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r .. ~..... ,.. <br />Plan of Study for City of North Olmsted Phase I by Floyd Browne Group January 4, 2006 <br />Table 1. The residents of North Olmsted were very helpful and cooperative in obtaining this <br />information. They are very interested in getting the problems identified and repaired. <br />Residential Inspections <br />The residential inspections were very helpful and revealing. Some homes were originally on a <br />septic system that was later abandoned into the sanitary sewer in the late 1960s. Many of the <br />residents do not know where their foundation drains connect. During the August 20`h storm (see <br />Appendix D), flooding occurred in many areas, but in this report, we have tried to focus on the <br />areas where a large number of people were flooded. There are some isolated cases that <br />should be investigated on an individual basis to determine the specific problem such as a <br />clogged lateral, lowest house in the area, etc. Each home should have both a storm lateral and <br />a sanitary lateral with cleanout tees near the street so that dye testing or internal televising of <br />the lateral could easily be performed. In this study, we have tried to give an overview and <br />summarize some of the major issues affecting the proper operation of the sanitary sewer <br />system. <br />Observations revealed that many foundation drains connect into the floor drains. The lowest <br />floor elevations in most houses were below the level of the storm sewer system. On <br />November 15, 2005 during a light rain (see Appendix D), sewer maintenance crews internally <br />videotaped the sewer line on Doe Drive in Deerfield Estates showing that over 75% of the <br />sanitary laterals were discharging a steady flow of relatively clean water. This is a good <br />confirmation that many homes have foundation drains connected to the sanitary sewer. Some <br />residents have water proofed the basements, replaced their foundation drains, and installed <br />sump pumps to divert the ground water to the storm sewer system. However, since the sump <br />pump discharge connections were made below ground, it could not be confirmed that the clean <br />water was going to the storm sewer. Some dye testing should take place in the future to <br />determine if these existing systems are properly connected. Some residents have installed <br />battery backup systems on their sump pump in case of power outages. During the August 20`h <br />storm, some sump pumps could not keep up with the flow entering the system. In this case, <br />either the foundation drains are cross-connected with the sanitary sewer lateral or the sump <br />pump is not large enough to handle the flow. The storm sewer system in the area is very <br />shallow and cannot service the basement foundation drains without a sump pump. <br />Many of the downspouts have been disconnected from below grade and use splash pads <br />around the house foundation. Some sinkholes in the yards and around the foundations were <br />observed and would indicate that storm water is getting into the foundation drains and then into <br />the sanitary sewer. The downspouts for all of the homes in the area should be dye tested and <br />repaired in order to convey the roof water to the storm water system. In discussions with the <br />residents, there appears to be a recirculation of storm water when a sump pump is being <br />utilized. <br />There are numerous driveway drains, yard drains, and outside stairwell drains that were <br />observed. The yard drains may connect to a shallow storm water system at the rear of some <br />properties, but these should be dye tested to confirm the discharge location. Many of the <br />drainage swales and shallow storm water pipes are not functioning properly due to landscaping, <br />filling of low areas, and other obstructions thus causing flooding in some backyards. Due to the <br />shallow rock layer this could be contributing to the footer drain flow especially during severe <br />storm events and saturated soil conditions. The driveway and stairwell drains are below the <br />10 <br />