendment for various types of plants and vegetation.

Low Energy Input
The use of a geotextile allows for passive separation of water and solid matter, which means dewatering bags require the lowest energy input out of all other commercial dewatering products. Simply pump the water and allow the bag to do the rest!

Are you in need of a dewatering solution for your next project? Check out our available options at GEIWorks.com or call us at +1-772-646-0597.

Dewatering Products Can Keep Your Project Free of Costly Fines

Despite the economic benefits new housing or other construction projects can bring to a locale, there’s always a potential downside. Exposed soil and reshaped land are subject to erosion from stormwater runoff. All this water can have a disastrous impact on the environment. If unchecked, the flow into storm drains, sewers and trenches often contain such contaminants as sediment, silt, debris and chemical pollutants.

In waterways around the country, sediment pumped out or running off construction sites remains one of the most significant sources of water pollution. Suspended sediment diminishes water clarity, inhibits the growth of aquatic plants and can deprive fish of important food sources. In addition, phosphorus from construction site water often contributes to explosive algae growth. Like most ecological problems, all of these issues can ripple throughout the environment, disrupting sensitive life cycles and ecosystems.

Accordingly, government agencies at the state and federal level have tight standards for the quality of water pumped from sites during dewatering efforts. Contractors who run afoul of those regulations can find themselves in the midst of costly project delays and fines.
 
Leaving the Sediment Behind

There are cost-effective ways of accomplishing an environmentally responsible dewatering process. Dewatering bags are a common option to effectively trap silt and sediment while allowing water to escape through the bag’s geotextile material. The sediment-laden water is pumped into ports located on the bags. As the water passes through the bag’s filter fabric, suspended sediment particles are caught in the fabric. The bags fill with sediment over time. After the contents dry out, you can cut the bags open and redistribute the sediment.

GEI Works carries these bags in its Taurus line of dewatering products.
 

For small-scale projects, a dewatering sock may be the best choice. The Taurus Dewatering Filter Socks are available in three diameters to fit different discharge pipes: 8-inch, 12-inch and 16-inch. As water passes through the sock, sediment and debris stay behind to help keep these materials from leaving the job site.

Contact GEI Works

There are many options for contractors trying to keep sediment and other pollutants out of waterways. Many can be used in concert with one another. But be sure to use a dewatering solution that’s effective for your particular application. The alternative can be a stiff fine or delay in your work: something nobody wants.

Contact the experts at GEI Works for more information on these products. 772-646-0597

Best Erosion Control Practices for Protecting Soil on Construction Sites

Humans were reshaping land before construction of the pyramids. Today, excavation and construction companies face one of the same problems as the ancients: erosion control.

Erosion is the process by which natural forces wear away a land surface. Water, wind, ice and gravity act relentlessly upon soils, detaching them from their base and carrying them away – often into waterways.

This happens frequently during rain as drops strike the soil, sending it airborne. On a construction site, shallow sheets of water can flow over the land and draw away loosened soil. Low areas are vulnerable to erosion as flows cut small channels to transport the washed-out material.

Negative impact of erosion
 
The problems associated with erosion go far beyond issues of land shape and aesthetics. Runoff can transfer soils into lakes, ponds, rivers, streams and other waterways, fouling them with turbidity and excessive silt. According to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, about 4 billion tons of eroded materials enter waterways in the United States every year.

Erosion is bad news: It can disrupt storm water systems by plugging culverts and other areas designed to receive runoff. It also harms ecosystems by blocking sunlight in the water, inhibiting the growth of aquatic vegetation. Heavy turbidity can adversely affect fish populations by diminishing food sources, interfering with spawning and even clogging gills.

Basic controls

One of the best means of controlling erosion is vegetative cover. It imposes a barrier between the falling rain and the soil, stabilizes soil particles, slows runoff velocity and promotes absorbency. Mulch can also be effective in slowing the erosion process. These measures are particularly important on long slopes and banks.

But on a job site, such methods of erosion control are not always practical or even possible. That’s why contractors dealing with runoff issues should be eminently familiar with perimeter controls.




Dewatering

Removal of water from a project site carries the risk of discharging sediments that will find their way into area waterways. Taurus Dewatering Bags from GEI Works receive the discharge hose (2-, 3- and 4-inch) and fill up to capacity, filtering the exiting water safely from the sides of the bag. The debris and sediments stay behind for disposal. GEI Works also offers the Taurus Pipe Dewatering Sock for smaller applications. The larger, more heavy-duty Geotextile Dewatering Tubes are ideal for more substantial dewatering projects at such sites as agricultural ponds, paper mills and aquaculture facilities.

Turbidity Barriers
 
When erosion occurs and sediments do end up clouding a body of water, turbidity curtains are the last line of defense. The Triton line of turbidity barriers and silt curtains from GEI Works restrict suspended particles, promoting settling. Made to perform in varying levels of conditions – wave action, current, wind, etc. – the curtains hang in the water vertically and stop about a foot from the bottom, surrounding the source of turbidity. Suspended particles strike the curtain and change course toward the bottom where they settle beyond the containment area.
  
Erosion is a force of nature we will always manage imperfectly. But with the proper tools and best management practices, contractors can wage an effective battle. GEI Works is your ally in that battle. For more information on erosion control products, please feel free to contact the experts at GEI Works.

Toxic Spills: The Right Products Can be a Big Help

Toxic spills occur with great frequency in and around the United States. In most cases, containment and cleanup are routine.

