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Did you ever wonder what insects make that very loud buzzing sound in trees during the daytime in summer? Well, it's a widely heard but rarely seen kind of insect called a cicada. The ones you hear every summer are non-periodical, some of them appearing as adults every year despite requiring several years to develop to adulthood; but the ones appearing as adults in the next few years that can overwhelm your cooling towers, evaporative condensers and air handling units emerge as adults in 17 year intervals in large and generally non-overlapping geographic regions of the northeastern United States. Because of this separation in time and place, these species are called periodical cicadas, and their various widespread populations are called broods. A total of a dozen such broods are recognized. The single largest 17-year brood, known as "Brood X" [ten] is expected to appear in sixteen states in 2004 (see figures 1 and 2 below for state and county distribution), while another 17-year brood should appear in four states in 2007, and yet another in 12 states in 2008 (many the same as for Brood X). One can identify periodical cicadas by the combination of largely black bodies, reddish eyes, and reddish veins in their wings. If your company is in a region affected by Brood X this year, you need to begin planning how you will deal with the potential problem because it can have a devastating impact on your operation if you wait until it is too late.

So What's The Big Deal?
When Periodic Cicadas emerge, their population density is enormous and can exceed 1million per square acre (several hundreds of thousand is usual). If your facility is in a brood infested region and your cooling towers, evaporative condensers and air handling units are in or near naturally forested areas or, surrounded by trees your system may be vulnerable. Please note that this otherwise harmless insect can be sucked into your equipment while flying past the draft zone of the intake opening as they make their way to the nearest tree.

Location Of Your Equipment Can Help Determine If Your System Is At Risk.
Units located on rooftops and away from trees or, in the middle of a paved area are less likely to encounter cicada related problems then those that are near the ground or surrounded by trees or woody plants. If your facility is immediately adjacent to or, nestled away in affected wooded areas, your systems are likely to be at risk.

How Big Are They And When Will They Emerge?
These insects are about the size of your little finger, measuring about 0.5 inches wide and 1.5 inches long. There are three species or kinds that usually emerge mixed together in the same area. Their songs are quite different, and they vary in average size. They are expected to emerge from the soil in early May and June, and are active as adults (only males sing) for 30-50 days. During their short time above ground, they feed both day and night by sucking the sap of trees and other woody plants. They do not chew or bite leaves or people. The songs of males promote mating. After mating, females lay hundreds of eggs in woody tissue, by making slits in the bark of pencil-sized twigs. Shortly after mating and laying eggs, the adult cicadas die, leaving massive numbers of carcasses everywhere. In about nine weeks the eggs hatch and pale ant-sized baby cicadas drop from the twigs to the ground where they burrow underground and remain there for 17 years, sucking sap from the roots of plants.

Here's What Can Happen
As one Stationary Steam Engineer, working at a major consumer products manufacturer in the Cincinnati, OH area puts it, "The last time the Periodic Cicadas emerged, we had to clean our cooling tower strainers and flume several times per day. If we didn't clean the strainers, we would lose our chiller due to high-pressure conditions and it would shutdown our cooling system. We had to maintain our cooling towers around the clock just to keep our systems operational".

If your facility is in an affected area and you don't anticipate emergence of the Cicadas, it can impact your annual maintenance budget and have an economic impact on your business. Here's how:

Cooling Towers & Evaporative Condensers:

• Clog Cooling Tower Fill - reducing airflow.
• Overwhelm sump water increasing organic content and increasing bacteria count.
• Increase water treatment chemical consumption and associated cost.
• Clog strainers, reduce flow rate and impact chiller efficiency.
• Clog solenoid blow-down valves in the open position, resulting in increased make-up water and water treatment chemical consumption
• Clog heat exchangers reducing flow rate and heat transfer efficiency
• Can cause production downtime, lost productivity and missed shipments.
• Increase maintenance cost.

Air Handling Units

• Clog Internal Filters
• Load Intake Air Pathways with insect debris
• Increase Filter Changes
• Reduce Internal Air Quality
• Cause Excessive Service & Maintenance Cost

In short, Periodic Cicadas can cause real havoc to companies that are not prepared.

