Old timer told me to run the cutter head at half throttle in heavy clay

Been dredging on the Mississippi near Baton Rouge for about 5 years now. Met this retired operator named Carl at a diner last spring, he swore running the cutter head slower would keep the suction line from plugging in thick clay. I figured he was full of it, so I kept running full speed like always. Lost 3 hours last month clearing a blockage that cost the company like $400 in downtime. Tried his way yesterday on a nasty clay pocket and it cut through smooth as butter. Anyone else get handed advice from a vet that seemed wrong at first?

2 comments

2 Comments

joseph4551mo ago

Did you ask Carl what he figured was the reason it works better slow? Ive been thinking about it and my guess is that running the cutter head slower lets the clay actually shear off instead of just smearing around and packing tighter. When you spin it fast you might be basically polishing the clay face and creating more suction than the line can handle. My old man used to say the same thing about drilling in wet ground, go slow or you just make mud soup. Curious if Carl gave you the technical reason behind it or if he just knew it worked from years of cussing at broken equipment.

mary_wells1mo ago

Is it really that big of a deal? Losing a few hours on a blockage sucks but sounds like you got lucky once and now you're buying the hype.