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« on: December 10, 2009, 05:18:57 PM » |
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I drove by that lot in Whittington Creek this afternoon and it's hard to believe a gas explosion can make a house that big disappear. One of my son's classmates lives next door. Their house will have to be vacated for about 8 weeks and the one on the other side has to be torn down because it was blown off it's foundation. It's amazing those parents lived through that.
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« Reply #1 on: December 10, 2009, 05:29:26 PM » |
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The One Man Gang
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« Reply #2 on: December 10, 2009, 06:34:11 PM » |
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It's called a "fuel air explosive" Link. We have a weapon in our inventory called the BLU-73: To whit: CBU-72 / BLU-73/B Fuel/Air Explosive (FAE)The the 550-pound CBU-72 cluster bomb contains three submunitions known as fuel/air explosive (FAE). The submunitions weigh approximately 100 pounds and contain 75 pounds of ethylene oxide with air-burst fuzing set for 30 feet. An aerosol cloud approximately 60 feet in diameter and 8 feet thick is created and ignited by an embedded detonator to produce an explosion. This cluster munition is highly effective against minefields, armored vehicles, aircraft parked in the open, and bunkers. The weapon is made up of three separate submunitions dispensing an aerosol fuel cloud across the target area. As the fuel cloud descends to the ground it is ignited by an embedded detonator to produce an impressive explosion. The rapidly expanding wave front due to overpressure flattens all objects within close proximity of the epicenter of the aerosol fuel cloud, and produces debilitating damage well beyond the flattened area. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/munitions/cbu-72.htm Ethylene oxide is not exactly the same as methane (natural gas) but the principle is the same as it is a flammable colorless gas. Methane has the added attraction of being ordorless as well, which is why a smell is added to the gas before it is piped into your home. More than you ever wanted to know about fire and explosions here: http://www.workingfire.net/misc12.htmHaving lost a home to fire myself, I certainly feel for these people. One day I was at home fat, dumb, and happy and about 2-3 hours later I was staring a big smoking hole in the ground and a chimney. Fortunately, everyone got out OK. |
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« Last Edit: December 10, 2009, 06:40:08 PM by onemangang »
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Please use your comments on this post to demonstrate your own ignorance, unfamiliarity with empirical data, ability to repeat discredited memes, and lack of respect for scientific knowledge. Kindly forgo all civility in your discourse. Be sure to create straw men and argue against things I have neither said nor even implied. Any irrelevancies you can mention will also be appreciated. Thank you.
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plumbervol
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« Reply #3 on: December 11, 2009, 09:50:05 PM » |
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This is a good time to mention that lack of real regulation and compliance in Tennessee as far as building codes outside of the top 5 or 6 cities is dangerous. I know lots of hard  conservatives in this enviroment can hold down costs and many folks like you Link don't have to pay your damn taxes. It appears the owner of this house went out and got some fly by night jack leg guy to install/fix etc his gas appliances and system in this house built out in the county away from regulatory bodies. That guy saved some money but the price was he blew his family up and killed his son. I am sorry for his son but he brought this on himself. The real tragedy is the neighbor was put in harms way and lost the use of his house when the system or lack of county government failed everybody and this guy saving a buck could have killed an innocent family next door. Maybe it was not the homeowners fault maybe he was just a dumb bastard and knew no better. But the lack of regulatory authority brought on by greedy bastards that refuse to do their civic duty and protect the community by voting in adequate government service to serve and protect the community is the real villain. |
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 That Which Doesn't Break Me, Only Makes Me Stronger Reflections on 12 years of Catholic Education.It is a bit embarrassing to have been concerned with the human problem all one's life and find at the end that one has no more to offer by way of advice than "try to be a little kinder". |
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« Reply #4 on: December 11, 2009, 10:26:58 PM » |
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Erm, Knox County has very strict codes for plumbing, wiring, gas and so forth and you know it. Tax rates have nothing to do with building codes and you know that as well.
You make it sound like this house was out in a field in Coffee County, that is not the case.
Ergo, your argument makes no sense.
BTW, conservatives have no problem paying their fair share of taxes. They do choke however, on being called on to pay MORE than their share whilst nearly EVERY member of Obama's cabinet has been fined and/or prosecuted for tax evasion. Conservatives find it particularly galling when those self-same evaders keep oinking that taxes need to be increased.