How You Can Prevent Trouble

1. First of all you need to determine if you are located in an affected region - If you had a problem the last time they emerged and there has been little construction or disruption to the soil or forested area around your operation, then you are likely to have trouble again (See Fig. 2).
2. If you are in an affected region, It is recommend that you identify your most critical systems and set extra maintenance dollars aside specifically for protecting and maintaining those systems (systems that support production or other revenue generating operations are key) - anticipate extra maintenance, service, increased water treatment chemical consumption, frequent filter changes on air handlers, overtime or investment in preventative technology such as Air Intake Filters that stop the insects and debris from entering your systems).
3. Research your alternatives. Water filtration and air intake filtration are two good options. Depending upon the level of protection you are seeking, each provide varying degrees of protection - Water filtration will help you to manage the insects and other airborne debris after it has entered the cooling tower and will protect down stream systems including chiller and heat exchanger; however, water filtration does little to protect the cooling tower where most of the maintenance will be required. Air Intake Filtration Systems that mount to the outside of the cooling tower or other air intake openings (as in chillers and air handling units) will filter the air as it is entering the system stopping the debris at the point of entry and protecting your entire system. Long after the Cicadas have come and gone, use of Air Intake Filters will provide long term protection against annual airborne debris (including: cottonwood seed, small & large insects (e.g., May Flies / Fish Flies, Lady Bugs, Cicadas), leaves, pine needles, paper and wrappers, harvest chaff, construction debris, birds and more).

Anticipation and Prevention is Key Knowing if you will be affected and developing a plan of action is the first step in avoiding impact to your operation. Taking a preventative approach is usually more cost effective than simply reacting when the problem occurs and can literally save you thousands of dollars while keeping your operation running smoothly.

What Not To Do
When airborne debris becomes a serious problem, the natural tendency is to look for something to cover the intake opening to prevent entry of the debris. Never use window screen, roll filter media or mesh purchased from a hardware store to cover air intake openings on cooling towers or, evaporative condenser units; these materials are not designed to allow proper airflow and can drastically increase static pressure, increase energy cost and impede cooling efficiency. When using air intake filtration it should provide less than 1/10inch drop in static pressure (as measured in inches H2O). Air intake filtration specifically designed for use on cooling towers and evaporative condensers and chillers is highly recommended.

Air Solution Company developed and patented the first Air Intake Filter specifically engineered to mount to the outside of cooling towers and other HVAC equipment for purposes of stopping the debris before it entered into the system. Since that time, Air Solution Company has been manufacturing and has introduced a variety of other innovative filter systems including its new Fine Mesh Filter which is engineered for use on small and medium size refrigeration coils and machine fan intake housing units. Air Solution Company Randy Simmons is with Air Solution Company, author of articles can be reached at http://www.airsolutioncompany.com

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1. Eat 5-6 small meals per day.

Your body uses physical, uncomfortable cues to guide you to action based on physiological needs. When you are thirsty, your body is telling you that you are dehydrated and you need to drink. When you have to urinate, there is an uncomfortable feeling of a full bladder, which gets worse if you do not relieve yourself. Upon receiving these cues, would you ignore them simply because you are busy? Most often, thirst and the need to urinate are acted upon immediately, so the stimulus never gets too powerful. Hunger is the body's way of telling you that you need to eat. Don't ignore it! If fact, it is best to avoid hunger all together, so you dont feel the urge to run to the refrigerator the same way you may run to the rest room when pulling over on a long car trip.

Also, since every meal should contain a balance of protein, carbs, and healthy fats, all the different digestion mechanisms will be activated to digest the mini-meals, which burns more calories when digesting your set number of calories.

2. Include lean protein at every meal.

Eating protein at every meal gives your body a constant supply of amino acids. When sugar is made in the body, amino acid carbon skeletons are often utilized. A diet that is higher in protein prevents the body from using your muscle stores to make sugar. Also, many studies show that diets which are moderately high in protein (~30% of calories as protein) allow for greater muscle retention during weight loss. Furthermore, protein is the most important nutrient for satiety-- you will not feel hungry as quickly. A 30% protein diet has not caused medical problems in research.

Good examples of lean protein include tilapia, skin-less chicken breast, turkey breast, 95% lean ground beef, some pork loins/chops (check nutritional info on package), 1% cottage cheese, and textured vegetable protein.

