Mikey P
Administrator
I can pretty much guarantee you that by now everyone of those tanks has leaked and been repaired or replaced.
The larger size of the two choice is still on our FMI built 2004 V.
It first sprang a leak or two where the Glycol exchangers are tack welded on to the right side of the box. These can easily by strengthen inside and out of the tank. Run an extra bead outside and weld a gusset inside.
A very important addition is to shim some two by fours between the exchangers and the back wall of the box. Get them in there good and tight as this will keep the (very) flimsy box from fixing on the side causing future weld failures.
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DO NOT get in the tank or let your welder/mechanic in either. The tank has a false bottom and actually sits about 3/4 of an inch above the floor. Standing in it will cause all sort of seam failures. You will have to hang over the rim to do your repairs..ugh.
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If your baffle walls fail, and most do, DO NOT weld them back on to the walls of the tank directly. Heat expansion and water flex will just pull them right off again. the best way to reattach the baffles is to weld 4 Stainless L brackets, two on each side, high and low of both side walls. Drill holes aligned with the hole in the brackets and hang the baffle walls with 1” stainless nuts and bolts. Use Nylon Lock Nuts and DO NOT tighten the nuts and bolts up, leave a half inch or more so the walls can float inside the tank. Use bolts under sized for the holes in the brackets so you get lots of play there as well.
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If your high water shut off valve is of the Hudson type, keep a spare around. Heat is not it’s friend. The out shell distorts and the inside mechanism falls out. There is a set screw in place to keep it all together but it’s not enough. You can buy extra time by installing a Stainless Auto hose clamp around the shell to help it keep its shape
Keep a spare Harwell float switch on your shelf as well. They fail far too often. If and when the one on your waste tanks dies in the field your machine will not start. There will be power at the panel but the dead float is telling it the waste tank is full. I keep a jumper wire and instructions for my techs in a water tight bag, zip tied to the switch harness. It's an easy swap out but your guys just want to finish the job, not mess around with this sort of stuff in the field. When your switch dies on the Fresh Tank it will tell your pump that you're out of water, so no pump action without a jumper or replacement.
The larger size of the two choice is still on our FMI built 2004 V.
It first sprang a leak or two where the Glycol exchangers are tack welded on to the right side of the box. These can easily by strengthen inside and out of the tank. Run an extra bead outside and weld a gusset inside.
A very important addition is to shim some two by fours between the exchangers and the back wall of the box. Get them in there good and tight as this will keep the (very) flimsy box from fixing on the side causing future weld failures.
--------------------------
DO NOT get in the tank or let your welder/mechanic in either. The tank has a false bottom and actually sits about 3/4 of an inch above the floor. Standing in it will cause all sort of seam failures. You will have to hang over the rim to do your repairs..ugh.
-----------------------------
If your baffle walls fail, and most do, DO NOT weld them back on to the walls of the tank directly. Heat expansion and water flex will just pull them right off again. the best way to reattach the baffles is to weld 4 Stainless L brackets, two on each side, high and low of both side walls. Drill holes aligned with the hole in the brackets and hang the baffle walls with 1” stainless nuts and bolts. Use Nylon Lock Nuts and DO NOT tighten the nuts and bolts up, leave a half inch or more so the walls can float inside the tank. Use bolts under sized for the holes in the brackets so you get lots of play there as well.
------------------------------------
If your high water shut off valve is of the Hudson type, keep a spare around. Heat is not it’s friend. The out shell distorts and the inside mechanism falls out. There is a set screw in place to keep it all together but it’s not enough. You can buy extra time by installing a Stainless Auto hose clamp around the shell to help it keep its shape
Keep a spare Harwell float switch on your shelf as well. They fail far too often. If and when the one on your waste tanks dies in the field your machine will not start. There will be power at the panel but the dead float is telling it the waste tank is full. I keep a jumper wire and instructions for my techs in a water tight bag, zip tied to the switch harness. It's an easy swap out but your guys just want to finish the job, not mess around with this sort of stuff in the field. When your switch dies on the Fresh Tank it will tell your pump that you're out of water, so no pump action without a jumper or replacement.
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