Old, failing sewer pumps that carry sewage to the Daniels Avenue lift station are being replaced, with the work just getting underway this week.

“We had one pump failure there due to various issues at the end of last year,” Escalon Public Works Superintendent Juston Collins explained of the Daniels lift station. “That station consists of two pumps that collect the domestic sewage from the west end of town and funnel it into a trunk line to McHenry, which then goes out to the treatment plant.”

But the failure of one pump late last year and problems with the other remaining a few weeks ago forced a temporary solution while the city prepared the plans for replacing both pumps.

“We got money approved through the city council to do some pump repair there and we are actually doing pump replacement,” Collins said, adding that it was determined that the existing pumps are too old to continue to work efficiently, replacement parts are difficult, if not impossible, to get and the system is no longer cost effective.

The temporary fix, with bypass pumps brought in, has been working to keep the sewage going to the treatment plant and the replacement project is now underway. Collins said the total cost of the project, including materials and labor, is expected to be about $85,000 but will result in brand new submersible pumps at the Daniels lift station.

The submersible pumps are seen as better, since they will help Public Works crews avoid a variety of confined space and safety issues, and they are a more cost effective way to operate.

“This is a step for the future,” Collins said.

The submersible pumps get lowered into the wet well of the lift station and can be taken out if repairs are needed, as opposed to workers going in to fix them.

The temporary pumps were brought in through Rain 4 Rent out of Stockton and Collins said they will continue to operate during the ongoing replacement project.

“The contractor will be installing two new pumps and new sewer pipe, tie in to a manhole on McHenry, it’s about a two-week project,” Collins explained. “RTC, Richard Townsend Construction out of Oakdale is doing the work, along with Mike Grossi of Grossi Electric in Escalon. The temporary pumps will stay in place until the new ones are put in and tested, to make sure everything is working well.”