Background

The Living Waters Ranch project is a resort/retreat in Challis Idaho that rests in an outlying canyon several miles outside of the city limits of Challis. When looking to upgrade and expand the resort, the owners and project engineer turned to Allen Worst of R.C. Worst Co. and Orenco Systems Inc. for a wastewater treatment solution. Being a dealer representative of Orenco’s commercial onsite treatment line, Allen proposed an AdvanTex AX-MAX system from Orenco as a solution. As the project progressed, a NP groundwater study concluded that the amount of nitrogen in the effluent from the treatment system would need to be reduced. Idaho Department of Environmental Quality deemed it necessary to treat the Nitrogen in the waste stream down to 12 mg/L. Such a stringent limit required that Orenco, alongside Allen and the project engineer, provide the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) an extensive amount of design and process documentation, as well as data from five similar systems in the United States that are removing nitrogen using the same kind of technology. After over a hundred pages of calculations and data were reviewed by DEQ, a permit was granted for construction of the system.



Design and Construction

After passing the stringent approval process from DEQ, Orenco, R.C. Worst Co., and the project engineer went to work shoring up all of the details for design and construction of the treatment system. After ensuring the build drawings were correct, the construction of the two 42’ AX-MAX units and the 14' by 7’ fiberglass shelter began. Xerxes provided the 11,000 gallon fiberglass “Pre-Anoxic” tank for blending before the AX-MAX units, and a local contract company provided a pour-in-place combination “Post-Anoxic/Dosing” tank behind the treatment units. The components were ready to go within eight weeks of the order.

During construction of the treatment system, a flash flood put the structural integrity of all of the fiberglass components to the test. The flood lifted the pre-anoxic tank and both of the AX-MAX units out of the unfinished excavation and put them on their side. After assessing damages, the flooding had little to no effect on any of the components, a testament to the quality they are built to. The contractor was able to re-set the components and bring the project back underway quickly after the event.

From here things went smoothly with the treatment system. Within a two month window the system was ready to be commissioned. R.C. Worst Co. was able to get the operator Corey Rice up to speed with operations, preparing for Orenco to come out and do the final operator training after the system had been up and running for a few weeks. All systems were a go at this point, and the treatment system was accepting flow from the facility.

Operations

After the initial startup, R.C. Worst Co. and Orenco had the opportunity to train with the operator for an entire day. At this point, all parties were able to get together and cover the details of the chemical feed systems, timer settings for the treatment train, and dial in the process operations to optimize treatment. It was also a great opportunity for the operator to get points of contact for problems and develop relationships to keep things going long term. After a successful day of training and another half-day of wrapping up any loose ends on the project, the system was well underway for routine operations.

Performance

Once things got underway, the operator began a weekly sampling regiment to ensure system performance, and also begin the process of dialing in the system to meet its’ maximum potential. Communication being the key, the operator would report each finding to Orenco, R.C. Worst Co., and the engineer to keep us up to speed and help make adjustments to the system in order to meet that potential. After four to six weeks of operation, all parties involved saw the total nitrogen coming out of the treatment system consistently go down. After making small adjustments, the last reported total nitrogen number from the facility was <3mg/L TN.

Although the resort produces lower flows during the winter months, other challenges have risen in regards to de-nitrification. Extremely cold temperatures have driven the effluent temperature down to 45ºF at times, 5º less than what we would want to optimize the treatment process. Measures have been taken to keep effluent temperatures at optimum levels (Above 50ºF), but all parties are pleased with the performance of the system so far. All of us are excited to see the treatment data as we continue to move forward. - By: Scott Hammerschmith, Orenco Systems, Inc.


System Design Detail Summary

Design Flow: 8500 GPD
Treatment Requirements: 12 mg/L TN
Collection Type: STEP

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