Hi all. I'm applying for an operator in training program with no prior wastewater experience. Would anyone here be willing to review my cover letter and provide some guidance? Thank you.

Hi All,

I have a copy of 4th E, but need a copy of the 5e. Id prefer to get a hardcover and have no problem paying, but they seem to be sold out online. Anyone have a source?

Our city has a brand new 0.638MGD WWTF that we just opened this fall. City of 1700 people and everyone is a little upset about our taxes going up another 36%. Looking at the proposed budget, the main difference from last year to this year is $411k for salaries new 5 full time employees and 1 part time employee for "public works". Does that amount of employees seem overkill? Looking though other threads similar, it seems like towns get by with 2 or 3 people for a WWTF of this size. Are we getting screwed to pay somebody's buddy to sit around or is that an acceptable amount of workers?

Starting to study for D1/T1 in Ca. Do you guys have any suggestions on free/cheap study material or a good place to start?

Hi, I am trying to design a water treatment solution that recycles effluent coming in at around 2g/L TSS @ 300 m3/h (1300 gpm). I've been struggling to find a solution that can work for this throughput and TSS, do you guys have any solutions that I could maybe take a look into? I've looked at sand filters but don't think they can handle the TSS and I'm avoiding compact clarifiers as I would prefer avoiding any reagent addition.

I appreciate any help!

We had a huge water issue over the weekend and my town I work for and some of our water pumps that wants the drinking water through the town were left in the off position which wouldn't have been a big deal but some idiot ran over a fire hydrant causing all of the water to leave the system.

Not to mention our VPN for scada isn't working either, my director was fully aware of the situation because I personally called him but he did not send out a boil water notice which there's no way that me and the friend of mine that came to help me could have covered the entire town going door to door with papers but nothing was posted online either and he is already trying to implement a mass email/text message type dea.

l I was just curious if the people who have something like that if you knew what program is used. I'm sure there's going to be a big meeting this morning so he can try and blame someone else.

But it's always been my understanding that as the director who is dual certified and wastewater and water the blame would hang on your shoulders first am I wrong and thinking that?

Hello, Is there anyone who wrote OIT Exam(Ontario ) recently? Is the final score based on all four modules or do we get individual scores for each module? Any suggestions are welcome. Thank you so much for your time.

Studying for my ABC water treatment operator class d.

Hello, 2 and a half yrs of experience & 26 years old with a bachelors in an earth science. I have a biological grade 2, collections grade 2, physical chemical, and surface irrigation certification for the state of North Carolina.

My family frequently travels to south Florida for vacation, ever since I was a kid, and I’ve always loved being there and would like to move there.

Has anyone transferred their certifications from NC to FL?

Can anyone provide any insight on if this process of difficult? Or just provide any useful information. E.i. Are employers reluctant to hire out of state? Unexpected cost in moving? Florida’s wastewater industry caveats? Dealing with my state’s licensing committee. Etc.. just anything you may think of that’s beneficial.

Thank you in advance.

https://preview.redd.it/yx1a0v3oi74e1.png?width=739&format=png&auto=webp&s=169bd29d6f243e62038a98b8fc6788c728536490

I’m setting up a system where a compressor (max 36 PSI / 2.5 bar) pushes air into a water tank or filter. The tank pressure varies between 3 PSI / 0.2 bar and 29 PSI / 2 bar, so sometimes it’s higher than the compressor pressure (like when the compressor stops or its pressure drops). I need a way to stop water from flowing back into the compressor in these situations.

The system uses a 10 mm (3/8") pipe, and it handles both air and water. I’m looking for a solution that’s:

Reliable and won’t let water into the compressor.

Doesn’t restrict the airflow too much. Low-maintenance. Works well with both air and water.

Would a spring-loaded check valve do the job? Or maybe a floating ball check valve (though I imagine those are harder to find)?

If anyone has experience with something like this or knows a good product that fits, I’d love to hear your recommendations. Thanks a lot!

Hi, I’m a wastewater operator and I’m in the industry for a few years. I’m close to getting my last level 4 and was thinking of career options for myself. I like operations but i don’t envision myself staying there for long cause I want to learn and do something else. I don’t mind studying more. Initially I was planning to do my masters in engineering but realized I can’t work as a project manager or engineer in Ontario without a bachelor in engineering so that’s not gonna work.

Does anyone have some advice to career options I can transition to in Ontario? Whether is management I’m not sure. I tried asking my manager but he didn’t disclose much.

Hey everyone. I am trying to pass the Level 3 exam in Ontario for wastewater treatment. I have failed it twice already. I have a couple Cal State books and a few other books I purchased from the states. Does anyone who has passed the level 3 have any recommendations on books they used to pass. Its just getting frustrating. I study for months and can't seem to get it. Thanks and I appreciate any help.

I have many reasons to consider a career in municipal water/wastewater (not sure which one or if I will do both yet), but I need to know a couple of things about preparing to do this in the state of Texas. Namely, I'm trying to build a game plan for the education requirements and considerations to make getting a job in this field as easy as possible, as well as to leave options for advancement open if needed, but I have many other questions as well.

Texas follows the ABCD licensing method, and so far I am considering a Class C Surface Water license. Currently, I'm not looking for a job in supervision or other major advancements, but it would definitely be nice for the option to be there for me if I change my mind in the future.

Below are my questions. Sorry that there are a lot of them, I am trying to be as certain as I can about everything I can think of regarding this field to make sure I actually want to go into this career, as it seems like it is for people who are serious and dedicated. You don't have to answer questions that you do not have an answer for/if you don't want to, just answer what you can, please.

