The technology of trenchless pipe laying appeared quite a long time ago. Back in the 80s of the last century, pipelayers laid drainage pipes in the ground. Instead of a ditch, the mechanism dug a narrow gap, where they hid the cable or water supply.
Today, devices have appeared that lay hundreds of meters of pipes underground without opening the ground. Such special technology more than justifies the costs incurred by the customer, significantly saves money and time.
Good value
Trenchless laying is necessary in two cases: when laying a new pipeline to replace a failed pipeline or to replace a damaged, clogged old pipeline.
Introducing a completely new pipe into a used old one and pushing it to the required distance is much cheaper than excavating, dismantling the damaged one and laying a new one.
Especially the new laying method is becoming relevant in urban areas, where the lack of maneuverability during work, the side costs associated with the excavation of water pipes, and the great difficulties with traffic flows make the problem simply gigantic.
Trenchless laying makes it possible to installhighway under roads, lawns, various sites without destroying them.
Installing a smaller pipe inside the old one
This is the easiest and cheapest trenchless laying method. Usually, such work is carried out with a failed water main. Inside the old rusty pipe, a new, polyethylene one is being pulled. Smooth plastic walls do not impair the water flow.
Polyethylene products are immune to large temperature changes, not subject to corrosion. They are lightweight, easy to install and inexpensive. Their service life often exceeds the life of cast iron pipes. They are plastic, easy to bend, which is important when using new technology.
Trenchless pipe laying with a winch is as follows:
- A broken piece of water pipe is torn in two places.
- At one of the most convenient points, the winch is rigidly installed.
- A cable is pushed into the pipe for the entire length of the repaired whip.
- With the help of a winch and a special ruff, the line is cleared of blockages and deposits.
- Then, using the same cable, a polyethylene whip of the desired size is tightened with a winch.
- Flanges are attached to the plastic pipe and valves are installed. Water can be supplied.
For pipelines where water flows by gravity (drainage channels, moisture removal from something), pipes are drawn from one point. The pipe is assembled from short pieces using a threaded connection or soldering, and as it is assembledpushed inside the old highway.
Laying a larger diameter pipe instead of the old one
This trenchless pipe laying has more sophisticated technology. This requires the participation of a hydraulic calibrator and an oil pump.
The mechanism of work is as follows:
- A cable is pulled through the spent conduit along its entire length.
- The cable pulls the calibrator to the beginning of the line.
- High pressure is pumped through the oil-resistant hose by a pump, the calibrator expands in diameter and pushes apart the section of the pipeline where it is located. The broken pipe is pressed into the ground.
- The oil pressure is released, the calibrator takes the initial volume and is pulled by a winch to another section of the line. A fixed new whip is trailing behind the Calibrator.
The advantages of pulling a new water supply system inside or instead of a failed one are obvious. The underground plan for laying highways does not change, there is no reason to coordinate repairs with other structures, which saves money and time.
Penetrating the soil with a shock-pulse pneumatic punch
This trenchless pipe laying method uses simple jackhammer technology. Air is forced into the hose by a compressor. With the help of a distribution valve, compressed air begins to push the drummer, and he, striking, hits the streamlined body.
The streamlined body has an impressive length (2 m or more). The peculiarity of the piercing isthat a pneumatic puncher from the bottom of the pit pierces a straight horizontal well. The well has smooth compacted walls.
In this variant, it is very difficult to give the highway the right direction. Although, if you carefully carry out all the necessary calculations, it is possible. There are also guided shock-pulse punches. But due to certain technical difficulties, they have low productivity.
Piping by punching
This variant of trenchless pipe laying is often made from a pit. The steel pipe is pressed into the ground with its end. Its cavity is filled with earth. Subsequently, the soil is removed with compressed air or a special auger, which, like a ruff, cleans the inside of the pipeline.
High power hydraulic jacks are used for pressing. Such a unit needs a strong support, which is sometimes difficult to find. Therefore, in tandem with jacks, vibro-impact devices work, pushing the projectile in small jerks.
This laying method is remarkable in that it can be used to drive large diameter pipes (2500 mm) in the right direction.
Directional horizontal drilling
This is the most costly option of all the above. But he has a serious advantage. Such trenchless piping is used when other methods are no longer effective. When using this option, you can lay lashes even in rocky ground.
In principle, the method itself resembles the usual drilling process, but only in the horizontal direction. The speed of passage of layers varies from 1.5 to 20 meters per hour. But in this option, conventional drill pipes cannot be used. Torque from the engine to the nozzle is transmitted using special drill rods, fastened with hinges.
Drilling in rock involves the use of drilling fluid in the process. It is a kind of lubricant and cooling component for the drill column. The solution also fixes the walls of the well, preventing them from spreading, while helping to eliminate the consequences of drilling.
A new pipe is pulled into the resulting well. But the drilling process will be useless if groundwater is encountered along the way of the well.
Distance
Pipes of small diameter are pulled by a winch to a distance of up to 500 meters through a worn-out line. Other trenchless laying methods allow you to lay the whip at a distance of 40-80 meters. Work on the development of this technology began not so long ago, so the resource potential of the developed programs is huge.
Trenchless laying will never pay for itself in domestic applications. If there is a need to connect private housing to the water supply, then it is best to resort to the services of an excavator. Or, in extreme cases, an ordinary shovel. This will end up being less costly.
