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Basic Roof Cleaning System, Tanks, Plumbing, etc. Layout Drawings and Pictures.

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I am trying to order the supplies needed to build out a(vented) system in an enclosed trailer.  I was having a hard time finding where to purchase the valves, couldn't find the correct part numbers etc.  I purchased a pump from Kevin and when I spoke with him this morning, he recommended a couple of places where I might find what I needed (thanks for the help Kevin).  Below is a parts list of two & three way valves, check valves, bulkheads etc. along with the part numbers that I found at usplastics.com.  Even though you can't tell it from the descriptions below, all the valves are PVC and have FPM O-rings and PTFE seats.  I would appreciate a review of these materials and any suggestions are appreciated.  If everything looks good then maybe the list will be helpful to someone else in the future.

The only thing I couldn't find was a three way PVC vented valve (recommended by Kevin)...

 

usplastic.com.thumb.png.9c8779232818b6dc  

Thanks

Kyle

Try Spears. That is the vented 3 way we use on our rigs. 

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How much mix are you guys using per house? say a 3000 SQ ft house, average. I have a 50 gallon tank mounted in the back of my truck. I do not do that many roofs, I have been pressure washing the roofs I get. Basically I am wondering if It takes more than 50 gallons of mix to clean a average barrel tile roof.  I have the option to take the tank back to get 100 gallon but really didnt want to take up that much room in the back of my truck if not needed. 

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How much mix are you guys using per house? say a 3000 SQ ft house, average. I have a 50 gallon tank mounted in the back of my truck. I do not do that many roofs, I have been pressure washing the roofs I get. Basically I am wondering if It takes more than 50 gallons of mix to clean a average barrel tile roof.  I have the option to take the tank back to get 100 gallon but really didnt want to take up that much room in the back of my truck if not needed. 

It can easily take more then 50 gallons. A 50 gallon tank is just not big enough to be in the roof cleaning business, unless all u do are little ass shingle roofs

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 I got everything set up including my battery box with pump and mini computer fan all hooked up working good with switch. getting all the rightparts for this set up is a pain. Now Im ready to clean my own roofs. 

 

20161118_160015 (1).jpg

Might I suggest sealing those electrical connections or moving them inside the box? 

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Dual%20Vented%20Tank_zpslwlblygk.jpg

Dual Vented Tank System with Onboard SH Storage. 

Now, we are getting advanced but this is the system I use on my rigs, have set up for several clients and suggest to any roof cleaner who does a lot of volume and finds themselves requiring more feed stock fills but is limited in space. Although it may look complicated, it is actually very simple to implement. It is simply two tanks stacked on atop the other with the top storing pure 12.5% SH and the bottom being a mix tank. 

This setup requires vertical nesting square tanks. I use Tote A Lube tanks on my version. 

The major advantage to this type of setup is that it allows for massive onboard DOT Legal roof mix storage with tons of capacity in a limited space. As an example...a 120 mix tank with a 70 Gallon SH tank will give you the capability of legally leaving your shop with 300 gallons of roof mix, assuming you use 33% mixes (1/3 SH, 2/3 H2O) and you leave with 30 gallons of 12.5% SH in the bottom tank (which makes 90 gallons of roof mix) and 70 gallons of 12.5% in the top (which makes 210 Gallons of roof mix.  

For those contractors who do large multi unit residential or commercial...OR, for the guys who have no place to store their SH feed stock, this system allows you to do multiple roofs from a single fill.  

This system also has the advantage in that making up new batches is as easy as hooking up a fill water hose to the mix tank and turning the valve on the SH storage tank to gravity feed the amount of SH you need down into the mix tank. No pumps are necessary. 

The DISADVANTAGE to this type of system is that it is taller than a single tank system. There are many different tanks available which will work. The second drawback is that these tanks are a bit more money than leg tanks. However, one return to base saved to refill will rapidly make up the price difference. 

im just wondering how do you get soap / surfactant into the mix tank ?

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im just wondering how do you get soap / surfactant into the mix tank ?

Put a small feed line in from an auxiliary tank. We put a Tee connector in at the mix tank vent line and run a feed line to a surfactant storage tank. Then we just open a valve and dump in however much we need into the roof tank. You can also put in a dedicated input on the tank...just drill a hole and screw in a barb fitting...easy. 

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Nice post Kevin. It's funny how I learned the hard way some of the things that you recommend not to do.

http://www.advantageroofcleaning.com/call-a-roof-cleaner-before-selling-your-house-roof-cleaning-st-charles-illinois-in-kane-county/

Unfortunately, the learning curve can tend to get expensive. Just saw a post on one of the Facebook forums...guy's Honda engine on his PW machine was COMPLETELY rotted. Aluminum totally pitted and porous, flywheel 100% rusted, part of the aluminum casting broke off and fubar'd the flywheel. Less than $50 worth of parts and an hour of time could have prevented a lot of it. And yes...SH tank on the trailer. 

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for the tote-a-lube stackable tanks i think they come with metal threads in the lower hole. so do you replace this with something that's is chem resistant ? and if so how do you do that ? 

thanks 

Nope. They are all plastic. At least the ones I get. 

 

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yeah i contacted fluidall they are the makers of the tote-a-lube tanks and they said they changed the design and the new tanks now have stainless steel threads and they no longer make them with plastic threads. they called it an "upgrade". i told them it's not an up grade for roof cleaners lol. 

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Is there enough material around them to drill them out and re-tap the threads for a larger size?

No. see my statement in Fluidall I posted on the Gen Discussion forum here.  

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Do you have a special coating that you put down on the floor of your trailers? I saw that one picture and I just wasn't sure if that was a factory finish or a more durable upgrade. 

if you use the sealed tank system dewign with external fills, there is no need for any special coatings. 

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