White Paper- Drinking Water Distribution Tanks Need Active Mixing

Water column destratification and uniformity are critical to providing the best water.

There are more than 50,000 municipal water systems in the United States and most of these systems rely on a variety of towers and tanks to store their treated drinking water.  Many operators rely on mixing via normal cycling of water in and out of the tank to limit water age and deterioration of disinfectant chemicals.

This is known as “passive mixing” and in most cases it is not enough to prevent thermal stratification. This can lead to a drop in residual chlorine and a resultant growth of bacteria.

When bacteria contamination occurs in a tank, a common response is to set the tank for deep drawdown. In extreme cases, a complete...