Water Department
Fire Hydrants
Maintenance
We maintain in excess of 500 fire hydrants in The City of
Kendallville. This includes flushing, sandblasting, painting,
greasing, installing, replacing, pressure testing, flow testing
and any other task connected with fire hydrants.
Flushing these hydrants has several purposes. It is a great
way to make sure that the hydrants are still in working order.
While we are flushing a hydrant, we also grease them and check
the caps to make sure the Fire Department can easily access them
in the case of an emergency. If we find a faulty hydrant, we
mark it with an “out of service” tag and quickly replace it. We
place fire protection at the top of our list.
This service also keeps the main lines clean and fresh. If
water stands in a line for too long, it may become unhealthy. We
make it our business to know the areas that need extra flushing
to keep the water safe and fresh. We also take daily tests in
our system to ensure proper chlorine residuals for safe water.
Fire Hydrant maintenance is an ongoing and never-ending
process. We flush every hydrant in Kendallville at least one
time per year. Some hydrants require more attention, especially
hydrants located on dead end water mains or in low usage areas.
We normally flush the hydrants in the spring and fall. This
allows us to avoid freezing conditions and avoid the peak flows
of summer. We make it a practice to contact the local newspaper
and radio stations to let you know that we are flushing. If you
happen to turn on a faucet while we are flushing, you may get a
little rusty colored water. This is normal and can be taken care
of by running your water for a few minutes until it clears up.
If it doesn’t clear up within a few minutes, please call the
Utility Clerk and she will schedule a free visit and we will
help you flush your lines.
If you notice a fire hydrant that is in need of repair, paint
or any maintenance, please call the Utility Clerk and we will
place it on our priority list.
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