Algood completed a total replacement of the Buck Mountain water tank, quadrupling its storage capacity to 300,000 gallons to better serve residents on the mountain.
City Administrator Keith Morrison said the project involved tearing down an old 75,000-gallon metal tank and replacing it with a larger concrete structure. Morrison said the upgrade was necessary because the area currently uses approximately 150,000 gallons of water per day, which previously exceeded the old tank’s total capacity.
“We’ve been monitoring it closely to ensure that all the customers have maintained active water service, and we haven’t had any issues with that,” Morrison said. “We’ve been just fine-tuning pumps and getting things where they need to be.”
Morrison said the new tank has been online for a few weeks. Morrison said the project also included the removal of an in-ground pump station dating back to the 1960s or 1970s. Morrison said the city replaced the old equipment with an above-ground station featuring two variable speed pumps that can operate at the same capacity.
“The new pumps were running on a variable speed process where they would keep pressure and water on the line in the absence of a tank,” Morrison said. “And then once that was operational, then the new tank construction began. Old tank was tore out, the new tank was poured and sprayed concrete.”
Morrison said the total cost for the Buck Mountain project is estimated at approximately $1.5 million. Morrison said Putnam County Mayor Randy Porter and the County Commission assisted with the project because the facility services areas located outside the city limits.
“Should something break, we’ve got more time to repair it,” Morrison said. “If we had a pump failure, we only had about a half a day of water before they were out. Currently at 300,000 gallons, that tank will last about a day and a half before it needs to be filled back up.”
