Heat to resume normal operation in district

The Cedar Grove-Belgium School District recently purchased two new boilers and got a deal on both.

One boiler was already down, and when a second started to leak the pressure was turned way down, Buildings and Grounds Director Ben Lukens said.

The district was only operating on 1.5 of its three boilers, and Lukens determined it was time for an upgrade.

“It was, like, 60 in my office,” Supt. Chad Brakke said to laughter from the board and audience.

“Unfortunately, that’s unrelated,” Lukens said.

Replacing the boilers was part of the April referendum, but Lukens recommended purchasing new ones earlier.

The district budgeted $100,000 for the purchase of each boiler, Business Manager Tera Rogers told the School Board last week.

The cost of each boiler came in at $44,500 each for a total cost of $89,000, which includes installation.

“We’re able to get two for less than what we budgeted. That just seems like a win-win decision to make,” Rogers said.

A Focus on Energy rebate is expected to give the district $12,000 for purchasing the boilers, Lukens said.

“It’s one of those things you don’t want to take a chance on failing,” Brakke said.

The new boilers also don’t need to run on full strength, Lukens said. If necessary, the  existing third boiler will kick in.

“They will be much more efficient,” Lukens said.