Has anybody seen these. They are made of large diameter metal pipes (probably about 12’’) coming about 2 feet out of the ground? I had always assumed they were some sort of vents for the sewer lines. But there is a field near my house that must have 50 or 100 of these. Since they are such an eyesore I figured if they were vents they would combine them and have a few large ones rather then so many smaller ones. Also on a somewhat related note. I also wondered about something that lookes like an arrow pointing up (also made out of pipes) that I usually see near railroad crossings. Any ideas??
Was the field built over a landfill or something? Maybe they’re letting methane out.
Or perhaps they’re to vent radon.
Drydocked submarines, probably.
They’re one-half of a giant alien velcro pad that will be used on December 12, 2012 to pluck the planet out of orbit and doom humanity.
My guess is they have something to do with wells. Is there a water company office nearby?
My guess would be part of a leaching field (waste water drainage into the ground)
Sounds like they are growing Candy Cane trees 
Maybe there is a bunker underneath (and I’m serious too).
Where did my post go? 
Oh, well…try it again.
They’re “leach field vents”, part of the private sewer system (septic field) for the nearest subdivision.
http://www.cmhhealth.org/images/Leach%20field.jpg
From this website.
http://www.cmhhealth.org/programs/water%20sewage%20permit%20policy.htm
Oh my God, I just spewed tea all over my monitor.
Robin Leach lives underground?
Oh, the Lives of the Rich & Famous …
But leaching field vents are not 12 inches in diameter. The ones I’ve seen are white PVC and are just a couple of inches in diameter.
Right. I know exactly what you’re talking about, and this is it.
On the diagram of the entire field, the leach field vent is at the very bottom left, indicated by the circled dot. There’s an arrow pointing from the picture of the vent over to the right, to where it goes in the field. Then there’s another arrow pointing diagonally down to the right, to the pix of either the 180 elbow or slotted cap. Neither of these looks like they are 12" in diameter–they look like they’re only a few inches in diameter, just like the ones you’re describing.
On the diagram on the left, the thing that is 12" is part of the trench for the pipes. The trench itself is 8" wide, so the vent has to be narrower than 8".
I hope this is making sense.
Two questions then, why is it that sometimes I’ll see a single one on the side of a very busy intersection, and sometimes I’ll see a field with 50 to 100 of them (honestly it loooks like a plumbers graveyard).
Well, the field full of them is probably the private sewer system (septic field) for the nearest subdivision or apartment complex.
I’m guessing that the single one (I’ve seen them, too) is just some kind of gas venting for the regular sewer system.
Oh, oh, OH! Mr. Kotter! Mr. KotTER! I know, I know!
The ones at intersections are casing vents. When pipelines go under roadways (auto or rail), they are wrapped in a casing so that the weight of the roadway does not rest on the pipe. The space between the pipeline and the casing is vented. Now, if I just remember why the casing is vented… :rolleyes:
Go Rriggstx!
Two postings since 1999! I love when a doper gets excited about a post.
Time for Teletubbies. Time for Teletubbies
I hope you haven’t ruled out Fraggle Chimineys?
Seriosly now. If they’re all methane vents, wouldn’t Joey P’s place have a nice fart fragance all day?