464 Corrosion Coupons, Brand Building, and Having Fun at Trade Shows with Will Ritter
Release Date: 02/20/2026
468 Born into Water Treatment: Tom Brandvold on AWT’s Origin Story and a Life in the Industry
Scaling UP! H2O
Tom Brandvold, CWT, has lived industrial water treatment from the inside out. In this conversation, he traces that path from sweeping floors and running sample bottles as a kid to leading Premier Water and Energy Technology and serving as a former president of . The result is not just a career story. It is a useful look at how credibility, collaboration, and standards are built over time in this industry. How Association of Water Technologies (AWT) was formed One of the most valuable parts of this discussion is Tom’s explanation of how Association of Water Technologies (AWT) began. The...
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467 From PhD to Pump Rooms: Jake Elliott on Wastewater, Efficiency, and Saying “Yes” Wisely
Scaling UP! H2O
What happens when a water chemist leaves the lab and heads to the pump room? knows firsthand. A former PhD researcher who studied resource recovery from trade‑waste customers, Jake now manages accounts at in Melbourne, working with cooling towers, boilers, chemical dosing rigs and wastewater treatment systems. He joins host Trace Blackmore to discuss how rigorous research, regulatory compliance and process automation translate into practical field work for industrial water treatment professionals. From PhD Research to Industrial Practice Jake’s academic background informs the way he...
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466 Stories, Math, and “Never Again” Moments: Inside AWT Technical Training with Dan Merritt (Part 2)
Scaling UP! H2O
AWT’s in‑person technical training is a keystone for developing competent water treaters. Yet classroom knowledge only matters when it survives the drive home and emerges later in the field. In this second conversation with —National Sales Manager at and head of AWT’s education committee—Trace Blackmore uncovers how stories, math, and memorable mistakes turn theory into intuition. Why training keeps evolving Dan explains that the rewrites courses every year. Instructors refine content, delivery and demonstrations, not for novelty’s sake, but because...
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465 From Classroom to Cooling Towers: Teaching Water Treatment with Dan Merritt (Part 1)
Scaling UP! H2O
Industrial water training only works when the knowledge transfers. That means the material lands with the audience, survives the drive home, and shows up later in the field when decisions get made. , Sales Manager at , brings a rare perspective to that problem. He started as a teacher (chemistry, calculus, physics), entered industrial water treatment on February 5, 2002, and later became part of the AWT training team. This conversation follows the path from classroom instruction to boiler rooms and cooling towers, then uses that journey to examine what makes technical training...
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464 Corrosion Coupons, Brand Building, and Having Fun at Trade Shows with Will Ritter
Scaling UP! H2O
"Don't be afraid to say I don’t know. - Will Ritter” Corrosion is expensive, relentless, and easy to underestimate—until a “lasagna battery” turns aluminum foil green and reminds you what electrochemistry can do in the real world. This conversation reframes corrosion coupons as what they actually are: a repeatable field test that can sharpen your decisions—if you treat the process with consistency. Respect the coupon, protect the data Trace breaks down why coupons became non-negotiable in his systems: they turn guesswork into usable...
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463 Mapping the Future of Water Innovation with Paul O’Callaghan
Scaling UP! H2O
“If you say something over and over often and enough, it becomes true because perception is reality.” has built a career at the intersection of water science, wastewater realities, and the practical question every operator and executive eventually faces; what actually moves innovation from idea to adoption. As Founder and CEO of, Paul explains how his team helps decision-makers put capital to work more efficiently in water by reducing uncertainty and separating signal from noise. He describes patterns he’s watched repeat across water entrepreneurs, pilots, and...
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462 From Lab Chemist to Field Mentor: Water, Culture, and Representation
Scaling UP! H2O
Industrial water work rewards people who can move between precision and practicality. brings both. She started as a lab chemist, then transitioned into field service with , where much of her work supports healthcare facilities and high-accountability programs. Lab habits that protect your tools and your data Katie describes the first surprise of field work: a central plant is “very dirty,” and the job demands good technique without chasing lab-level perfection. She shares a couple of simple practices that prevent expensive problems. Use proper lab wipes on...
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461 Corrosion, Lead, and Algae: New Tools for Old Water Problems
Scaling UP! H2O
Corrosion rarely announces itself as a “big water problem.” It shows up as leaching at the tap, residual loss in the field, premature equipment replacement, and the slow, expensive erosion of decision-quality. (CEO) and (chemist/Chief Science Officer) of lay out a system-wide view of corrosion control—starting with what changed in Flint from a technical standpoint and moving into why many utilities still struggle to meet expectations when standards and risk assumptions shift. System-wide corrosion control starts with chemistry...
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460 Building Boiler Talent: Fundamentals, Online Training, and Better Partnerships with Eric Johnson
Scaling UP! H2O
Boilers can feel intimidating the first time you step into a boiler room—the heat, the noise, the pressure gauge, and the weight of knowing that mistakes can be costly. Trace Blackmore opens with a reminder that boilers deserve respect, not fear—and that learning fundamentals is how you replace mystique with clarity. The talent gap behind the boiler room door , Founder and CEO of , explains why boiler expertise is becoming harder to replace. He points to the shrinking pipeline of boiler-trained technicians—historically strengthened by Navy steam...
