Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-07-13
THE WASHINGTON AQUEDUCT
Maj. Knight Reports on the Work Of the
Year.
Additional Means for Bringing the
Water to the Consumer Needed
The Tunnel Tests.

Mai Knight has made a detailed report
to the chief Of engineers Of operations on
| the Washington aqueduct and accessories
during the fiscal year ended June 80 last,
many of the details of which have been
heretofore published in The Star, as the
work progressed.
He says that the masonry work at waste
weir No. 1, about 1900 feet below the
Great Falls gate house, has been completed
and provision made for stop planks by
which the level of the water can be held
at reference 49, which will be the level Of
the water on the dam at low stages of the
river, when the dam is raised as it is now
proposed, and gratings have been placed
to prevent the indraft of logs, even should
a freshet three feet higher than that of
1889 occur.
Tie reference of the flow line of the dis
tributing reservoir is lag feet above da-
water in the reservoir tluctuated between
reference 141.i5 and 1i5.55, and reached a
level Of IA 40 or above each month. Any
material reduction of head in the city SER
vice below the level Of such service in
1890, when the 4S-inch main was put in
use, Major Knight says. is not therefore to
he attributed to low levels of water in the
reservoir. Raising the height of the dam
at Great Falls" he says, sis but a partial
provision for an increased consumption.
Additional means of bringing the water
from the distributing reservoir to the con-
sumer must speedily be provided"
The work of removing the deposits in the
conduit has been carried on, but not COM
pleted, over about $500 feet of laain-and-
by-conduit. Ordinarily these deposits are
from eight to ten inches in depth.
The Daily Consumption.
The daily consumption and waste Of wa
| ter was measured June % last, and deter
mined to be 1852. 1s1 gallons Based upon
| fha LOT
June. 1882, and December. 1894, this cor
responds to per capita daily consumption
| of ITO gallons, or 16 gallons less than the
| consumption determined June %, 1894.
Major Knight says that all operations on
| the project for increasing the water sup
| ply or Washington are suspended The
| this work is $l25, coo. 1t is expected to
complete the project for raising the height
of the dam at Great Falls during the low
| water stages of this and the next calendar
years. Tms dam when raised will cause
| the river at its lowest stage to practically
| fill the mouth Of the conduit.
Testing the Tunnel.
| A short statement is made of operations
| for testing the tunnel conduit under the
appropriation of $4,000. The object of
| this test is to determine the amount of
| leakage occurring when the tunnel is filled
| as In service connections. There are five
| shafts connected with this tunnel and
during the test the end shafts will be open
and the three intermediate shafts closed by
masonry. To effect these closures as well
| as to note the present condition IF the in
complete masonry work of the tunnel. it
| was necessary to empty the tunnel OF about
9.oOOooo gallons of seepage water All
shafts and connecting headings, except the
last shaft and its heading, have been
pumped out. The masonry work of the
three shafts is we'll advanced. tina. Of
| Rock creek shaft being completed
Tests of water taken from the tunnel
nave been made from time to time by Off
| Gals of the District, and measures have
been made to determine the rate Of seep-
| age. Major knight says the report on
| this subject Is to be submitted to Congress
December next, and that it is now under
| consideration.
Recommendations of previous years are
| renewed for protecting the inlet to the
| aqueduct at Great Falls, for the purchase
| or condemnation Of a site for a storage
yard and fo- inserting air valves and blow
or valves in the thirty-six-inch and thirty
| inch mains.