cathodic protection for water tower

[douginpc]

I'm curious if anyone has experienced a strong benefit from cathodic protection in a elevated storage tower? This is as new tower and we're specifying a very good application of Tnemec paint.

I’m concerned this will become a maintenance issue for the client. Also, should we expect a substantial amount of money each year for maintenance? Are there components that require frequent replacement?

This would be a Corrpro system. Any thoughts on the issue would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Doug

 

[bimr]

The installation cost of cathodic protection is not much, only 3-4 thousand dollars. The annual cost is not very much either.

The end user doesn't have much to do as far as maintenance either, just basically have periodic inspections.

The cost of cathodic protection is just a fraction of the cost that for painting a tank.

Cathodic protection pays for itself in lengthening the lifetime of the paint coating.

 

[JStephen]

You will seldom see any kind of definite information on the cost effectiveness of cathodic systems in tanks. It should have a definite benefit, but exactly what this is, is usually undetermined. As the size of the tank goes up, the cost of a cathodic system does not rise in proportion, so it will be much more cost-effective on a large tank than a small one. The only routine maintenance required should be checking the controls at the tank base (ask Corrpro for a sample O&M manual if you need it).

One thing to keep in mind is that the cathodic system only protects submerged surfaces. If that is the main problem area, then great. If you have more problems in the roof or exterior, a cathodic system won't help there. In either case, don't use the cathodic system as a substitute for proper mainteance or inspection.