Milford, Ohio (January 10, 2013) – Henry County Water and Sewerage Authority (McDonough, Ga.) has used equipment from Fluid Conservation Systems (FCS) to create an efficient leak detection program. The program has eliminated nearly 400 million gallons of non-revenue water in the last five years.
Henry County maintains over 1,400 miles of mains to serve its approximately 54,000 meter connections. Its pipelines are constructed of various materials, mostly ductile iron as well as PVC and cast iron, with the oldest sections dating back to 1970. As part of the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District, Henry County is required to submit annual audits of its water distribution system. After a 2007 audit, Henry County saw rising non-revenue water rates and began investigating leak detection programs used by surrounding counties.
Using an empty subdivision with operational water pipes as a test site, Henry County Lead GIS Field Technician Brock Biles conducted side-by-side comparisons of three different leak detection systems. He found that the FCS products sold by Matchpoint Inc. (Wilmington, N.C.) were the most effective at finding leaks.
“Henry County had the most scientific approach to product selection that I had ever seen,” said Matchpoint Inc. Vice President, Simon Wick.
After extensive product training from Matchpoint, the county deployed its new leak detection program in May 2007 with 80 Permalog+ acoustic loggers and an AC Digital correlator. By the end of the year, the one-man team had located 26 leaks that generated over 20,000,000 gallons of water per year, saving Henry County an estimated $50,426.
Henry County uses the “Lift and Shift” method of deploying Permalog+ noise loggers, which promotes quick and efficient leak detection with a limited number of logging devices. Loggers are distributed to one area of the water distribution network for a short period of time, retrieved and analyzed for potential leak indications, and then rapidly redeployed to other areas of the system. Information collected is then uploaded to an intranet map of the distribution network, allowing the leak detection team to see a history of leak data and logger deployments for each area of the system.
Since its inception, the Henry County leak detection team has grown to three full time and three part time employees, and saved approximately 380 million gallons of water at a cost of over $933,000. It has become a model among its peers, hosting 10 municipalities since 2011 to demonstrate how the program works.
For additional information on the full line of FCS leak detection products, call 800-531-5465, visit www.fluidconservation.com or email [email protected].