It’s almost spring, and with that in mind there’s a water project: painting and compliance work on the North Water Tower.
Located on Madison Street, the water tower with a 250,000 gallon storage capacity is in need of maintenance and has a bid from Lane Tank—but time is of the essence.
“If we want to do the project this year, we have to let them know as soon as we can, because their job scheduled is almost filled for this year,” city water operator Don Goettl informed the council of a bid from Lane Tank to do the work. The same company previously did the water tower out by the prison last year.
As to present work, the bid dated Feb. 13 includes Maintenance Painting and Minor Repair, with a price tag of $175,500. Included in this is contractor providing of relief valves and assistance in draining the tank, which shall then be cleaned “of all mud, sediment, and debris.” In addition, the inside of the tank is to be sandblasted, with inlet and outlet piping sealed to prevent material from entering the piping system.
Following sandblasting, the bid calls for cleaning the tank with compressed air and vacuuming it, followed with two separate coats. The first or prime would be a Tnemec Series L140 epoxy applied at four to six dry mis thick, with a strip coat applied 2 to 3 mils thick. Both the prime and strip coat will be 1255 Biege. A finish or second coat of the same Tnemec Series L140 epoxy would then be applied at five to seven mils thick, the color being 15BL Tank White. In addition to painting, wet interior seams will be caulked with an NSF approved for potable water product such as Sika Flex1-A. Lane Tank would obtain DNR approval and file with the utility prior to any paint being applied to the interior.
As to the exterior, the bid calls for power washing to remove dust, dirt, mold, mildew, “and any other surface contaminant. The pressure wash would use machines with a minimum pressure of 3,500 psi at the tip and fans no greater than 15 degrees. Lane Tank would also spot prepare portions of the exterior with Tnemec Series 20 or FC20 Pota-Pox epoxy, along with a second coat of Tnemec Series 73 polyurethane and finish coat of Tnemec Series 1074-U polyurethane. The lettering would be repainted in the same size, shape, and location as presently exists using 1074 U-polyurethane. Colors will be chosen by the utility from a color chart provided by Lane Tank.
The tank would then be disinfected and samples taken to assure safe water prior to completion, with painting in the 2023 season and the tank out of service for no more than 30 calendar days, the contractor subject to $500 per day liquidated damages for each day past this that the tank is closed. The utility, however, may waive or grant an extension “due to weather or other uncontrollable circumstances.”