It is best for me if these questions are answered by people who are currently working on or have worked in treatment plants in the state of Texas.

^(One thing to note is that I am asking about YOUR experiences in the field and not blanket questions about the field. I am trying to develop as detailed of a view as possible, and will be recording responses [for my own personal use] in my own documents because I'm a nerd and this is how I consider jobs.)

• What are education requirements/considerations for water vs. wastewater?
• What is it like to work in just one field vs. both fields at the same time? Is it easier to work in one or both? Which option is less boring and more mentally stimulating, and how do the hours/pay differ working in one vs both?
• Is an associate's degree in water/wastewater operations required or worth it for any positions? Is it worth considering for the license that I am looking towards?
• Does this degree [always] cover licensing or will I have to take courses for that separately? Does it depend on the school?
• What are the best places to get this degree and/or to take general courses for the license I am considering?
• Is it required to have a license to work at any TP in Texas at all, or is it possible to just 'jump in'?
• What is the difference between a certificate and a license?
• I see on-the-job training mentioned very frequently. What kinds of things may be trained or educated to me on the job with the license that I am currently considering? What is OTJ training like, in your experience?
• What are the differing positions in a Texas TP? And, in your opinion, what are some of the best positions for the license I am currently considering? What are the hours and schedules like [in your experience] for said positions?
• How frequent is license renewal required, and what is that process like? I'm not sure I understand what is said about it on the TCEQ website.
• I'm not sure I understand what the Continuing Education thing is about. When is this required vs. just something to consider? How is this related to license renewal?
• What are common physically demanding aspects of this job?
• What kind of emergencies may frequently arise on the job?
• What are common mistakes made on the job, both by newbies and experienced operators?
• What kind of common injuries or deaths may occur on this job?
• What positions require one to be on-call? What is your experience being on call?
• What are night-shifts like (if applicable), and how may they compare to day shifts?
• I've heard a lot of conflicting things when looking at how frequently you have to work with a team. In your experience, how frequently are you working with a team vs. by yourself? How does this vary from position to position? What jobs are typically done with a team vs. by yourself?
• In your opinion, what are the best and worst parts of the job itself? Specifically, your personal favorite or least favorite jobs, days, routines, activities, etc.
• I am decent at algebra, but I've been so far unable to figure out exactly what kinds of formulas may be used in the day-to-day. What kinds of formulas are used? What do they look like, and what is your experience with these formulas? Do you consider them difficult or no? How are they typically completed (i.e. calculators vs. on paper) in your experience?
• What is or has been your favorite position, regarding a balance of pay, hours, responsibility, stress level, and mental stimulation? What has been your experience with scheduling? Do you frequently work the 5 week days with weekends off, or do you get some other schedule? How does this vary from position to position, and how may it look with the license I am considering, in your experience/expertise?
• What kind of person would you consider to NOT be a good fit for a career in water/waste water operations?
• What has been your experience with vacation days, sick days, benefits, holiday pay or holidays off, raises, etc?
• What is it like to analyze trends and develop new methods for water treatment?
• This seems like a pretty male-dominated career path, so if you are a woman, or know someone who is who can answer this, what is your experience working in this field?

Thank you for your time. I look forward to hearing about your experiences in water/wastewater treatment :)

W

Does anyone have experience with this company?

My colleague found two tardigrades a few days ago on the same slide! This one was courteous enough to get a side profile shot under the microscope. My white whale for 7 years. I feel like Mr. Miyagi trying to catch flies for years with chopsticks and Daniel does it in seconds.

Anyone in missouri know of anyone that would help a very small city get some equipment? Looking for grants or any leads. I did get to order a gas detector but have no harnesses, fans,you know all the things to help keep us safe

Is anyone familiar with this Filamentous bacteria by chance?

Thank you to all the operators out there, keeping the world spinning today and rest of this long holiday weekend.

May the seas of turkey drippings and gravy be kind and not plug up your sewers and/or overwhelm your pump stations.

Hope everyone is enjoying their holidays so far. Quick question, does anyone know the statistics on wastewater the day after thanksgiving? Like with all of the influx of soiled influent water from everyone's oversaturated guts?

Is there any way to effectively remove total nitrogen and total phosphorus while maintaining the cod of liquor wastewater?

Can't submit my California exam application because "signatures must match"- except they literally do match? Anybody run into this or have any advice?

Holiday humor

To all the wastewater experts, I am looking for some feedback to help with a project.

Assuming we are talking about kitchen drains only which contain organic waste, grease and soaps (Fats, oils and Grease)

If I wanted to detect the amount of buildup in a pipe by detecting the gases within the pipe, what gases would I mostly be looking for?

Hello all! I am with a company called LabtronX (you can look us up on google!) from Nashville, TN that does water/waste water calibrations on most of the equipment that you use daily! From Balances, flow meters (mag meters and open channel), samplers, DO, PH, Incubators, Furnaces, and Thermometers of all kinds! We have been in this business for over 40 years and have a large clientele mostly in Tennessee and Kentucky but are looking to expand south and north, east and west! We have a very fair price for our services, and we will give you the best service for your money! We even do repairs on most of the aforementioned items! If you’d like to inquire about our services, it would mean the world to us! Thank you so much!

Hi all. I work at a pre-treatment plant handling dairy waste (milk). Our dairy team has asked us about anaerobic digesters and the production of biogas to offset energy costs. I know extremely little about anaerobic digesters. Can anyone point me to resources where I can learn more? Could you feed an anaerobic digester only WAS? If so, could that generate enough power to operate the digester itself and offset some energy costs?