Incline Village General Improvement District (IVGID) out of Lake Tahoe, NV designed a 2,500 linear feet steel water main distribution system replacement project. The project included pipe bursting (splitting) existing 6- and 8-inch steel water mains and replacing with new 8-inch Fusible C900 PVC pipe. The pipe bursting system utilized specialty cutters and expanders to safely and predictably split and expand the old, thin wall steel pipe. The static (hydraulic) pipe bursting method was utilized to provide positive power without using elastic cable. Splitting steel pipe requires pulling cutter with the elastic effect found using cable. The project is a typical residential water distribution system. Numerous water services, fire hydrants, gate valves will be removed and reconnected. The paper will demonstrate the practicality of pipe bursting in areas with these features. Steel pipe was widely used in many parts of the West after WWII. In the mountains, steel pipe was cut and welded together as needed to get around boulders and tree stumps. This is the reality of pipe bursting in mountainous areas.
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