what's in a name

"Hudson is beyond a character. Hudson is an archetype of a caricature of a character." - Bob Z

On the site characters may exceed the generally accepted street level boundaries. Guys like Hot Chocolate, Hawk, Iceman, Rhino, Frosty and Teeter all exist. They may have other names and characters, however the important thing is that they have characters. The Soul Brothers don't show up every day as whatever they are at home - or maybe they do. It's of no concern. The important thing is that every day they show up as Soul Brothers.

A house favorite then is Frosty. A mascot of the industry. Apparently he has a real name too. It's only spoken in whispers.... Now in his 60's he rocks instant messaging with the brat age, and parties every night - hence the "Frosty" beer nickname - emblazoned on his name tag.

Like Andy. He hasn't had a day when the clock strikes seven before he's lit someone up. It's hard to beat a 6:55AM warm-up on cold wintry morning.

Duct banks - heating PVC for the bends

The Greenlee PVC heater #847 helps get the blues outta the bends and saves a lot of money in couplings and prefabricated PVC bends. Overheating, however is a real concern and may lead to egg-shaped pipe. For best results set the timer, and be prepared with an extra hand in the ditch. In cold weather all of this is more critical as it may require 20+ minutes to heat a a single piece of PVC.

Photo
In the photo at left a piece has been overheated and removed. It's tricky to get the temperatures perfect in 15-20 degree weather - this piece'll be used for smaller cuts.

Tech specs
In general the older fellas on the site say they are comfortable getting ~22-45 degree bends in the pipe, and favor using couplings for anything over 10-15 degrees. Some of the younger and more ambitious guys swear they'll get several bends up to 90 degrees and beyond... am waiting to see it.

Tips
Probably the best thing to remember is that you need to heat the pipe only where you want to bend it. Most of the PVC heaters are ~4-6 feet in length and your pipe may be 8-10 feet long. Center the pipe where you know you need a bend and it'll save you time in the ditch.

Video - a nice 20-30 degree bend sent home (Rodney top, Ryan + Harley ditch)
Credits
Faulconer construction credits: Andy Fitzgerald = Superintendent - Greg and Dan Baily = foremen - Rodney on the top with the heater - Harley St Clair and Ryan in the pit

Andy Fitzgerald at the center of CAS and ITE development

Andy Fitzgerald, aka Fitz, aka Cue Ball - 'cause he calls all the shots - aka dip lip - cuz he drools on hisself - has developed UVa's utility infrastructure for the last eighteen years - way up on the UVa Grounds underground - an expert in sewer, storm, duct bank, water, chilled water, steam tunneling and then some.

Not here for a long time, we're here for a good time

Dan Bailey during a reflective rest.


A free meal never hurts either...Thanks Bob Zerringher and Steve Ratcliff (with Ryan, Rodney, George at the table)

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Juan

Justin and Hudson

Andy Fitzgerald, Ben Morris, Richard