Tyler Water Utilities work to replace old water main lines on West 10th Street.

The city of Tyler Water Utilities has begun Phase 1 of replacing over 7,500 feet of water main lines in the Azalea District.

The first phase will replace 2,000 feet of water main lines on West 10th Street from South Vine Avenue to South Kennedy Avenue, according to city officials.

The current water project was developed back in 2018 in response to the loss of water pressure, said Tim Moore, operations manager of Tyler Water Utilities.

An investigation took place to determine the size of the water main pipes and the length of time they had been around (since 1951 and 1955), Moore said. After gathering historical data, they did float and pressure tests.

“We noticed that the pressure was almost at 50% loss, so then we started putting this project together in like late 2018,” Moore said.

The current pipes are two-inch pipes that have been reduced to about the size of an inch or an inch and a half due to tuberculation, which is a build-up of corrosion in older pipes that leads to resistance of water flow, Moore added.

The new pipes will be six-inch PVC pipes that are smooth and prevent tuberculation.

Along with replacing the pipes, TWU is also making the main lines into a circular feed instead of them being a dead-end, Moore said. This will allow the water to always be moving, increasing the water quality and reducing the need to flush water.

“They will benefit, number one, on the amount of flow coming out of this service, which will increase from 15 to 17 gallons per minute,” he said. “It will also increase their pressure from 59 to 79 psi (pounds per square inch).”

Tyler resident Wendy Reinke said the water pressure in her kitchen has always seemed low and hopes these improvements can help make it better.

Throughout the process, water services should continue without interruption.

“In these projects, a customer is never without water,” Moore said. “We’re doing what you call a set in place and we are not removing any of the old water mains, so that means that the customer will still have water until the new water main is installed and has been accepted. Then the customers will be tied into the new water main.”

Once the new water main is done being installed, it has to be approved by the Northeast Texas Public Health District, he said. New taps will be installed for the customers to remove them from the old water main and connect them to the new one.

Phase 1 is scheduled to be completed on July 21.

The only inconvenience a customer should experience is the ability to get into their driveway for about eight hours, Moore said. To complete the project, crews have to dig up a bit of the street to reset everything and then close the street back up.

A street cut ticket will also be sent over to the street department and they will fix the road where it was dug out, he said.

Residents will be told of the upcoming repairs two weeks before they occur, Moore said. They give outdoor hangers with information, send out code reds and work with the city of Tyler communications team to keep people informed.

After the completion of Phase 1, two more phases will be left.

Phase 2 will replace 2,500 feet of water main line on North Azalea Drive and Phase 3 will replace 2,500 feet of water main line on West Camellia Street, according to the city of Tyler. Phase 2 is expected to begin on July 25.