 |
|
|
UER Store
|
|
order your copy of Access All Areas today!
|
|
|
 HungarianSM
  
Location: Toronto, Canada
Gender: Male
Eh?
 |  | Ontario Drains this time of year?
< on 2/26/2012 4:14 AM >
|  | | | Hey guys, I was just wondering if anyone could give me some advice regarding draining in this current (Unpredictable) weather? One minute its snowing like we're in nunavut, the next its sunny and +5 out, ugh...
What kind of noises should I watch out for that would indicate that the drain is flooding or the water is rising, I'm guessing running water and such, right?
also, would an asbestos respirator (P100) help with the stench in most of my neighbourhood drains? It seems like theres a permanent smell coming from any and all the drains near me 
Thanks a bunch!
Skys the limit! :)
|
|
archie
 
Location: Canada
Gender: Male
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 1 on 2/26/2012 4:21 AM >
| | | | As I passed a drain on today's excursion, I was surprised to notice the sound of rushing water. A -lot- of it. It wasn't geographically low or near a creek or a pond, and it's been absolutely dry today. It made me a little more concerned about draining.
Am curious to see what people answer as well.
|
|
Frogster
Location: Mississauga ON
Gender: Male
Either you run the day, or the day runs you!
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 2 on 2/26/2012 4:22 AM >
| | | | Draining at this time of year can be pretty risky. Doesnt really interest me all that much... but hey, if your into it and willing to take the risk, its up to you. The key is keeping your head up, having a good situational awareness, and avoiding putting yourself in a seriously dangerous position.
|
|
HungarianSM
Location: Toronto, Canada
Gender: Male
Eh?
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 3 on 2/26/2012 4:24 AM >
| | | | Thanks for the heads up, I've only done 1 drain before this one, and that was in the middle of winter with everything frozen solid, it did however make for a slippery adventure
Skys the limit! :)
|
|
Frogster
Location: Mississauga ON
Gender: Male
Either you run the day, or the day runs you!
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 4 on 2/26/2012 4:25 AM >
| | | | Aha, that would be fun! I would totally bring my skates down there and have sum fun ;)
|
|
ZenCanadian
Location: High Park, Toronto
Gender: Male
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 5 on 2/26/2012 10:46 AM >
| | | | A filter will not help with the stench, they are designed to filter out particulate.
Zen and the art of infiltration...
http://www.flikr.com/photos/zenslens
Zen is an uber explorer, a demi god of craning and purveyor of the finer things in life. |
|
Moderate
Location: Ottawa, ON
Gender: Male
| |  | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 6 on 2/26/2012 3:32 PM >
| | | | Posted by ZenCanadian
A filter will not help with the stench, they are designed to filter out particulate.
|
If you're worried about the stench, pick up a surplus NATO gas mask, replace the filters and you should have similar or better protection than a typical respirator. From personal experience it seems to cover up some smells, although from what I've read they won't???
I used mine to clean my cat's kitty litter, before changing to a different brand (of litter) that covers up the smell; also during tear gas/pepper spray testing, but that's a gas they're designed to protect against. The gas mask smells like rubber, that's it.
That said, it would limit your vision, especially peripheral vision, and you'll get tired more quickly while wearing it, especially in situations where you're physically exerting yourself. You'll also look like a creeper 
|
|
ZenCanadian
Location: High Park, Toronto
Gender: Male
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 7 on 2/26/2012 5:39 PM >
| | | | Having served in two different militaries and having had the (dis)pleasure of wearing a NATO gas mask, they do not really do much for the smell, it is a bit muted but not all that much. They restrict your breathing more then anything.
Zen and the art of infiltration...
http://www.flikr.com/photos/zenslens
Zen is an uber explorer, a demi god of craning and purveyor of the finer things in life. |
|
micro
 
Gender: Male
Slowly I turned
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 8 on 2/26/2012 8:25 PM >
| | | | 1. NEVER (EVER) take advice from people on here who either haven't been draining before or who aren't familiar with your city. I'd say that everyone talking in this thread so far would fit into one of these two categories.
