One year ago, students and faculty began to notice bubbling and steaming around drains on the east side of the Olmsted Center. The bubbling eventually created a puddle that disrupted the sidewalk.
“Steam pipes buried can deteriorate, and with the pressure, a pinhole can develop, causing the steam to escape through the ground,” Kevin Moran, executive director of Facilities Planning and Management, said in an email interview.
These steam leaks occur in the steam and condensate lines, which carry water in a loop between the boiler and the buildings that use the hot water.
Facilities Planning and Management took measures to block off the area, now referred to by students as the Helmick Hole, from passersby.
“Barricades and fencing were installed along the sidewalk to provide safety for students, faculty and visitors using this walk,” Moran said.
Over the summer, the grounds team worked to repair the pipe by replacing the steam and condensate lines. The output of these lines was moved from a manhole in Helmick Commons to a manhole on the east side of Olmsted.
The Olmsted pipe leak repairs took less than a year to complete.
“This project was scheduled and completed over the summer to lessen the disruption to campus,” Moran said.
Students reported being slightly annoyed by the inconvenience of the pipe leak and subsequent repairs.
First-year Noa Levine thought back to Welcome Weekend. The project was reaching an end while students were gathering in Helmick Commons to meet with their First-Year Seminars.
“That area being blocked off was a little bit hard because there were so many first-years on the grass, and we were trying to get through, and we couldn’t walk on that area. It made it tighter,” Levine said.
First-year Brynn Dillow agreed, considering her own experiences during Welcome Weekend.
“When the whole sidewalk was closed off, that was hard because then you had to walk all the way around or go in the grass,” Dillow said.
Second-year Tatum Murphy recalled her experience from last year when she lived in Crawford Residence Hall.
“The biggest thing is probably there was more maintenance that was happening,” Murphy said. “There were more times that the water was shut off or cold. And also, it was just kind of a pain to work around because it was in the middle of campus.”
Students have also expressed concerns about other pipes around campus. Dillow noticed a leak in the Carpenter Residence Hall ceiling that led to a ceiling tile disintegrating and collapsing on the floor.
“They fixed it, but that’s concerning to me because it’s mold,” Dillow said.
Moran said that with old and aging infrastructure, there is a chance of future pipe issues, but Facilities Planning and Management hope to prevent problems or mitigate the risks before situations arise.
“Regular inspections, pressure monitoring, and maintenance are being used to identify areas of concern before leaks occur,” Moran said.
