Erosion Control June 2012 : Page 38
produced long coils of 8-inch-diameter socks, up to 150 feet long, which our client placed on level ground by using a skid-steer. “This client likes the 8-inch size sock, but we can palletize up to 18-inch socks, although those are really heavy—approx-imately 67 pounds per foot,” he notes. “The client used the smaller 8-inch blown-in socks as slope interruption de-vices and check dams. As this particular site may sit and not be developed for the next five years, they wanted the products to last—something they wouldn’t have to keep replacing, or that needed continual maintenance, such as wattles or silt fence. Other erosion control methods might have been cheaper up front, but in the long run, Filtrexx was less costly. Some firms have to learn that lesson the hard way,” he chuckles. Kolodge did whatever made the job easier for his client. “As it was a challenge to take the socks up slopes, blower-truck installation solved that problem. We also blew and lined socks on pads so the homebuilder’s crews could cut them to size and move them around where they need them. Some early rains ear-lier in fall 2011 really tested the perfor-mance of newly installed compost socks, but our client’s consulting engineer was pleased—there were no failures. “The client had also put a tremendous amount of hydromulch with seed on the slopes for erosion control. In some cases, they were not careful and covered the Filtrexx Soxx with hydromulch. If you do that, it seals the mesh, and the sock then acts like a straw wattle—the hydromulch stops its filtering capacity. However, if mulch gets onto the socks, you can simply take a broom, or some-thing that won’t damage the sock, and remove the hydromulch, which easily restores the sock’s filtering capabilities. But if you don’t remove the mulch, the socks will still be as effective as a straw wattle, yet last three to five times longer under normal conditions.” The pallet program allows Kolodge’s firm to offer products to a variety of clients. “When a storm comes up, people call and say they want BMPs right now . So we palletize them and have our dis-tributor ship them to a site. Because Filtrexx SiltSoxx are so sturdy, you can stack them, to get more height when needed, so your site can handle higher 38 EROSION CONTROL WWW.EROSIONCONTROL.COM flow rates of stormwater.” Kolodge explains, “The sock is a con-tainment system for moving composted mulch where you need it and keeping it in place. But not just any compost might work as intended. People should be trained how to properly install socks, even if they have good socks and me-dium; you need to know the basics to get the best results. Filtrexx provides SWPPP [stormwater pollution prevention plan] cut sheets and an extensive online design manual on the proper use and installa-tion of compost socks, at no charge. The last thing we want is someone not know-ing what they’re doing; that won’t serve