Dyess revitalizes water tower

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Peter Thompson
  • 7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  Editor's note: This is part one of an on-going series highlighting construction projects taking place on Dyess Air Force Base.

A $1.26 million repair project to repaint and repair the elevated water storage tank here is scheduled to be completed Feb. 5, 2013.

Repairs consist of fixing external corrosion of the protective surfaces and replacing select controls, valves and critical components.

Other tasks include cleaning, disinfecting, removing settled deposits and recoating the interior and exterior surfaces. Additionally, ground storage tank located near the base's water treatment facility is also being recoated as a part of the project.

"I'm looking forward to seeing the new paint job on the water tower in the next couple of weeks," said Col. Kristina O'Brien, 7th Mission Support Group commander. "I'm particularly excited about the master control panel that is part of the new system."

New updates to the control panel include an alarm, that sounds when several conditions occur, including low water levels in either tank or if a water pump were to malfunction. While left unmanned, the system will automatically dial an emergency response number alerting civil engineers and enabling them to respond quicker to water system issues.

Together, the tanks have a storage capacity of 1.2 million gallons. The water stored in the tanks provides drinking water to the base and fire suppression for Dyess' buildings and equipment.

"Repairing and maintaining these containers has a huge impact on the Dyess mission," said Dr. Barry Mines, 7th Civil Engineer Squadron. "Without water, this base wouldn't function."

The project has been made possible by the joint efforts of the 7th CES, 7th Contracting Squadron and 7th Comptroller Squadron, with funding by Air Combat Command.