# 465  From Classroom to Cooling Towers: Teaching Water Treatment with Dan Merritt (Part 1)

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Podcast: [Scaling UP! H2O](https://stenobird.com/podcast/scaling-up-h2o-7746)
Published: 2026-02-27T10:46:59+00:00
Episode link: https://scalinguph2o.com/2026/02/27/465-teaching-water-treatment-awt-training/
Audio file: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/scalingup/Scaling_Up_H2O_-_465_-_Dan_Merritt_-_Part_One.mp3?dest-id=797464
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Duration seconds: 3811

## Resource

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. Dan Merritt, CWT , Sales Manager at CH2O , 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 "stick" for working professionals. From educator to water treater, then back to educator Dan shares how leaving graduate study, teaching high school and community college, and stepping into service work shaped his approach to explaining technical concepts. The throughline is simple: the instructor owns the clarity. When someone in the room does not understand, the response is not frustration. The response is translation. Bridging the knowledge gap without dumbing it down Trace and Dan describe a common failure mode in technical instruction: experts answering correctly, but not helpfully. They frame the goal as closing the gap between what the instructor knows and what the audience can realistically absorb in the moment, especially for attendees building competence over time. Stories and demonstrations as tools for retention The episode highlights why AWT trainers lean on stories and physical demonstrations, from an Archimedes fountain to static electricity experiments. Dan explains how the "light bulb moment" is the reward of teaching, and why trainers adapt when a method fails (including what humidity can do to a demo in a room full of people). Keeping the CWT exam in prope…

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