The half-million gallon standpipe in the Village of Peoria Heights is a special attraction with its glass elevator and multi-level observation platform overlooking the Illinois River. Given its unique standing in the community, it’s easy to see why city officials insisted on using Tnemec’s long-lasting fluoropolymer technology when it came time to repaint this popular landmark. “Repainting this tank was a significant undertaking,” acknowledged Tnemec coating consultant Keith Kennett. “Its location is right in the heart of town, so any maintenance work is a big deal. Tnemec’s Series 700 HydroFlon system will provide the maximum exterior corrosion protection, along with industry leading long-term color and gloss retention. That’s good news for the village and its budget, because it will extend the tank’s future scheduled maintenance out as long as possible.”
Using a moveable containment system, George Young & Sons sandblasted the tank’s exterior to bare metal in accordance with SSPC-SP6/NACE No. 3 Commercial Blast Cleaning prior to spray-applying a coat of Series 91-H2O Hydro-Zinc, a two-component, moisture-cured, aromatic urethane zinc-rich primer. Next, an intermediate coat of Series 73 Endura-Shield, an aliphatic acrylic polyurethane, was roller-applied to provide additional film thickness for corrosion resistance, followed by a finish coat of Series 700 HydroFlon, a two-component, fluoropolymer polyurethane. “The contractor did an outstanding job with this project and the owner was very pleased with the quality of work and the quality of the coating systems,” Kennett commented. “The village, engineer and applicator are extremely pleased with the results.”
“They also repainted the tank’s interior with Series 20 Pota-Pox, a polyamide epoxy,” Kennett noted. “The existing Pota-Pox system was about 15 years old and they were anticipating having to completely remove the old coating to bare metal. But when they opened the tank, it was still in very good condition, so they did minimal spot repair as required and then applied an overcoat of Pota-Pox.”
The water tank forms the nucleus of Peoria Heights Water Tower Park, a centerpiece of the historic community. The glass elevator can be taken 170 feet to one of three observation decks, where visitors can survey a sizable portion of both Peoria and Tazewell County. Coin-operated telescopes are provided to view the Illinois River and the surrounding area.
“Peoria Heights deserves a lot of credit for being very creative with their water tank,” Kennett added. “The park and observation platforms are a wonderful and unique asset for the community.”