Update on water tanks

Earlier in the post I talked about the cast iron pipe. This is the first load that I hauled from the project. Some of this pipe came from inside the pump house and the water district had already dismantled it before I started (second picture). The rest is from the pipe I cut between the pump house and the filters.

Detailed cutting was required for the second level of the filter. The top had two 8 in. cast iron pipes running across the top welded on four braces about one foot tall. In addition to a 1/4 in. roof it had 1/4 I-beams in a spoke like formation running from the center to the edges. These were 4 in. tall and connected with two rings of 1/4 in. steel. These were taken off before the 2nd level was pulled down.

The side wall was cut just above the roof for the bottom level. In the video you can see the tire that was discussed earlier. You can also see the door that was cut to access the inside before the top level was pulled down. The video was shot by one of the water district managers.

http://s1277.photobucket.com/user/mi...76089.mp4.html

After cutting off the second level it was time to cut the side walls off the first level. The base has a roof, sub-floor, and main floor. The tank was built in quadrants and this photo shows two. You can see more cast iron pipe on top, very similar to the top of the second level. On the bottom of the roof you can see a vent system with chambers made of 1/4 in. steel. You can see the black sand that created all kinds of problems from this point on. Below the sand is another layer of gravel.

The vent system had to be cut from the roof which meant crawling onto the sand and over head cuts.

Now you can see the roof design from the base. The second level was similar but had a ring connecting the spokes. Both roofs were cut into fourths as the picture shows. The vents from the previous post had to be cut because of the weight and my one ton skid loader could not pick them up and move them down the hill. The white specks are pvc hoses used to move water through the sand.

After removing the roof it was time to get the shovel out and move the top layer of sand. The remaining part of the filter above the sub-floor was cut as prepared steel.

This picture is called "Where's Waldo." Waldo is my loader.

The picture shows the sub-floor and floor to the filter. It was completely full of sand and the loader could not lift them. Each filter presented its own challenge to empty them and the rest of the sand on the sub-floor. This filter was flipped over the embankment and a ditch was dug for the other to flip it.

The sub-floor and floor were connected with 3 in. angle iron every 16 in. Between these supports were five pd. zinc blocks used to prevent hydro-electricity like the magnesium rods. The dimples on the tank are aluminum caps for the zinc bricks.

Same situation from another angle. The second picture show the position of the loader on the edge of the base. A few more inches and it would fall down the embankment. In the previous post you can see a four ft. retaining wall. The loader is about 14 ft. above ground level. The tank is completely on its side and I cannot go another inch to flip it. The solution is in the next video.