Tank removed for repair

The tank in its new paint looks much better than it is......and we found a contractor who is very supportive and is going to provide the shop and labor to replace the bad metal at a very favorable rate, providing we provide the steel for him to work with. These photos from early January show the lift of the tank and its loading onto a trailer for transport to his shop.


Here's the tank in  its temporary home, Terry's Welding and Repair of Siler City, NC. Terry's has not only equipment to lift and fabricate steel, but also has a decent size lathe and some other machinery of potential usefulness.  


The inside of the tank looking from the rear up one of the water legs towards the front. Tim has cut a hole in the bottom of the tank to provide a convenient means of cleaning it out. Once it is cleaned out, he will turn it over and start to remove the bad steel bottom and sides, including interior baffles and bracing. The extent of the replacement is to be determined....although I'm not too pleased with any of the bottom two thirds. Tim will determine how he wants to handle it as he gets into the demolition phase. I'd encourage the entire bottom below the first horizontal brace be removed and replaced as one piece rather than cutting and patching.

There are two drop valves - one at the front of each water leg. The seats in the bottom of the tank are cast iron, and the valve plug on the end of the long stem which goes out the top of the tank is of bronze. The current plan is to remove and recondition the existing hardware and reinstall it if it proves worthy - otherwise we can simply replace it with flanges with ball valves below the tank.

There are no plans yet for overhauling the frame and trucks.

I'm soliciting recommendations for sealants to be applied to the interior of the tank after it is repaired to prevent deterioration. please share what you have used and how it has held up in service.

Dave