Heads up on a weird suction line trick that saved our day in Mobile Bay

We had a persistent clog in the 12-inch line that wouldn't clear with normal pressure, so my deckhand suggested we briefly reverse the flow for 5 seconds. It worked perfectly and saved us two hours of downtime. Has anyone else tried a reverse pulse on a cutter suction line?

3 comments

3 Comments

lunag301mo agoMost Upvoted

We did that on a 10-inch line in Galveston last year (same clogged impeller issue). Just make sure your valves can handle the quick backflow.

tara7931mo ago

Back in '19 we learned the hard way on an 8-inch job near Port Arthur - had a valve blow out because we didn't check it first. Always give yours a good test before you crank the pump.

diana_west271mo ago

Wait, you reversed the flow for a full 5 seconds? I used to think that was way too risky, figured it'd just hammer the system. Saw a buddy try it on a 10-inch line near Biloxi a few years back and he blew a gasket on a coupling, made a real mess. But after reading this, I'm thinking maybe I was too careful - maybe a quick pulse with good valves is the trick, not just a gamble.