UPDATED February 9th

This Outage Related To Low Zone Hot Water Storage Tank Project Is Expected To Be Very Brief

If at all, it will only impact Units from the 3rd to 29th floors, the mall area, health club and laundry room, Wednesday February 14th between 9am and 12pm. The hot water heaters will be turned off very briefly to accommodate a minor fitting adjustment on the new storage tank. A possible problem was discovered by our team while insulation work on the new equipment and plumbing was being coordinated.

It is most likely no one will notice this outage due to its brevity, but we want everybody to have a head’s up to be safe. Thanks to the new storage tank being in place and fully operational, we expect there will be enough hot water to provide service during this brief outage.

If for some reason other problems arise, or our team has cause to suspect the outage could last longer, we will update everyone immediately.

UPDATED January 24th

After dealing with a couple last minute problems, our team reported the hot water service came back online for the low zone overnight on Tuesday. If you were up that late, some units may not have had hot water until around midnight.

First they encountered a bad part as work was close to finishing, forcing them to scramble to get a replacement. Then as they began filling the system around 10pm, a fitting on the line began leaking. The team was able to make a repair to this onsite fortunately, but that took time as well. Once that was redone, refilling got back underway and the hot water line servicing was refilled. Hot water should now be back to normal for all impacted units and locations from the 29th floor and down.

SEE YOUR ASSESSMENT DOLLARS AT WORK

Below are pictures of the old tank being removed and the new tank being installed and piped in:

Above: Old tank being prepped for removal, and workers disconnecting lines to old tank and prepping new lines for new tank.

Above: Old tank is out of here!

Above: New tank in place, piped, valved in and filling up.

Above: To the right, new valves and lines from the hot water heaters leading to the new tank.

The only work that remains, is insulating all the copper lines you see in the above picture. They wait about a week to 10 days just to make sure there are no surprises such as line failures or leaks that can pop up after such work.

If you experience any problems such as no hot water or low pressure, please do not hesitate to contact our team at the front desk 773-769-3083 after hours, or in the office 773-769-3250, or by e-mail at parktowercondo-mgmt@habitat.com. It is possible aerators will need to be cleaned out or return lines will need to be flushed.

We realize water outages like this can be frustrating and inconvenient. However, planning to do work such as this instead of waiting for fixtures to permanently fail saves time, money and potentially much more inconvenience. The wait time on the storage tank alone, which was several months, underscores our continued need to be proactive and plan far ahead such efforts.

Thank you everyone for your patience and understanding while we completed this important work.

UPDATED January 19th

The Second Water Shutoff Will Take Place As Expected On January 23rd between 8am and 10pm

This shutoff will effect the same locations from the 29th Floor down, however it will only impact Hot Water. We expect cold water will remain available. This shutoff is necessary to complete the installation of the new Hot Water Storage tank for the low zone.

Our team plans to send out updates throughout the day on Tuesday as we did on the 17th, via our Mailchimp e-mail and text message.

If you are not on our e-mail list for our Weekly Newsletter, you can join by sending a request to parktowercondo-mgmt@habitat.com.

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UPDATED January 17th (1:30PM)

Our team reports that they are beginning to refill the system.

Cold water for the low zone from the 29th Floor down will begin returning over the next hour and should be back up to normal pressure from 2:30-3pm. As the cold water returns, the hot water will begin heating back up. That could take another couple hours, so we are expecting hot water by 5pm.

Once hot water is restored our team will reopen the laundry room and other locations will return to regular use as well.

Be advised, these shutoffs can loosen up some debris in the lines, particularly where main risers have not yet been replaced. As the water service returns, this loose debris can get caught in faucets and aerators. Especially the hot water lines. Please contact our team if you experience this or any other problems, and someone from maintenance can be scheduled to stop by and investigate.

The office remains closed at this time, and will reopen on Thursday at 8am. Until then you can reach out to the front desk at 773-769-3083, or e-mail us at parktowercondo-mgmt@habitat.com, to advise our team if you experience a problem.

Thanks again for your patience and support while we coordinate this effort.

UPTDATED January 12th

The Water Shut Offs To Accommodate the Hot Water Storage Tank Project Are Expected To Proceed As Scheduled.

The first shut off will be on Wednesday January 17th from 8am to 8pm, impacting the hot and cold water, serving the entire lower half of the building. This includes all units from the 29th Floor and Down, the Health Club, Mall and Laundry Room. This will allow our team and the contractor to coordinate the removal of the old tank.

Then on Tuesday Janaury 23rd, the water shut off will be to the same locations, but the hot water only.

A couple things –

1. Despite the water outage, it will still be possible to flush your toilet if you plan ahead. You only need about 1.5 gallons of water to flush your toilet. If you fill a bucket or a bathtub with water, you could use a large pitcher or other container to flush, simply by pouring the water directly into the bowel.
2. The team does plan to work as quickly as possible on the 17th to get the cold water back on, much earlier than 8pm, so that everyone has access to water again and toilets can flush.
3. Due to the water outage, the Office staff will be working remotely on January 17th, so the office will be closed. Our team will be staying on top of e-mails and messages. The best way to communicate will be via e-mail at Click Here. If you do have an urgent matter requiring quick attention, you can also stop by the front desk. Staff will still be present to coordinate as much regular business as possible.

We know being without water can be a pain any time, let alone for longer periods like this. We’ve carefully planned this replacement because the tank is at the end of it’s useful life and deteriorating on the inside. It was far better to plan this work pro-actively rather than wait for it to fail or for something to go wrong and cause unexpected and perhaps much longer outages. We thank everyone in the impacted locations for their patience and understanding while this work is done.

Don not hesitate to e-mail us with any questions.

UPDATED January 5th

Water Shut Offs To The Low Zone, Floors 3 to 29 Are Expected On January 17th And January 23rd

Project Will Also Impact Cold Water Availability On January 17th

As preparations continue for the replacement of the hot water storage tank serving floors 3 to 29, additional valve work is now expected which will require the isolation of the cold water lines during the old tanks removal. We are still working out the exact timing, but to be as cautious as possible, residents should expect cold and hot water to be out of service between 8am and 8pm.

Preparations are continuing for this important work, and a more detailed notice will be issued door to door in advance of the expected start date.

For more, review the original post below.

ORIGINAL POST December 8th

[Amended]

The Project Approved By the Board Last Summer Is Tentatively Scheduled To Take Place In Mid January 2024

This is for the replacement of the domestic hot water storage tank serving floors 3 to 29.

The contractor hired to do this work has advised that the needed materials are in, and preliminary planning is underway to get this important work done.

This will not affect heating, but there will be two days of hot water outages [and one for cold water] to these floors in order to accommodate the needed work. At this time, we expect the first outage take place on Wednesday January 17th between 8am and 8pm. [Cold water will be impacted this day as well.] This outage is to allow the needed demolition of the existing tank and other preparations for the replacement.

Then, on January 23rd we expect a bit longer outage between 8am and 10pm, as they install the new tank.

These outages will also impact the mall area units and bathroom and common areas such as the laundry room and health club.

Some work is already underway. Parkers on 2p may have noticed a wall opened and boarded up, in the southwest quadrant. This was needed to prepare for the removal of the old tank and eventually move the new tank in.

More information will follow as the logistics are ironed out. Of course, during the project things could change if they encounter any surprises or unforeseen conditions.

As always, we appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding while this important improvement is coordinated.