Lead pipe spudding prior to extraction or remediation
AssigneeThe Charles Machine Works, Inc.
InventorsRobert F. Crane, Steven W. Wentworth, Mark D. Randa
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method for enlarging a crushed section of a ductile pipe. A wire rope having a bead or plurality of beads attached to the rope is placed in a ductile pipe. When a series of beads is used, each of the beads is sequentially larger. The wire rope is pulled through the crushed section, and the ductile pipe conforms to the larger diameter of the beads. The crushed section of pipe may be expanded so that a larger wire rope suitable for pipe extraction may be passed through. Alternatively, the pipe may be reformed and expanded to near or greater than its original size. The pipe may then be coated or a smaller slip-lined pipe may be placed within the original pipe.
Claims15
A system, comprising:
- an underground pipe having a crushed section;
- a system comprising:
- a cable puller;
- a first wire rope, in which the cable puller is attached to the first wire rope;
- a first bead disposed on the wire rope, wherein the first bead extends outwardly from the wire rope a first distance;
- a second bead disposed on the wire rope, wherein the second bead extends outwardly from the wire rope a second distance, the second distance being greater than the first distance;
- and
- a third bead disposed on the wire rope, wherein the third bead extends outwardly from the wire rope a third distance, the third distance being greater than the second distance;
- wherein the second bead is disposed between the first bead and the third bead;
- and
- wherein the wire rope is configured for attachment to the cable puller at a location nearer the first bead than the third bead;
- in which the wire rope is disposed through at least a portion of the underground pipe;
- and
- wherein the first bead, second bead, and third bead are disposed on a first side of the crushed section and the cable puller is disposed on a second side of the crushed section.
A method of using an apparatus, the apparatus comprising:
- a first wire rope having a first end and a second end;
- a series of beads disposed on the wire rope, each of the series of beads having a unique diameter;
- in which each of the series of beads has a sequentially larger diameter progressing from the nearest of the series of beads to the first end to the nearest of the series of beads to the second end;
- wherein the first wire rope is configured for attachment to a cable puller at its first end;
- and
- wherein each of the series of beads is configured to expand an inner diameter of a crushed section of an underground lead pipe;
- the method comprising:
- disposing the first wire rope within an underground lead pipe having a crushed section;
- attaching the first end of the first wire rope to a cable puller;
- and
- with the cable puller, pulling the series of beads through the crushed section of pipe;
- attaching a second wire rope to the second end of the first wire rope, wherein the second wire rope has a diameter of less than the diameter of the largest of the series of beads;
- after the step of pulling the series of beads through the crushed section of pipe, pulling the second wire rope to the cable puller;
- and
- thereafter, pulling the second wire rope with the cable puller to extract the underground lead pipe from the ground.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.