Filtering the Flow: The Role of the Morton Dam Strainer Building in Wellington’s Early Water Supply
The Morton Dam Strainer Building (also called Filter House) was a large structure near the outlet of Morton Dam in Wainuiomata. Completed in 1968 as part of Wellington’s early 20th-century water-supply system, it housed cast-iron strainers fitted with fine mesh screens to remove debris, leaves, and sediment before water entered the main pipeline to Wellington. Constructed from reinforced concrete, the building stood close to the dam’s base, where water was drawn into the supply pipe.
At least one of the filters was a Glenfield Micro Strainer, a type of microstraining equipment developed by engineers at Glenfield & Kennedy Ltd., a leading British manufacturer of water and sewage treatment machinery. This technology represented a specialised form of microfiltration, designed primarily for water treatment.
The building and filters were dismantled in the 1990s, even though Morton Dam had been decommissioned earlier in 1988. Some materials were salvaged for scrap, while the remainder was buried on site.
