Town implements voluntary water restriction as it looks to replace motor
Niskayuna residents are being asked to think twice before watering their plants and running their sprinklers.
During the early morning of Friday, July 22, one of the motors in the redundant pumping system at Niskayuna’s water tower off Balltown Road failed. Later Friday, Supervisor Joe Landry ordered a voluntary water restriction townwide as the remaining motor began working full steam. Residents have been asked to stop all outdoor watering and other unneeded water usage as the town attempts to repair or replace the old motor. Before The Spotlight went to print on Wednesday, July 27, the restriction was still in effect.
We are in the process of repairing the one that is not working anymore, and we are using one pump, said Landry. `We are fine; the system is working the way it should be working whenever one goes down we try to repair it or fix it while the other one is going.`
Residents shouldn’t notice any interruption in service, but instead of the motors alternating, the remaining one is working constantly. There are meters reading the water level in the tower, and when the level gets low a motor would kick in to pump more water into it.
The failed motor was taken out Friday morning and repair efforts have not yet been successful. Landry said besides buying a new motor, the town is looking at repurposing an old motor owned by the town.
`It is looking like it may not be able to be repaired,` said Landry. `In replacing it you have to order a new one so we are waiting on the time frame for that now.`
Landry said a new motor will likely cost between $5,000 to $6,000. The remaining motor appears to be able to bear the extra workload until a replacement is purchased.
`There is nothing wrong with the existing motor, it is just working twice as much as it normally does,` said Landry. `We are hoping to have it fixed over the weekend or early next week.`
Check www.SpotlightNews.com for when the voluntary water restriction is lifted by the town. “