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« Last Edit: December 11, 2009, 10:28:19 PM by onemangang »
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Please use your comments on this post to demonstrate your own ignorance, unfamiliarity with empirical data, ability to repeat discredited memes, and lack of respect for scientific knowledge. Kindly forgo all civility in your discourse. Be sure to create straw men and argue against things I have neither said nor even implied. Any irrelevancies you can mention will also be appreciated. Thank you.
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plumbervol
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« Reply #5 on: December 11, 2009, 10:58:08 PM » |
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Erm, Knox County has very strict codes for plumbing, wiring, gas and so forth and you know it. Tax rates have nothing to do with building codes and you know that as well.
No they don't Pat, some of the worst in the south..... The City on the other hand is top 40% in the country. In the county you basically have one guy inspecting everything. It is so bad that many of the higher end developments require outside engineering groups to come in and inspect craftsmenship, design, installation, up and above the requirements of the county. This is done by requirements of the banks and financial institutions as a condition for financing. Here in the city it is usually the other way and the building inspectors come behind the engineering and architectural firms. Enforcement of code is only as strong as as the number of inspectors you put out into the field. The number of employees is directly tied to tax revenue. The City of Oak Ridge (an entity that has no jurisdiction over DOE facilities) has about 1/8 the number buildings of Knox County outside of the Knoxville City limits has more inspectors and higher standards. Federal installations do not fall under city or county jurisdiction, that is why many times the Fed agrees to locate facilities in leased buildings to add property taxes to local governments as TVA did for many years. That is why Lawler Woods is landlord over many HUD properties, it was negotiated into the proposals to add revenue. In Oak Ridge DOE pays direct funds into the City and County government entities for just that purpose. |
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That Which Doesn't Break Me, Only Makes Me Stronger Reflections on 12 years of Catholic Education.It is a bit embarrassing to have been concerned with the human problem all one's life and find at the end that one has no more to offer by way of advice than "try to be a little kinder". |
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« Reply #6 on: December 11, 2009, 11:18:09 PM » |
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PV, I quit reading your bull-crap about halfway into your attack on this poor man. You don't know SHIATE about what he did or didn't do in terms of paying for "quality" service or not. That's about the most sanctimonious crap you've ever written. I guess if it didn't blow a union label across the front yard, he was trying to get out cheap. Yeah, most people in million dollar homes are looking to cut corners. In all sincerity,  . |
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plumbervol
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« Reply #7 on: December 12, 2009, 09:26:41 AM » |
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No Link and that is the point, that is what I do for a living. I KNOW INTIMATLY about this situation. I and every other person who has responsability for either municipal or government facilities or utilities has had our required talking to about this or it is scheduled.
WKU is pointing its finger at the county, and the county at the homeowner.... I spent yesterday walking down our newly acquired county facilities in West Knoxville and Powell looking for shoddy shabby workmanship and or noncompliance of standards. We as well other orgs with county assets will be required to hire outside consultants to inspect our systems because of this mess. I can even tell you the type of material used in the installation in question. Corrugated Stainless Steel Tubing (CSST) This stuff when installed by professional trained certified technicians saves time and labor. The problems arise when additional installations are added on to by non trained and certified contractors. A brand known as Tracpipe is the top end and their seems to be some proprietary issues involved between connecting the various brands of CSST together. They all have their own connection systems to the various manifiolds and shut off valves located at every fixture. They are even looking into the type of pipe dope(pipe thread sealants) used. Some of the manifolds and valves require specific types of lubricants that do not peal debris into the line and clog port holes. They are designed to be pressure senstive and should shut off if the pressure is either to high or to low for safety.
I am sorry Link the reality is that folks who build those Million $$ mini mansions locate in the county to avoid taxes. Without the tax base their is very minimal oversite of building standards....The utility companies are put into a terrible squeeze, they are not supposed to connect service without testing and inspection, many do not trust the county oversite. The other biggie is that folks add on additional FIXTURES and never have the work inspected by the utility company or county because they require a permit to be pulled and fees to be paid.
What I am telling you Link is if you fall into the category of homeowner be very careful about adding on or changing out service into the existing pipe system in your house. Do a thorough self inspection, if something looks mickey mouse have it checked by someone other than a company that sends an employer to your house munching on a damn taco..
