One of the most visible aspects of the $1.1 million water system improvement project in Mancos is the 34-foot-tall, 430,000-gallon water storage tank, beaming down from the hills above U.S. Highway 160.

Contractors began constructing the massive water tank in the spring, with work ending late July. The project also included new water pumps and water valves.

The tank was full Monday, which means the town now has 730,000 gallons of water storage capacity compared with the 300,000-gallon capacity it had before the new tank. Filling the tank is the a new pump and valve system, Mancos Public Works Director Robin Schmittel.

The improvements aim to keep Mancos from a repeat of February 2014, when town residents and business had no drinking water for roughly five days after a pump and its backup failed.

"The town uses about 400,000 gallons per day. This tank holds 430,000 gallons. I have to balance with keeping the town serviced and filling up the storage tank as I'm able," said Schmittel.

"I'm up to almost 800,000 gallons of storage now with the old tank, so if something happens up here, instead of having to hurry up and fix it, I've got two days of storage," he said.

The ambitious $1.1 million Water Systems Improvement project is designed to make the Mancos water treatment and distribution system stronger, and includes the addition of the new 430,000-gallon water storage tank, improvements to the water treatment plant and pump house, replacement of old water main valves, and the addition of new water distribution lines to feed other areas of town.

The project has been funded through a combination of loans, grants and town funds.

All work is expected to be completed in October.