By Lily Magurno
SUNY Albany
COLONIE — Aging pipes and cold weather combined to keep Latham’s Water District crews busy the past few weeks, with a surge of water main breaks.
The water main breaks this winter have affected several residential neighborhoods, including more recently Oakland Avenue, Valley View Avenue, and Loudon Road.
“The main thing that causes [the breaks] is the age of the pipes,” said Dan Seaver, Superintendent of the Division of Latham Water. “Some of our first pipes are 95 or 96 years old.”
The Latham Water District has 445 miles of pipe. Part of the issue, according to Seaver, is the old pipes are made of cast iron, which are not as strong as their modern ductile iron counterparts. Ductile has been used since 1974.
“Cast iron is a very brittle iron and is prone to water main breaks,” said Seaver. “Poor installation can be an issue too. They didn’t know what we know today.”
