Delaware Memorial Bridge gets $35 million dehumidifier

[BrianP]

Delaware Memorial Bridge gets $35 million dehumidifier

Inside the bridges' anchorages the high-tech dehumidification plants were installed and air injection and exhaust ports were positioned along the cables.

The system works by forcing dry air through the entire length of the cable, which pushes out the moist air. The cables are made up of about 8,000 single strands of steel wire that air can travel between.

According to the DRBA, there are about 25 suspension bridges in the world equipped with a cable preservation system. In the U.S., the only other system like that being installed in the Delaware Memorial Bridge is on the Bay Bridge linking Annapolis and Maryland's Eastern Shore.

This sure sounds smart after seeing what happened to the Waldo-Hancock bridge in Maine. 

[SteveG1988]

Aren't they also stripping it back to bare metal, removing all the lead paint too. It's getting a major makeover. It looks weird as a dark green bridge now, which always was the color.