Valparaiso City Utilities - Water Department 1.0 MG WATER STORAGE TANK

1.0 MG Water Storage Tank

The Valparaiso City Utilities - Water Department is in the process of constructing a 1.0 MG Water Storage Tank on the northwest side of Valparaiso. Part of the 2002 Bond Issue, construction on the water storage tank started in the Spring, 2005 and is scheduled for completion in Spring, 2006.

Below is a pictorial series showing the construction of the water storage tank. Click on any of the images to enlarge. We will continue to update this page as construction progresses.

*June 26, 2006:* The contractor has completed the painting of the tank. The utility is filling the tank, and it should go on-line the first week in July, 2006. All that remains is landscaping, lights, and fencing.

*June 19-21, 2006:* The contractor has already applied the logos. The logo is transfered from the paper to the tower by small pin holes in the paper (image below left) and then sprayed red to make a connect the dots game 150 feet in the air. The dots are connected with a black marker and then outlined in the correct color before it gets painted. The side facing Campbell Street shows the Meridian Woods Community logo, whereas the side facing southwest shows the City of Valparaiso logo. The electric, landscaping, cathodic and sterilization are the only things that need to be completed. The City Utilities hopes to start filling the tank June 26.

*June 13, 2006:* The contractor started to add the final color. In the right image, you can see the different shades of color.

*June 8, 2006:* The contractor has started painting the water tower. The light blue represents the primer coat and the dark blue is the base color.

*October 4, 2005:* Final inspection was done on the tank October 6. Images 6 & 7 are the steel mill, image 8 shows the cooling towers at Michigan City, image 9 is the mill and image 10 is Chicago. The tank is 152 feet tall.

*September 30, 2005:* The construction crew lowered the boom of the crane.

*September 28, 2005:* The door has been cut to go to the very top of the tower and the boom of the crane has been rigged so that it can be lowered. The boom will start to be lowered if the instector gives his ok.

*September 21, 2005:* The construction crew is installing the roof onto the water tower.


*Click here* to view the installation of a roof panel....

*September 14, 2005:* Image #1: The equipment being used to run the welders and aircompressors. Image #2: Welding the stainless steel supply pipe to the tower. Images #3 & 4: Starting the top ring to hold the roof of the tower and to keep the tank round. Image #5: Inside the bowl the way you get inside with all the cables and hoses. Image #6: The outside of the bowl. The tower is now 142 feet tall and the roof will start to be installed this week.

*September 8, 2005:* The seem between the 1st and 2nd ring was welded on 9-6-05 with the auto weld machine .The machine travels at 23 inches per minutes welding the inside and the outside of the seem at the same time. The tower is now 132 feet tall and is taller then the Evans and Billings street towers.

*August 30, 2005:* The tower is 120ft tall and it contains 661 yards of concrete. The bottom of the bowl is in place with eight pieces of steel each of them weigh 13500. The steel for the sides came in today and the first ring will be inplace and welded this week.

*August 22, 2005:* The left image is the bottom panels welded on the ground then lifted into place.The center image is the cover sheet being welded to cover the concrete doom. The right image is the steel being cut to accept the overflow pipe. The bottom of the tank should be in place by the end of August.

*August 18 , 2005:* The tower is now 105 feet tall and has 661.5 yards of concrete in it. Images #1 and #2 show the reinforcing for the top. Image #3 shows the view looking south.