Project Name: Utica's 2024 Spring Maintenance Outage

Status: Complete

Description: 

During this planned outage, Utica's conveyance and operations teams completed key infrastructure upgrades and repairs across canals, flumes, and powerhouses:

• Flume Repairs:
  • Flume 11: Rebuilt the rotted and leaking outlet transition box.
  • Flume 19: Replaced the entire short flume due to dry rot. Work was completed just before a spring snowstorm using emergency lumber stockpiled at Hunters.
• Waste Gate 24 Upgrade:
  • Installed a new automated slip gate as part of a Water Smart grant. The concrete foundation was completed in November 2023; this phase completed frame and gate installation.
• Cal Fire Support:
  • Assisted with flume repair and storm cleanup, especially along Angels Canal, which was heavily impacted by fallen trees and limbs from a late-season snowstorm.
• Hazard Tree Removal:
  • Removed 15 dead Ponderosa pines near Candy Rock Rd. along the Utica Canal. Cal Fire supported debris clearing, though more beetle-killed trees still need to be addressed.
• Upper Angels Canal Gaging Station:
  • Installed an intake pipe and stilling well to improve water flow monitoring and speed up response times to blockages from fallen trees.
• Angels Forebay Cleaning:
  • Annual sediment removal was completed to prevent aquatic growth that could clog infrastructure at the Angels Powerhouse.
• Angels Powerhouse Hydraulic Pump Motor:
  • On April 11, the hydraulic pump motor failed during the oil warming process. This motor controls deflectors critical for startup/shutdown safety.
  • A same-day emergency rewind was completed with Industrial Electric, and the motor was reinstalled by operator Mike Eimheiser on April 12, restoring full operation.
• Murphys Afterbay Generator Replacement:
  • Gold Electric completed a warranty-based engine replacement for the 25 kW standby generator on April 4. The unit is now back online.
• Murphys Powerhouse Governor Retrofit:
  • Completed and brought online at 10 p.m. on April 12. Thanks to outstanding in-house efforts, the team completed the retrofit before onsite contractor support arrived—minimizing delays and ensuring relay protections and controls were successfully configured.

Timeline: April 1, 2024 - April 12, 2024

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