What do Septic Tank Servicers and Sewer Pipe Cleaners do?
Clean and repair septic tanks, sewer lines, or drains. May patch walls and partitions of tank, replace damaged drain tile, or repair breaks in underground piping.
- Drive trucks to transport crews, materials, and equipment.
- Communicate with supervisors and other workers, using equipment such as wireless phones, pagers, or radio telephones.
- Prepare and keep records of actions taken, including maintenance and repair work.
- Operate sewer cleaning equipment, including power rodders, high velocity water jets, sewer flushers, bucket machines, wayne balls, and vac-alls.
- Ensure that repaired sewer line joints are tightly sealed before backfilling begins.
- Withdraw cables from pipes and examine them for evidence of mud, roots, grease, and other deposits indicating broken or clogged sewer lines.
- Install rotary knives on flexible cables mounted on machine reels, according to the diameters of pipes to be cleaned.
- Measure excavation sites, using plumbers' snakes, tapelines, or lengths of cutting heads within sewers, and mark areas for digging.
- Locate problems, using specially designed equipment, and mark where digging must occur to reach damaged tanks or pipes.
- Clean and repair septic tanks, sewer lines, or related structures such as manholes, culverts, and catch basins.
- Start machines to feed revolving cables or rods into openings, stopping machines and changing knives to conform to pipe sizes.
- Service, adjust, and make minor repairs to equipment, machines, and attachments.
- Inspect manholes to locate sewer line stoppages.
- Cut damaged sections of pipe with cutters, remove broken sections from ditches, and replace pipe sections, using pipe sleeves.
- Dig out sewer lines manually, using shovels.
- Break asphalt and other pavement so that pipes can be accessed, using airhammers, picks, and shovels.
- Cover repaired pipes with dirt, and pack backfilled excavations, using air and gasoline tampers.
- Requisition or order tools and equipment.
- Rotate cleaning rods manually, using turning pins.
- Clean and disinfect domestic basements and other areas flooded by sewer stoppages.
- Tap mainline sewers to install sewer saddles.
- Update sewer maps and manhole charts.
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