Chemical tank plumbingn pictures

Steven Button

Administrator
Anyone care to share some photographs, diagrams or info on how they have their chemical tank plumbed up to their downstream injector and/or low pressure pump system?

I am just dropping the downstream injector hose into the soap/chemical tank, then into a bucket of water to rinse through... it's too time consuming and risky, so I am going to put together a closed system with valve control to turn on/off chemical from tank and turn on/off water from tank to flush hose and injector.

It would be cool to see how you all put it together (pvc fittings, flexible hose, stainless balve valves, etc, etc?)

Thanks! :idea2:
 
we only ds concrete. disconnect the QC and hook up the ds injector, and take off when done. And we use a bucket for the soap
 
On one rig I have an open top 55 gallon drum with the metal band. I took a 90* 1/4" mpt barb then took a 1/4" fpt barb and put the two together through a small hole I drilled into the top. From there I took some hose and a filter and dropped it into the drum and we have a little flip valve on top to turn the flow off from the soap tank when needed.

On another trailer I have a 35 gallon tank that we pull from the top in the same fashion as well. I never pull chemicals from the bottom of the tank as its easier to get leaks there.

When I put back together a building wash rig next week I plan on having a 225 gallon tank that has a 3-way ball valve to give me the option of flushing my pumps with fresh water after I wash the building.
 
I plummed mine so I can draw from my 100 gal chemical tank or close one valve and open the other to draw from a hose that is long enough to pull from a bucket or container.
 

Attachments

  • Picture 246.jpg
    Picture 246.jpg
    50.9 KB · Views: 228
My machines are on the front of my trailer and my tanks are on the back. So I ran a 1" line from the bottom of the housemix tank to within a foot or two of the machines. Then put a T on and reduced it down for the ds line to each machine. Tested it the other day and it worked great.
 
When I put back together a building wash rig next week I plan on having a 225 gallon tank that has a 3-way ball valve to give me the option of flushing my pumps with fresh water after I wash the building.

Im geting ready tp add that to my d.s. tank. That seems to be an easier, quicker, cleaner way to switch.
 
You guys are asking for trouble, which is a nice way of saying you are illegally hauling around chemical. Your chemical has to be in a DOT approved container, sealed when transporting. That means no holes drilled in them, bungs tightened to specs, and clearly labeled. You are looking at a $10,000 fine at the very least. Plus, some would appear to be flirting with weight restrictions on chemical hauling, so you need to be fully palcarded, Hazmat endorsed license, inspections on vehicles and trailers. Just letting you know.
 
You guys are asking for trouble, which is a nice way of saying you are illegally hauling around chemical. Your chemical has to be in a DOT approved container, sealed when transporting. That means no holes drilled in them, bungs tightened to specs, and clearly labeled. You are looking at a $10,000 fine at the very least. Plus, some would appear to be flirting with weight restrictions on chemical hauling, so you need to be fully palcarded, Hazmat endorsed license, inspections on vehicles and trailers. Just letting you know.

We been doin this for 25 years in arkansas and this doesnt apply to us.. lol.. Ive been pulled over many many many times and had a few bad wreaks with alot of equipment attached.. Never been a problem. You guys must have some big expensive yellow trucks that attract alotta attention.. I premix my chemicles in a 150 gallon tank at the rear of my trailer and its plumbed into the inlets of my pumps with ball valves to control the amount of upstream. I use ball valves on main inlet to restrict water flow to allow for more chemical pull.
 
Ive had the police pull me over a few times to tell me there was water pourin outta my trailer.. N just drive offf....
 
i've been a little worried about it myself but no chemical tanks anymore just a few buckets. hopefully they dont finger test it and their finger disolve.
 
While the trucks do seem to attract attention, both good and bad, I'm just stating what the law is. The only way you've gotten by is because quite likely you're breaking another law, and that is because your chemical drums aren't properly labeled so it doesn't raise the questions. Another one that I didn't mention is that it is against the law to draw chemical off of your drum unless it is removed off of the transportation vehicle. These laws affect all of us, yet no pressure washer is aware of them. The DOT can use them to put any and everyone of us out of business if they want to because no one either knows or cares about the law. Do you think they will listen to any of us individually? Absolutely not, and that highlights another reason associations are good to belong to. Unfortunately, the only one that has actually listened to me is the PWNA and it would appear that it is too big a monster for them to tackle right now.
 
I should know the answer to this but it's been awhile since I got a HAZMAT endorsement but I'm sure there are requirements as far as minimum quantity before you need a CDL with HAZMAT etc. Otherwise you'd need one to haul a 5gal can of gas home for your lawn mower.

I would like to know more.

Good subject.
 
I have had hazmat endorsements and run a small trucking company. I don't believe you would carry enough chemicals to need a placard. I think the average weight starts around about 5000 lbs. I does depend on the chemical. Yet, you better be registered as a registrant with the DOT and get a USDOT number if you run a sign on your stuff. In Florida, I saw the DOT pulling over lawn care people over and writing them tickets and letting the big trucks drive right by them. Also, they were writing tickets for stuff not being properly secured on the trailer or vehicle either.


I have had a cop behind me running his wipers since I happened to be draining my tank on the way home.

You got lucky everyone I have talked in 8 years of dealing with trucks. You should have at least been pulled over and asked a bunch of questions.

Oh, and DOT fines are not usually cheap, and being a registrant is free. Yet, call the state troopers office and ask them. This is the last I knew as of the last truck I dispatched was about a year and a half ago.
 
does anybody.know the limit on how much chemical we can store at our shops before running into special permits?
 
Jason, placarding and HAZMAT endorsment starts at 1000 pounds for corrosive chemicals which covers most of what we use. Of course, flammables, explosives, and poisons are in classes of their own. You can haul up to 8 gallons of a chemical and not fall under the regulations. These are classified as "materials-of-trade" and have exceptions. As you probably know, farmers can practically get away with murder as far as the regulations are concerned. O, and the military of course. Unfortunately, that doesn't help the rest of us out. The problem is is that these laws are passed without consideing our industry. Certain industries will sometimes get permission to bypass the law because it would be nearly impossible to do business if it were enforced. I think we should fight for this in the pressure washing industries case.

Hey bear man, chemical storage would fall more under what your local fire inspector would be concerned with and what they would be sending their people in to fight if there ever was a fire. I would make sure that they are aware of what you have. They are usually very cool about it and in most cases very helpful from my experience.
 
Is the law about drawing chemical from a container on the transportation vehicle specific to an industry or just in general?

They would have to shut down thousands of pest control operators down here, unless they are not included?

Thanks for the heads up.


It covers all transporting of chemical. The thing that may allow the "bug" people to skirt past the law is thatthey probably deal in hauling 8 gallon containers or less and meeting the "materials-of-trade" exemption. People in our industry use more that that in most cases tho.
 
Blaine. Couldn't I just put a placard on the front door? I have a full sprinkler system in my shop and several fire extinguishers.
 
Back
Top