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Found a trick for clearing a jammed cutterhead in 10 minutes flat
Had a cutterhead lock up solid on a job in Baton Rouge last Tuesday. Packed with roots and mud, just dead stopped. Crew was ready to call for a barge and haul it out. I remembered an old guy telling me once about running the pump in reverse to backflush the head. Tried it on a whim, just switched the valves and let the water push back through. Cleared the whole mess out in under 10 minutes, no disassembly. Anyone else ever used that trick or got another way to unstick a cutterhead without pulling it?
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wesley_adams1mo agoMost Upvoted
Done that more times than I can count. Just make sure you open the right valve or you'll blow a hose. Saved our ass on a job in Mobile a few years back.
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milacraig1mo ago
Honestly that Mobile job sounds like it was a close call. Ngl I've had a few moments like that myself where you think you've got it all figured out and then BAM a hose goes. Tbh it's that split second of "did I turn the right one?" that gets your heart racing every single time. Glad you had that trick in your back pocket though, those old systems can be finicky as hell. Wesley knows what's up with those valves, gotta respect that.
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