High-Tech Fire Hydrants Coming To Roswell To Reduce Water Waste

ROSWELL, GA — The City of Roswell will soon have some high-tech fire hydrants. The city will be the first municipality in the nation to have such a system fully implemented.

Director of Environmental/Public Works Dan Skalsky said the new system allows the city to better manage water use and quality, as well as help maintain the system.

“We are very excited to be at the forefront of this technology,” he said. “This will help Roswell be a better steward of our water resources, saving water and money for the residents.”

The hydrant sensors – part of the I-Hydrant technology – constantly monitor the water temperature and pressure inside the fire hydrants. Temperature changes can lead to water quality issues, and if there are peaks or drops in the pressure, these could indicate a major leak. If the system detects any of these issues, an alert is sent to Roswell Water Utility staff.

As part of the deployment, the city will install leak detection sensors on hydrants to be able to survey the entire system on a daily basis for small leaks. Currently, staff is only able to manually survey half of the system annually for leaks; the I-Hydrant sensors can check it all continuously.

Throughout the spring and summer of 2020, eight hydrants around the city were outfitted with water pressure monitoring sensors. Just in the few months of the pilot test, staff was alerted to a large water main break, as well as someone taking water from a hydrant without authorization.

At the April 12 mayor and city council meeting, the contract was approved with M & H Hydrant and Valve Company to outfit sensors on city fire hydrants. The new system will cost the city $600,000 to install city-wide, paid over six years, with a $30,000 annual maintenance contract.