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459 From Wastewater to Resource: Water Reuse with Dr. Veronika Zhiteneva
Scaling UP! H2O
Industrial water professionals are increasingly pulled into conversations about scarcity, resilience, and “where the next gallon comes from.” , CEO and Co-founder of frames water reuse as an implementation challenge more than a technology gap—and explains where the practical starting points are when the scope feels overwhelming. Moving reuse forward when the technology already exists Waterloop Solutions was founded to accelerate implementation: clarifying end-use quality, identifying post-treatment needs on the back end of...
info_outline"Don't be afraid to say I don’t know. - Will Ritter”
Corrosion is expensive, relentless, and easy to underestimate—until a “lasagna battery” turns aluminum foil green and reminds you what electrochemistry can do in the real world. This conversation reframes corrosion coupons as what they actually are: a repeatable field test that can sharpen your decisions—if you treat the process with consistency.
Respect the coupon, protect the data
Trace breaks down why coupons became non-negotiable in his systems: they turn guesswork into usable corrosion-rate intelligence. Will Ritter of MetaSpec (formerly Pacific Sensor) explains the fundamentals—pre-weighed coupons, exposure time, cleaning, and calculating corrosion rate in MPY (mils per year). The point isn’t that the coupon is your pipe; it’s that the coupon becomes a reliable, relative gauge over time when variables are controlled.
The “five things” that make results repeatable
Will outlines practical failure points that quietly ruin comparisons quarter to quarter: alloy selection (and staying consistent), surface area (and what happens when hardware covers the coupon), surface finish (including why scratches and pits matter), weight accuracy (and why kitchen/postage scales don’t belong in the workflow), and protective VCI packaging that prevents premature corrosion in storage and transit.
Brand building, trade shows, and getting comfortable saying “I don’t know”
Will shares his path from Pacific Sensor to MetaSpec and what it looks like to merge brands intentionally heading into 2026. The discussion also moves into trade show presence and digital marketing, plus a simple confidence framework: get comfortable saying “I don’t know, but I can find out,” and build communication reps—he points to Toastmasters as a low-stakes way to do that.
Listen to the full conversation above. Explore related episodes below. Stay engaged, keep learning, and continue scaling up your knowledge!
Timestamps
02:20 — Trace sets the stage: why corrosion coupons matter as diagnostic data
04:05 — What a coupon is (size, pre-weighed precision) and why tiny changes matter
06:14 — Trace’s “four things” water treaters manage (and what microbial control is not)
07:07 — The “lasagna battery”: anode/cathode/electrolyte/path in a real-life example
08:50 — Defining corrosion (ISO 8044 and NACE definitions referenced)
09:50 — Corrosion cost perspective: “2.5 trillion” and “3.5% of global GDP” (as cited)
10:53 – Words of Water with James
12:38 – Events for Water Professionals
14:56 — Will Ritter introduction and why the podcast helped him understand the industry
18:30 — How Will got into coupons: Pacific Sensor, mentors, and early AWT exposure
24:36 — Trade show mindset: don’t be afraid to say “I don’t know”
27:50 — Toastmasters as a practical system for better speaking and confidence
31:25 — Pacific Sensor → MetaSpec; co-branding and planned transition “starting in 2026”
34:06 — Coupon basics and MPY explained in clear operational terms
36:51 — The big misunderstanding: coupons as a relative gauge (not “the pipe”)
40:06 — The “five key characteristics” behind usable coupon data
58:10 — Best-practice takeaway: treat coupons like a lab test brought into the field
01:06:35 — Close: why Trace “owes a lot” to that “little slip of metal”
Quotes
“Use the coupon as a relative gauge of the corrosivity of the system.” - Will Ritter
“Surface finish is critical… a change in surface finish is going to impact corrosion results.” - Will
“Treat your coupons… like you are taking a laboratory test and bringing it into the field.”
“It’s not a piece of metal. It’s very special. Treat it as such.”
“Digital marketing is free… small businesses need to take advantage of free resources.”
Connect with Will Ritter
Phone: (713) 882- 1427
Email: williamrritter@gmail.com
Website: Pacific Sensor - Buy Corrosion Coupons and Test Specimens
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamryanritter/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/pacific-sensor/about/
Guest Resources Mentioned
Material World: The Six Raw Materials That Shape Modern Civilization by Ed Conway (Audiobook)
Steel Isn't Hard (To Learn) by Shane Turcott (Paperback)
Pacific Sensor Corrosion Coupon Installation Guide
Water Treatment Flyer- Pacific Sensor
Metaspec Capabilities Presentation
ASTM-G1-25 Standard Practice for Preparing, Cleaning, and Evaluating Corrosion Test Specimens
TP25-18 The Impact of Metal Surface Roughness on Corrosion Monitoring Water Treatment
Scaling UP! H2O Resources Mentioned
AWT (Association of Water Technologies)
Scaling UP! H2O Academy video courses
304 Pinks and Blues: Corrosion Coupons
075 The One that’s All About Corrosion Coupons
AWT Guidelines on Corrosion Coupons
Corrosion cost perspective: “2.5 trillion” and “3.5% of global GDP”
Words of Water with James McDonald
Today's definition is any of the elements found in Group VIIA, also known as Group 17, of the Periodic Table, including fluorine, chlorine, bromine, and iodine, characterized by the ability to disinfect water.
2026 Events for Water Professionals
Check out our Scaling UP! H2O Events Calendar where we’ve listed every event Water Treaters should be aware of by clicking HERE.