But the Environmental Protection Agency spill that began Aug. 5 and eventually dumped 3 million gallons of toxic mine waste into the Animas River captured the public’s attention. The yellow and orange river water quickly stretched 100 miles into three states, carrying such toxins as lead, arsenic, copper and mercury. The EPA itself accidentally released this massive flow of waste from the King Mine, abandoned in the 1920s.

Consequences have been far-reaching. The Animas River provides water to residents of Colorado, New Mexico and Utah who live along its banks, and is an important source of irrigation for farmers. The disastrous magnitude of this spill was immediately evident, even to the casual observer.

As the EPA labors to address the fallout of this extensive spill, containment and remediation are matters of utmost importance, obviously. The federal government recently announced plans to open a temporary treatment system on Oct. 14. Early cleanup response to this incident included the construction of plastic-lined retention ponds to pump in and contain some of the tainted water before it spreads further.

These liners are part of a diverse and prolific assortment of products that contribute significantly to the process of spill remediation whenever an environmental accident occurs.

Liners for temporary ponds

Heavy-duty pond and lagoon liners are made of reinforced PVC and other materials that prevent seepage into the ground. They are designed to hold water, sludge and waste, depending on the nature of the incident.

One remediation method in retention ponds involves deploying a series of floating PVC curtains in a baffle pattern. The baffles are positioned in a staggered configuration, forcing the flow of water to move from one side of the pond to the other. The action sets up a natural electrical charge that promotes settling of the toxic particles.

Oil booms

Spills come in many types, and so do spill remediation products. If the accident is an oil spill on the water, special containment booms are designed to surround it quickly before it fans out into other areas. Made of expanded polyethylene foam and PVC plastic, the anchored boom floats to form a ring-like barrier that protects the rest of the waters and facilitates cleanup. Special absorbent booms not only encompass the spill, but also help soak it up at the perimeter. Fire-resistant booms allow for the process of in-situ burning, in which the crew ignites the oil spill to burn it off safely.

Various boom models are on the market to address the conditions at deployment, whether the water is calm, fast or open.

Dewatering products

Dewatering bags and tubes can often be useful on a spill site. Cleanup workers fill the bags with contaminated water under a stringent monitoring process. The filtered water gradually passes through the sides of the bag, leaving the sediment and pollutants behind.



Chemical treatments are available that promote flocculation, a process that causes fine particulates to clump in masses for easier cleanup. The treatment is sometimes added while the contaminated water is in a dewatering bag or tube.

Washing down vehicles

One area of cleanup not always readily apparent is the need to keep vehicles on the site from spreading contaminants. As contaminated trucks and other vehicles undergo a wash-down, it's crucial to have portable spill berms positioned underneath to catch the water for safe disposal. These berms are shallow holding units with walls that bounce back, so a vehicle can drive over them for a wash-down.

Tanks, incinerators

Downstream from the spill site, it is imperative that there be storage available for drinking water, fuel or waste. Many different sizes of pillow tanks (or flexible storage containers) are available, simple to transport and store. They range in size from 25 to 210,000 gallons. Onion tanks – named for their distinctive shape – are easy to deploy, with their self-rising and self-supporting walls. Storage tanks made of steel, fiberglass or plastic provide more long-term storage of liquids.

When it comes time to dispose of items that have been contaminated with pollutants during the cleanup, portable incinerators get the job done. Ridding the site of such items without spreading the contamination is a vital part of the process. 

Contact us

A spill is obviously an extremely unwelcome event. But tools such as those in the Kraken and Triton product lines of GEI Works help make restoration possible. Whether it’s a small oil spill on a lake or 3 million gallons of waste released into a river, GEI Works has many products helpful in addressing the situation.

Contact the experts at GEI Works for more information. Call (+1) 772-646-0597 or toll free at (888) 701-9889.

Dewatering Methods | The Dewatering Bag

Dewatering methods include a wide range of practices including settling ponds, basins, filtering rocks, and even dewatering skimmers. Today we will discuss the method known as the dewatering bag.

This Sediment Filtering Bag is designed to connect to outlet hoses or drains and filter water as it flows into the bag. The non-woven bag retains sediment and silt, while allowing only clean water to flow out of the unit.

Dewatering Bag Construction

Fabric: The dewatering bag is typically designed from a type of non-woven geotextile material. This needle-punched fabric has the unique ability to successfully retain several different fine silt and sediment materials, while still allowing water to flow out of the bag. This has allowed it to successfully function as a filtering device for sediment or sludge laden waters.

Sizes:  Choosing a filtering bag size is generally based on the amount of water being pumped through the bag, the rate at which this water is being pumped, and the type of sediment you are looking to retain.

Bag Placement: While bags are made from a reliable geotextile material, it is still important to consider the location in which you will be placing this filtering device.  These dewatering bags have been placed in numerous locations including some of the following:

• 20’ Drop Boxes or Dumpsters: This is a common choice for people who wish to transport the bag or water to a different location.
• Ground: These dewatering filter bags can be placed on ground while operating in a filtering process. Ground cloths are often placed underneath these bags to help support the bottom of the bag and protect it during use.
• Permeable Surfaces: These bags can also be placed on porous surfaces such as hay bales to help decrease the amount of surface area needed for the bags and improve the bags performance.

Discharge Hose: To insert a discharge hose into your sediment filter bag, make a small incision along the edge of your bag. Hoses can be easily placed into these incisions and then sealed to the fabric by devices such as ropes, clamps, ties, and wires.

Dewatering sediment filter bags are a common choice for applications such as construction site dewatering, sediment removal in small ponds, and trench pumping. They are often used to keep your keep areas in compliance with NPDES and other stormwater regulations.