Fire Water Storage Tanks

Fire Water Storage Tanks for active wildfire protection

Fire water storage tanks and access to a water supply can play an important part in active and passive systems to help protect your home in the event of a wildfire. Passive steps for wildfire protection can range from the materials used in construction in your dwelling or barn and the location of buildings, to the clearing of trees that are too close to your home. Active systems can include firefighting pumps and sprinkler systems; and associated fire water tanks for water storage. Some important wildfire provisions to consider when preparing your home are:

• Don’t plant trees close to any dwellings, especially those that overhang eaves, carports, and verandas
• Keep a high-flow firefighting pump on hand. Make sure to test and maintain your pump at least every year.
• Make sure to maintain the areas close to the house, barn and water tanks. Loose leaf litter and dry grass can ignite easily and flames can carry fast, especially in high winds
• Consider installing a sprinkler system and reserve water tank.
• When connecting a fire pump or sprinkler system to a fire water storage tank, carefully consider the amount of water you will need. A 100 Gallon-per-minute fire pump will completely drain a 5,000 Gallon tank in just under an hour.

Galvanized water tanks outperform poly tanks during wildfires

Fire water storage tanks need to withstand the different types of heat and flame conditions during a wildfire. Red-hot ambers from leaf litter or ones blown during high winds can affect the performance of your fire water tank, as well as radiant heat from approaching fire and direct exposure to flames.

Poly tanks are typically made of polyethylene, a ductile thermoplastic that can be melted to be re-formed again and again – that’s what makes it such a great material for recycling. Under the stress of radiant heat exposure, combined with the stress of holding water, poly tanks can become unstable, beginning to sag and split. The transition temperature for polyethylene, the point at which it starts to soften, is just above the temperature of boiling water. Even when exposed to ambers, poly tanks can start to blister around the base.

Galvanized tanks come in two types; rolled galvanized tanks for small volumes around 5000 Gallons and bolted liner tanks for 5,000 Gallons and up.

In contrast to poly tanks, Aquamate’s galvanized fire water storage tanks can remain effective, even during wildfires

• The galvanized steel tank shell and roof protects the water and liner from ambers that can blow in on the high winds
• When exposed to radiant heat, the water inside the fire tank acts as a giant heat sink which inhibits any damage to the liner
• Even when exposed directly to flames, Aquamate’s fire water storage tanks continue to be effective. Under a direct flame, the exposed sections of liner above the water line will melt, but because the liner material floats, the fire tank can continue to hold the majority of its water until empty.

Research and Testing were undertaken by the Bushfire Cooperative Research Centre (now Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC) into the use of both poly and galvanized steel tanks has shown that galvanized steel water storage tanks have the best chance of providing effective wildfire protection for your property.

Safely combine firefighting water and domestic water in the same tank

Once you’ve decided that you want a fire water tank, consider whether you want to take advantage of the fire water tank volume for more than just wildfire protection. Aquamate can combine your rainwater harvesting for irrigation or domestic uses without cutting into firefighting reserve water. By installing your wildfire take-off at the bottom of the fire water tank and a second take-off above the reserve volume water line, Aquamate can combine the two storage volumes, without you having to worry about accidentally depleting the firefighting reserve.

Additional water storage can be used for anything from garden irrigation systems, laundry, and bathrooms, to supplementing or replacing your entire domestic water use. Plus, with Aquamate’s “Rainsaver” gutter system, you can collect rainwater that’d normally go to waste directly off the roof of the tank. Increasing the size of your fire tank works out cheaper than purchasing a second fire tank for other uses in almost all cases.

Aquamate has been manufacturing fire water tanks since 1986. We engineer fire tanks from 5,000 to 102,000 gallons. Our fire water tanks are engineered in a state of the art facility. For our fire tanks, we use a galvanized tank shell, rather than a Zincalume shell, which means no sacrificial anodes. Our galvanized fire water tanks have three main applications. They are used as rainwater collection tanks, fire tanks, and well water storage tanks. A fire tank from Aquamate has a 20 year “No Service Costs” Warranty.