Pipe freezes at Portland’s largest sewage pump station
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The City of Portland’s largest sewage pump station is now under partial service due to a frozen pipe, the Bureau of Environmental Services announced Sunday.
The pump serves Portland’s downtown area and the surrounding inner city.
There’s currently no public impact, but the bureau may be asking residents to limit usage.
“In the unlikely event that repairs take longer than anticipated, Environmental Services may issue a call for residents to limit flushing and dishwashing to allow for less flow into the system,” the bureau said in a press release.
Repairs are expected to be complete by Tuesday night.
The bureau says the only significant impact to a pump in the city occurred Saturday when a backup generator near East Burnside Street and 105th Avenue froze and sent sewage into approximately a dozen homes. Service was restored around 2 a.m. and crews are helping homeowners with cleanup, officials said.
Additionally, Portland’s main wastewater treatment plant had a power outage Friday night after a truck collided with a power pole, but crews were able to work overnight to maintain service and prevent damage to the plant.
People can follow the Big Pipe Tracker to see how much is being stored and how full the system is.
Plumbers tips for residential houses
With the cold and freezing temps the past few days (and forecast for the next few), plumbers have been inundated with calls from customers about how to keep pipes from freezing or bursting.
Westie Magnusson, the plumbing manager of 3 Mountains Plumbing, told KOIN 6 News they’ve had more calls since the winter storm arrived than what they’d get in a normal week.
He said it’s important to know how to stop the flow of water if your pipes burst.
“Know where your whole house shutoff is,” Magnusson said. “A lot of times it will be in the house in the garage or in your crawl space, but if nothing else there’s always one at the curb. … It usually has a small metal lid on it and you can pull it out.”
But prevention is possible.
Paul Hatton, the installation manager for 3 Mountains Plumbing, said pipes can freeze or burst when frozen pipes start to warm back up,
“Leave the cabinet door open to allow free air flow with the sink and also if you have valves that’s not connected to the sink itself,” Hatton said. “Under the sink you can shut those off because that’s likely to connected to outside faucet.”
And he said to disconnect the hose from the side of your home, making sure the exterior hoses are shut off and covered.
“Meaning there’s a cover over them like a foam cover from Home Depot or the very least wrap them up in a towel and keep them away from the elements,” he said.
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