Dervin Witmer Seeks a Better Small-Lot Treatment Solution

Dig-It Excavating used Infiltrator Advanced Treatment Leachfield technology to cope with a small-lot replacement system

Jan 08, 2021 | by David Steinkraus |

Infiltrator Water Technologies Leaching System Michigan Indiana Advanced Treatment Unit Drainfield Onsite System Design Kenworth Truck Co. Caterpillar, Inc. SlatTrax Trimble Sand engcon

Dervin Witmer Seeks a Better Small-Lot Treatment Solution — With the trenches dug, the Dig-It crew begins laying lines of Infiltrator’s Advanced Treatment Leachfield on a bed of sand. Jim Sanders, left, sets the lines while Dervin Witmer runs the excavator. (Photos courtesy Dervin Witmer)

Dervin Witmer Seeks a Better Small-Lot Treatment Solution — There was little room to maneuver at the Dig-It Excavating job in northern Indiana. The Kenworth T880 was eased in next to the house to drop loads of fill sand, and the Caterpillar 299 track loader distributed it.

Dervin Witmer Seeks a Better Small-Lot Treatment Solution — A SlatTrax system of recycled plastic panels protected the driveway from damage at the Indiana project and also minimized compaction of the lawn when equipment was moved to the backyard job site, also when a big Kenworth T880 brought in loads of sand and fill.

Dervin Witmer Seeks a Better Small-Lot Treatment Solution — As Joshua Sanders, left and Jim Sanders, second from left, check depths, Dervin Witmer uses the Cat 310 excavator to drop the first loads of fill sand. Because of the tight working space, the excavator was used for initial filling until the sand depth was great enough to support a track loader.

Dervin Witmer Seeks a Better Small-Lot Treatment Solution — With the job in the ground, the Dig-It Excavating technicians used their Caterpillar 299 track loader to bring the last loads of fill to return the job site to grade.

Indiana Atl 1119

Indiana Tight 1113

Indiana Trax 1106

Indiana Sand 1145

Indiana Loader 1176

The system in the Indiana subdivision failed due to nothing more than old age and heavy soil. A couple of the old trenches were plugged, the result of root intrusions from the extensive landscaping around the house. Dervin Witmer, owner of Dig-It Excavating of Cassopolis, Michigan, started looking for solutions. The job was located north of South Bend, Indiana, and only 1,000 feet from the state line, but this gave Dig-It the opportunity to use the Infiltrator Water Technologies Advanced Treatment Leachfield, a technology recently approved by St. Joseph County, Indiana. The lot was 118 feet by 155 feet. A 15-foot drainage

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