This guest post was written by Shawn Mulhern, President & CEO of KLM Engineering. KLM is a nationwide leader in the water storage tank industry with headquarters in Woodbury, Minnesota. Mr. Mulhern has been inspecting, testing, and evaluating water towers for over 40 years. He has been involved in the inspection of over 300 elevated water towers, ground storage reservoirs, and industrial tanks of sizes ranging from 50,000 gallons to 120 million gallons. Shawn is a AMPP Level III Senior Coatings Inspector.

As a consultant who works in many small towns of 2,500 or less in the community, we see a lot of different but the same infrastructure issues. We want to help all communities. The reality is, what is affordable? We like to identify and plan the future of a community’s infrastructure. Looking at the community’s assets, most communities have at least one water tower and possibly a second storage tank. Historically, investing in a water system was a big decision for community leaders. However, this investment of a water tower is the best improvement for the community in consistent water, better quality water, fire protection, and processing water for industry and the people.
Water Tower Lifespan (when properly maintained)
The water tower infrastructure has a life span of 120-150 years, or longer, if properly maintained. This is the key: maintained. If the structure is compromised due to inadequate maintenance, it may not meet its intended life cycle. With over 40 years as a professional in maintaining water towers, I have learned that most tanks have been neglected at one point or another. I have observed many changes in state and federal regulations which can also affect our decision making on maintenance of the towers.
Importance of Record Keeping
As a consultation company, we can only make decisions based on the quality of information we have in hand. We cannot stress enough the importance of having good record-keeping on the water tower. If the city does not have much for records, we must recreate the information and move forward. The inspection of a water tower is a great way to identify all the good, bad and indifferent. Once we have that information it is much easier to plan.
Why Hire Professionals to Evaluate your Water Tower

I want to highlight the importance of having professionals evaluate your water tower. An evaluation of a water tower today will identify the current structural and coatings integrity; meaning, how much metal loss, and how are the protective coatings (paint) holding up. The integrity of the tank must be taken into consideration for the city leaders to make a judgement with their engineer as to how to proceed. This is just part of the process to plan, budget and proceed. If you evaluated your tank in the last year and it required major maintenance, you are going to have work diligently and get this project on the streets for bidding. However, if you looked at this tank 4 years ago and it stated to repaint in the next 3-5 years, everything is not on a tight schedule. You have had time to plan for funding, specifications, and scheduling the project. If the tower has not been upgraded, these items will be added to the tank. Some are mandated by rules and regulations. Other items (a mixer) are for the owner to decide if this is needed for managing ice in the winter and stagnation in the summer.
Life Cycle of Water Tower Coatings
Today’s water towers have a long-life cycle between maintenance. Forty years ago, water towers were being painted every 12-16 years. Since 1995, with good engineering specifications, inspections, and contractors, this has improved the quality of the water tower projects, extending the life of the coatings to a 22–25-year life cycle. Current projects are being specified using new coating systems with a life expectancy of 30 years or longer. This is a good return on the investment. Nobody really wants to pay higher water rates but it’s necessary to sustain our infrastructure. Nobody wants to repaint the tower but if it’s not completed in a timely manner, it may be much higher cost later or you may need a new tower at a much higher cost.
In conclusion, no matter what the infrastructure is, there is always some planning to be done for maintenance or replacement. Tough decisions are needed at city hall to determine each year what is best for the community. I believe one of the best investments a city can make is to reinvest in its water infrastructure. Water tower, water mains, and water treatment are essential for the city to maintain for the community to thrive.
To Learn More…
Thank you to KLM Engineering for their work helping small cities evaluate, maintain, and protect existing water towers, as well as with new tank construction. Bollig Engineering has partnered with KLM Engineering on many water tower projects when the city needs a thorough water tower investigation. Visit KLM Engineering’s website or Facebook page to learn more and see a wide variety of water tower photos! To learn more about Bollig’s recent water tower projects, visit our Featured Projects for South Haven and Russell or reach out to us here.