Fire hydrants often appear operational from the outside; however, it is common that the internal mechanics have corroded enough to decrease performance to an inoperable order. The current fire hydrant design also allows for accidental/deliberate insertion of foreign matter which can lead to contamination of the surrounding area’s water supply. All agencies have a requirement to provide adequate corrosion protection and security for fire hydrants to remain operable. This paper describes a study undertaken by The Office of the Secretary of Defense Corrosion Prevention and Control Program to assess capability, cost, and safety advantages of retrofitting fire hydrants with stealth no-dig hydrant kits that will help prevent hydrant corrosion and contamination of water supplies. Study results showed that over 20% of existing hydrants were inoperable, and the calculated return on investment for the retrofit was 32.

Subject
Costs, Corrosion prevention, Corrosion failures, Water, Valves, Installation, Steel, Equipment, Rust, Corrosion protection, Stainless steel, Maintenance, Brass
Keywords:
fire hydrant, corrosion-resistant, water security
© 2012 Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of AMPP. Positions and opinions advanced in this work are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of AMPP. Responsibility for the content of the work lies solely with the author(s).
2012
Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
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