Clarksville Beacon Hills Equalization Basin

Located in Clarksville, Tennessee, the Beacon Hills Wastewater Basin was more than 30 years old and had a history of service issues. The city’s population was growing fast, which led Clarksville Gas & Water to call on Gresham Smith to investigate the basin’s issues and design improvements to the critical wastewater infrastructure. After extensive evaluation, we recommended a larger collection system, a new pump station and an on-site storage tank to reduce overflows during periods of wet weather.

$450k

saved in capital cost

5.4mgd

storage tank

4.5mgd

pump station

A Combined System Design

Rather than designing three separate pieces, we combined the design of the collection system, pumping station and storage tank. Our approach actually uses excess water during wet weather to the system’s advantage – the increased water pressure allows the basin to use gravity to move water from one system component to the next

A Self-Cleaning Storage Tank

The floor of the partially-buried storage tank slopes to the center, meaning the tank self-cleans as it drains. We also utilized four mixers within the tank to keep the solids in suspension, which prevents them from setting on the bottom and helps the system return to normal following wet weather.

Consolidating Costs

By allowing gravity to fill and drain the equalization basin, we eliminated the need for three submersible pumps, an additional wetwell, an additional pipe gallery, and valves and controls. In the end, the design saved our client approximately $450,000 in capital cost and $12,000-$15,000 a year in operating costs.