2. If you think there's a stench coming from drains in Toronto then you either have an extremely sensitive nose or you're just not cut out for draining. The only noxious odour you're likely to experience every so often is that of gasoline or raccoon shit. Generally speaking though, if you can stomach wading through a creek, you can handle storm drains in Toronto.
3. 99% of the drains you encounter will have water flowing through them regardless of where they're located in the city. Rain or shine. Doesn't matter.
4. Spring melts can often raise the water levels of drains, but this probably won't happen abruptly the way it might if there's a thunderstorm. If you're concerned about melting snow then go at night when temperatures drop and you don't have the heat of the sun to worry about.
5. March and April tend to bring a lot of rain. Always check forecasts before you go anywhere. Check right before you leave the door. Don't plan on the forecast from the night before to be the same as the one you might see the morning you head out. It's fine to go draining if it's snowing, but be weary of snow that might be on the verge of turning into rain.
6. Good luck and have fun.
|
|
mortimer
 
Location: teronno
| | | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 9 on 2/26/2012 8:33 PM >
| | | | Having been in a few Toronto and area drains, I can say that you won't need a mask. If it smells bad enough that you think you need one, it's probably a sanitary sewer that you shouldn't be going in anyway. Most of the storm drains here smell like damp concrete (go figure), and the combined sewers tend to smell like dirty laundry. Overflow sewers might get a bit nastier, but if you've only done one drain before you probably wouldn't be finding your way into overflow or combined sewers anyway. If it is a storm drain and you think you need a mask, then something isn't right (gas buildup? illegal connections? chemical dumping by nearby business?) and you shouldn't be there, mask or not.
As for the weather, watch the weather reports. Heavy snowfall followed immediately by +5˚C temps? Don't go. Tip: it's usually colder at night.
Also, read this: http://www.urbex.o...oach/approach.html
Edit: micro posted while I was typing...so yeah, what he said too.
[last edit 2/26/2012 8:34 PM by mortimer - edited 1 times]
yep. |
|
kowalski
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 10 on 2/26/2012 8:33 PM >
| | | | Posted by HungarianSM
It seems like theres a permanent smell coming from any and all the drains near me
|
If things smell, you're probably looking at a sewer, not a storm drain. Please stay away from sewers until you really know what you are doing.
Post by archie
As I passed a drain on today's excursion, I was surprised to notice the sound of rushing water. |
You noticed the sound, but not the sight of running water, so I'm guessing that you mean you passed a manhole cover. While storm sewers retain enough water between rainfalls (and collect a bit of groundwater along the way as well) that they run all the time (as micro says above), unless you were on a hill where the drain would also be heading downhill at a more significant grade, you probably wouldn't really hear anything. You could also have heard a sidepipe unloading -- in a lot of places, parking garage sump pumps are tied into storm sewers, and unload into the main conduit every minute or two. But if you were in the lower part of Toronto, it's more likely that again, the manhole in question led to a sewer.
Please don't mess around with them, and please don't listen to anyone talking about gas masks.
|
|
ZenCanadian
Location: High Park, Toronto
Gender: Male
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 11 on 2/26/2012 8:59 PM >
| | | | Why is that kowalski? Do I not know what I'm talking about?
Zen and the art of infiltration...
http://www.flikr.com/photos/zenslens
Zen is an uber explorer, a demi god of craning and purveyor of the finer things in life. |
|
micro
Gender: Male
Slowly I turned
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 12 on 2/26/2012 9:13 PM >
| | | | Posted by ZenCanadian
Do I not know what I'm talking about?
|
Wearing a respirator mask in what appears to be a bathroom doesn't exactly project expertise.
|
|
skootles
Location: Toronto, ON
Gender: Male
Is the poop deck really what I think it is?
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 13 on 2/26/2012 9:27 PM >
| | | | Posted by micro
Wearing a respirator mask in what appears to be a bathroom doesn't exactly project expertise.
|
Not sure if serious...
|
|
ZenCanadian
Location: High Park, Toronto
Gender: Male
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 14 on 2/26/2012 9:38 PM >
| | | | Bathroom of the now gone Regal, which is one place I never took off the mask..asbestos heaven Thanks for coming out though.