3. Eat raw, non-starchy vegetables and fruits frequently.

Always have non-starchy vegetables available for as your new "snack food." They are good for you, fill you up, and give you something to chew on when you just feel like chewing on something. Also include non-starchy vegetables at most meals; vegetables make a reduced calorie diet far more substantial.

Good examples are broccoli, collard greens, spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, celery, water chestnuts, peppers, onions, and a multitude of others.

Eat 2-3 servings of low-glycemic fruits a day. Fruits are high in antioxidants, fiber, and generally very low in calories. For example a small piece of cheap white bread has 60-80 calories-- a cup of strawberries has only 50.

Good examples of fruits that fit in this category are nectarines (~60 calories), plums (~35 calories), peaches (~65 calories), strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and apples. Remember, fresh is usually best. If you buy frozen fruits, make sure there is no added sugar.

4. Choose mostly whole grains.

The best whole grains are still completely intact and have not been processed or are minimally processed. Examples are brown rice, barley, quinoa, bulgur, and old-fashioned oats (which have been minimally processed because of the rolling). The germ (high in B vitamins and healthy fats), endosperm (carbohydrate portion), and bran (makes you regular) are all in their natural, intact forms.

5. Learn to cook and make the majority of your food at home- buy stock in tupperware.

The only way to know a food fits into your diet is if you make it! You needn't restrict yourself to exclusively broccoli and haddock (though these are both excellent foods).

Fresh herbs can be put on pretty much anything. They are absolutely wonderful and add tons of flavor without calories, fat or salt. As an added benefit, many herbs and spices have health benefits, including garlic, parsley, and turmeric. Use herbs and spices early and often. Have an "herb of the week" and put it on everything you cook. The herb will not work with everything, but you will learn how flavors blend and become a better cook.

Pick up random vegetables and look up how to prepare them online. I've discovered the joys of collard greens, fresh water chestnuts, and purple cabbage in this way.

A little salt is okay! It adds flavor without adding calories-- try adding dry soup mixes to roasted vegetables and meats.

6. When you eat out, eat a full serving of protein before leaving-- order a broth based soup without high fat meat added or a salad with all nuts, cheese, and dressings on the side.

This tip serves a couple of purposes. Firstly, the about of protein in the salad will probably be inadequate to keep you satisfied. Secondly, you will not arrive completely famished and will be able to maintain your eating plan. Request fruit, sorbet, or coffee for an after dinner treat!

7. Hide or eliminate all junk food from your kitchen and house.

It's a proven fact, if you can see it, you are more likely to eat it. It is optimal to remove these foods altogether; however, if your family will not allow you to be the nutrition police, then hide all distractors in cupboards on the highest shelf.

8. Focus on water based foods with a lot of weight, volume, and fiber.

This tip confirms the important of eating of lean protein, non-starchy vegetables, fruit, broth-based soups, and 1% or fat-free dairy. Research shows that people are likely to eat the same volume of food every day. Water adds volume to food without adding calories; hence, you can eat the same volume of food and reduce your overall calories for the day. This is why regular cheddar cheese has fewer calories per gram than dry fat-free pretzels.

9. Get moving!

Successful weight loss requires both healthy diet and exercise. If you do not exercise already, start off small-- take the stairs, park far away from building, go for a walk on a nice day! As you become used to being more active, consider formal exercise. It is most important that you find something you like to do! Try group classes or training for a race!

10. Announce goals and keep supportive company.

Announcing a goal makes it official. A goal is both specific (you are measurable a specific thing inches, weight, number of calories you will take in each day, etc.) and measurable (you give a number to say how much, time limits, etc). An example of a goal: I will take one multivitamin each morning.

Supportive company is key-- find someone who is as excited about your health and fitness goals as you are-- give them regular, but brief, updates about your progress. Explain to people who may be less supportive why weight loss is important to you. Keep a healthy and positive attitude and unsupportive people may alter their views.

Jean Jitomir is a Cornell graduate, registered dietitian, Exercise Nutrition PhD student and nationally competitive bodybuilder. She has lost over 30 lbs since she became active 5 years ago and does weight-loss counseling on a daily basis.

www.jeanjitomir.com

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