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« Last Edit: December 12, 2009, 09:28:43 AM by plumbervol »
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That Which Doesn't Break Me, Only Makes Me Stronger Reflections on 12 years of Catholic Education.It is a bit embarrassing to have been concerned with the human problem all one's life and find at the end that one has no more to offer by way of advice than "try to be a little kinder". |
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« Reply #8 on: December 12, 2009, 11:57:18 AM » |
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PV, I think it's pretty sorry that you use this thread to push your "Conservatives are evil" mantra. To attack this family by saying something you don't know to be true is low class even to your standards.
Pick another time and place to push your agenda.
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« Reply #9 on: December 12, 2009, 12:45:43 PM » |
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It appears the owner of this house went out and got some fly by night jack leg guy to install/fix etc his gas appliances and syste Unless you can substantiate...aka PROVIDE SOURCES (one of your favorite things) that statement, I don't want to read any more of your drivel. You seem to know everything. Tell us exactly WHO that "fly by night jack leg guy" is or STFU. The fact that you would make this a City vs. County/Rich vs. Poor/Democrat vs. Republican issue sickens me. |
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plumbervol
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« Reply #10 on: December 12, 2009, 12:54:23 PM » |
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Pick another time and place to push your agenda.
It is not my agenda to present this information, it is my resposability to do so for the public good!!! Example about 5 years ago a distant cousion and a owner of a chain of top end restaurtants in the Knox area bought a house in the Riverbend area. It was what I call a Mini Mansion over 4000 square feet, pool etc. It was in the county. It passed all building inspections and a house inspection at the time of sell. Something did not feel right, and he compared it to his Mom's house a west knox rancher, He called me to come look at it. His great Uncle was John F Whelahan and my family use to work for him. I went into this house and checked his gas piping and the first thing I noticed was that the Gas water heaters were mounted on the floor without a stand, a big no no  Next the pipe did not look right. It was ran in PVC glued pipe with threaded adapters PAINTED BLACK!! We re piped the house and in the attic was a faint smell of natural gas from a small pin hole in the glued joint. Gas cannot be ran in PVC lines ANYWHERE!! Long story short a tornado hit the area and leveled some houses next to him and it actually pulled the gas line up from the ground and shifted all of the pipe in nearly all the adjoining houses. It shifted his interior piping and actually ripped some ceiling joints the pipe was attached to. If he had not changed the piping it would have pulled the pipes apart and dumped gas in his living space. Why did that happen, loose enforcement of codes...... Poor tax base and poor government regulation and enforcement. Believe it or not State Mechanical and Plumbing license has a clause that requires that the holder take into account the publics safety and health!! Link I know that for a fact, and I can provide the source because I am it!! I am the source because I am used by the various government agencies to do piping evaluations for city, some county, some state and some federal agencies in my position. To be fair I have never seen the house in question, I only have to word of the City Mechanical and Plumbing Inspection body as a guide on this. You see they required us to be prepaired to show our property in the county meets state requirments.... |
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« Last Edit: December 12, 2009, 01:04:19 PM by plumbervol »
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That Which Doesn't Break Me, Only Makes Me Stronger Reflections on 12 years of Catholic Education.It is a bit embarrassing to have been concerned with the human problem all one's life and find at the end that one has no more to offer by way of advice than "try to be a little kinder". |
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plumbervol
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« Reply #11 on: December 12, 2009, 01:08:49 PM » |
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Link and Knowledge, this was a tragedy and I suppose you wanted me to comment on how terrible this was and perhaps throw in a note that I sent out prayers for the victim. I did pray for that poor kid. God helps those that help themselves. The best help is stepped up code enforcment and regulation...... The way to accomplish that is a well funded government org that requires compliance.
The difference is this is one of my fields of expertise and I actually know what the hell I am talki9ng about. That is not an opinion or political POV that is a damn FACT. I am sharing my knowledge with you folks as a public service
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« Last Edit: December 12, 2009, 01:11:45 PM by plumbervol »
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That Which Doesn't Break Me, Only Makes Me Stronger Reflections on 12 years of Catholic Education.It is a bit embarrassing to have been concerned with the human problem all one's life and find at the end that one has no more to offer by way of advice than "try to be a little kinder". |
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