Zen and the art of infiltration...
http://www.flikr.com/photos/zenslens
Zen is an uber explorer, a demi god of craning and purveyor of the finer things in life. |
|
ZenCanadian
Location: High Park, Toronto
Gender: Male
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 15 on 2/26/2012 9:40 PM >
| | | | Posted by micro
Wearing a respirator mask in what appears to be a bathroom doesn't exactly project expertise.
|
Oh and I never said I had experience in drains, I have been in one though. My experience comes from having worn gas masks over 6 years in the military and learning what they block out and what they don't.
Zen and the art of infiltration...
http://www.flikr.com/photos/zenslens
Zen is an uber explorer, a demi god of craning and purveyor of the finer things in life. |
|
HungarianSM
Location: Toronto, Canada
Gender: Male
Eh?
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 16 on 2/26/2012 9:52 PM >
| | | | Thanks for the input guys, and yeah the particular drain I'm talking about doesn't smell that bad, I'm just worried about sulfur, and other bad gasses, but those don't build up in Storm drains right?
The respirator I have isn't a simple p100 asbestos one, its on of those chemical cartridges which are good for chlorine, sulfur, and a variety of other chemicals + it also has a particulate filter on top of it, so I'm not too worried. i've used it while dealing with chlorine gas at the pool I work at, and I can vouch for it, but the cartridges are expensive
What do you guys think about draining alone? My neighbourhood is rather safe so no crackheads, etc... ?
Skys the limit! :)
|
|
ue20
Location: Ontario
Gender: Male
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 17 on 2/26/2012 10:37 PM >
| | | | What do you guys think about draining alone? My neighbourhood is rather safe so no crackheads, etc... ?
[/quote]
Really crackheads in drains? lol sorry thats funny, thats not an issue.
[last edit 2/26/2012 10:39 PM by ue20 - edited 2 times]
|
|
kowalski
| | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 18 on 2/27/2012 12:10 AM >
| | | | Posted by HungarianSM
Thanks for the input guys, and yeah the particular drain I'm talking about doesn't smell that bad, I'm just worried about sulfur, and other bad gasses, but those don't build up in Storm drains right? |
You need to read some more. Hydrogen sulfide is a dangerous gas that can be found in storm drains and sewers, and will smell at first (rotten eggs) before you become desensitized to it. It can and will kill you. I've run into H2S in storm drains, so don't think that the lack of sewage is any protection. Mud and leaves are as or more likely to kick up H2S if disturbed as stagnant human solids are.
| What do you guys think about draining alone? My neighbourhood is rather safe so no crackheads, etc... ? |
A very bad idea. I'm not worried about you getting mugged, I'm worried about you falling and hurting yourself, stepping/falling into somewhere where you could drown, getting yourself trapped behind a gate you could open by yourself in one direction but not the other, or walking into somewhere with a bad environment but no one to convince you it's bad and you need to get out of there. We've seen all these things happen, and without multiple people around to solve them things would have ended much worse.
Draining is not a lark, and I strongly encourage that if you don't have a good reason to do it, you are best not to. There is objective physical risk, and there is objective social risk, and for what? Most drains are incredibly boring.
|
|
Moderate
Location: Ottawa, ON
Gender: Male
| | | Re: Ontario Drains this time of year?
<Reply # 19 on 2/27/2012 1:32 AM >
| | | | I stand corrected, apparently gas masks only protect against cat crap
|
|
|
|
All content and images copyright © 2002-2024 UER.CA and respective creators. Graphical Design by Crossfire.
To contact webmaster, or click to email with problems or other questions about this site:
UER CONTACT
View Terms of Service |
View Privacy Policy |
Server colocation provided by Beanfield
This page was generated for you in 140 milliseconds. Since June 23, 2002, a total of 739491856 pages have been generated.
|
|
