NEW WATER TANK
Photos of the project to change out the old galvanized water tank at Camp for a new modern, captive air tank!
We went to Camp this spring to start the pump and turn the water system on but ran into a problem. The storage tank was almost full when it blew a hole in the side down near the bottom seam. This is a 220 gallon galvanized tank that has been in place since at least the 1960s or before. It measures 30 inches x 78 inches and weights just over 300#. We had an estimate for replacement two years ago and they said the only way to remove it was to cut it up into small enough sections to fit out the door. Very expensive! All the local plumbers are swamped with seasonal residents wanting their camps open and their water turned on before Memorial Day so the wait time just to get someone to look at this project would be several weeks. The modern tank equivalent that will allow the same amount of water to be used between pump cycles is an 85-gallon tank with an air cushion . This tank still weights 120#. I have installed tanks and pumps before and knew that replacing the tank would not be a big job but I had no idea how to get the old tank out and a replacement tank in. While studying the existing setup I realized that the 4 foot square room the existing tank was in was actually a very old addition to the original pump house and that the exterior siding was not continuous. A seam was hidden by a vertical molding strip that would allow me to remove short sections of sideing and just one vertical wall stud and then expose the tank. Luckily Brad offered to help for a couple of hours or I still would not have been able to handle the tanks by myself. We got the old tank out but could only just roll it around, as it was very heavy. Brad got a flat bed truck with a winch and we pulled it right up ramps and then took the tank to a friend of his with a stockpile of scrap metal. Brad helped me get the new tank into place and the next morning I rerouted and connected all the piping. The water is on and everything seems to be working well although I still need to fine tune the back pressure and the Of/On settings for this new style storage tank. (and, of course, someday finish installing and painting some new siding). I hope you find these photos interesting.
THIS IS THE FINE PRINT
