Hey guys. Have’nt been on here in awhile. I just recently came across a 5x10 trailer and a 70 gallon tank. I want to put together a simple setup. I plan on running the 70 gallon rank for my premix and of course 2 reels. I understand about inline filters from my garden hose reel to the pressure washer. But I was gonna just extend the length of my chemical injector hose to reach the bottom of the tank. Or would it be better to tap into the side of the tank and run my injector line that way? I have looked through the site and alot of guys have buffer tanks and etc. I plan on mostly doing surface and softwashes. Any ideas would help. Thanks in advance.
Top use a short piece of pvc to keep it from curling
1 Like
So you’re going to have a 70 gallon chem tank for downstreaming and no buffer? Always always always tap your chem tank from the top. If you put a bulkhead in it will leak eventually. And when it does it will do some serious damage to your trailer.
1 Like
I want to say @Innocentbystander said in a thread never buy a SH tank that has a drain because it will eventually fail. Maybe not word for word quote but it was something to that effect. There was another thread a while back where the plug on a guys SH failed but luckily he had SH neutralizer on hand
I had one fail and It ate about 1/4 inch out of my trailer deck. It only took me like 3 hours to notice and get it off the trailer and it did that much damage. I’ll never have a drain on one again.
A buffer tank isn’t only about water supply. You want to be able to lay the gun down without having to worry about being on the trigger the whole time. If your phone rings you’ll either have to run and shut the machine down or sit there and squeeze the gun while talking on the phone. If you have to run back to the trailer for something you’ll have to drag your hose and gun with you so you can squeeze the gun. If the customer comes out to talk you’ll be squeezing the gun. In my opinion a buffer tank is a must. If I had to choose I’d turn that 70 gallon tank into a buffer tank before a mix tank.
4 Likes
For those of us not in the know how much time does having the buffer tank give you off the gun? I’ve read no more that a minute with out the tank, but never anything about with it.
1 Like
With a buffer tank you can be off the gun for basically as long as you want. Obviously that’s with some common sense at play. If you have a tiny buffer tank you won’t be able to set your gun down, leave the machine running, and go to lunch.
Without a buffer tank you have to squeeze the gun to cool the pump at least every minute. @dperez posted the exact temp but I think he said the water in the pump will reach like 140-160 degrees in 60 seconds if you don’t squeeze the gun.
2 Likes
I’m just guessing here but I bet even with a 70 gallon buffer tank, which is smaller than what most have, you could be off the gun for longer that you would ever have to be. It would take awhile for the pump to circulate 70 gallons of cold water and heat it all up enough to where it got above a temp that could damage the pump.
2 Likes
I have a 65gallon tank right now. Ive left that thing running while inside the customers house for a long time lol. I came in so he could so my his security camera system then got the whole house tour. He made some awesome homeade wine so i tried out some different ones he made while hanging out with him talking about the process and how his family pasted down the knowledge since the prohibition. Crisp apple was my favorite. Im going to be grabbing a few bottles from his next batch.
3 Likes
Sounds like a 70 gallon for a 4 gpm machine is plenty big.
Good thing you didn’t down a few bottles that same day or that buffer tank would’ve been like bath water. I guess it would felt good to use some of that hot water to wash the puke off your face after you crawled up off of his driveway the next morning.
4 Likes
Thanks for all the valuable input guys. Maybe I will use it for a buffer tank and look for maybe a 35 gallon tank for the mix
2 Likes
I have a 30 gallon horizontal leg mix tank that i have never used more than 20 gallons a day. I have 2 15 gallon vertical tanks that im going to use on my next build this winter one will be mix the other will be straight bleach.
@marinegrunt has a link to some sweet 20 gallon tanks that are mountable. I might actually go with those now that i think about it.
1 Like
How would you guys recommend mounting this type of 15 gallon drum?
No, I wouldn’t know. I have said in the past most seals are rated to 140°-160°. I have my inlet temp set to never get much above 100° which takes about a minute to reach.
2 Likes
This is the vertical tank he was talking about. They also have horizontal. Not sure if you’re after something like this but it helps save on room being vertical. You can get a 35 gallon leg tank at TSC. You just have to find what works well for your trailer. I use the 20 gallon vertical to hold sh on my trailer. I’m going to add another for a mix tank. I just used a 5 gallon bucket this past summer and would add bleach from my 20 gallon vertical when I needed to make house wash mix.
1 Like
