In 1961, a Clay Center water tower on north 7th Street was photographed from a vehicle. Today, houses span another four blocks north, with houses on 7th Street and Parkway, which it turns into in Ryan’s Edition, that were built in the 70s.
The tower – known as the city’s north tower – was built in 1937. It is constructed of steel and has a capacity of 500,000 gallons.
The east water tower was built in 1969 and was also constructed of steel and has a capacity of 500,000 gallons.
The total cost of construction of the east tower in 1969 was $145,000. The cost to paint the water tower inside and out is now $340,000.
The city also has a third tank, located at the Water Treatment Plant. That tank is concrete with a poly liner and has a capacity of 500,000.
In total, Clay Center has a total of 1.5 million gallons of storage.
In general, water towers hold a pressure of about 0.43 PSI (pounds per square inch) by every foot of height in a water tower. They are placed in areas of higher elevation to use gravity and only reach areas that are lower in elevation than their starting point.
In general, math equations are used to determine the necessary height of a tower to reach its customers in numbers, and at their geographic locations.
