Bringing Lone Chimney to DBP Compliance with the MCX™

Close to 12,000 Pawnee County residents in seven towns and five rural water districts trust the Lone Chimney Water Association to deliver crystal clear, sparkling clean water.

In response to issues with disinfection byproducts (DBPs) in their distribution system, the Lone Chimney Water Association, a 2 MGD (millions of gallons per day) water treatment plant, converted their system from free chlorine to chloramines.

Systems integration firm Schuermann Enterprises Inc. was tasked with the conversion. To meet the challenge of maintaining low free ammonia and minimizing nitrification events, Chris Schuermann, President of Shuermann Enterprises, put it plainly: “we needed analyzers that were [going to] be rock-solid reliable.”

Lone Chimney Water Association chose the MCX™ Monochloramine Analyzer.

Designed for up to 30 days of unattended, uninterrupted use, the MCX provides accurate readings every 15 to 20 minutes, delivering the consistent data the team at Lone Chimney needed to control nitrification events, ensure compliance, and provide clean water.

“We knew that this being a [remote] site was not some place that we were going to be able to service on a very regular basis,” said Schuermann, “so the reliability of the instrumentation and the ability of plant staff to maintain it was key to the selection of these components.”

Clean water is the cornerstone of any community, and with its easy chloramination monitoring and accurate results, the MCX Chloramination Analyzer helps ensure consistent, high-quality delivery to Lone Chimney’s customers.

The MCX also addressed reliability issues Lone Chimney experienced with a competitor’s system. “We started out with some of the competitor’s equipment…and right out of the box, it went to spewing chemicals inside the cabinet,” recalled CA McAlister, a Plant Operator at Lone Chimney.

Luckily, the MXC Chloramination Analyzer’s simple fluidics for ease-of-use, reliable operation, and HF scientific’s continued support have rendered reliability concerns a thing of the past.

At the Lone Chimney Water Association, the results speak for themselves. “We are now in compliance with the EQ on the disinfection byproducts.” said Operations Manager Paul Kinder. “We are very pleased with the analyzer we have now.”