Cootamundra

11 TANK 3 The much smaller Tank 3 was built to house 40,000 gallons of fuel mixed with Tetra ethyl lead (TEL). Like Tanks 1 and 2 it was made of a welded mild steel plate with a cork lagged cone roof, it measured 19.8 feet (6.04 metres) in diameter and 29.4 feet (8.96 metre) in height. Like Tank 2, it stood above ground on its concrete pad and spoil was banked up around it to a depth of three feet (90 cm) it to contain spillage in the event of catastrophic failure. In contrast to the first two storage tanks, Tank 3 was designed for on the spot mixing of aviation fuel designed to raise the horsepower of aircraft engines. Adding a red dyed “Ethyl” (TEL) compound to the mixing tank produced a high performance ‘leaded’ fuel (‘Super’ petrol) for pumping to the nearby rail siding. The estimated completion date for Cootamundra’s No. 3 tank was 30 January 1942. TANK 1 TANK 2 TANK 3 Pictured above: Tank 3 with access stairs for servicing Aerial photo showing Tanks 3, 2 and 1, left to right). NSW Government Spatial Services - SIX Maps.