Powder tankers

Anyone have any experience on powder tankers ?. There’s a job going near me decent wage but it’s one of the only things I’ve never done . Pros and cons ? Thanks…

Once you get your head around it you won’t want to do anything else.
If you take your time to think about what’s happening, assume it will take a long time to perfect the job, and you never stop learning nor fine tuning your own way of working no matter how many years you do it, then the job can be great.

If you rush around like your arse is on fire it will go pear shaped sooner or later, guaranteed, i’d rather take 20 minutes longer at a tipping point than have the hours involved in sorting a balls up plus the repercussions down the line, reports etc, remember it’s a pressurised tank whilst tipping not something to take for granted.
Looking after your kit is of paramount importance, working with good clean kit is a pleasure, it’s a job you can still take some pride in.
Taking care is a must, denting or especially puncturing a pressure vessel is not like tearing a curtain, a curtain repair might be £120, a new panel in a tank might be 8 to 10k and 6 weeks off the road.

You’ll find the drivers are usually a helpful bunch, and that goes for competing outfits too, if you get somewhere and are having problems chances are another tanker driver will give you some help to sort the issue out, just let him know you’re new to the game and they’ll normally give you some pointers cos every tip is different…though if by rushing around instead of doing the job right a main feed pipe comes off and you blow 3 tons of product up the wall (you won’t believe how far and fast it can flow once there’s no restriction ) don’t expect the other driver to be helping you clear it all up

Icing on the cake is no more RDC hell

Juddian:
Once you get your head around it you won’t want to do anything else.
If you take your time to think about what’s happening, assume it will take a long time to perfect the job, and you never stop learning nor fine tuning your own way of working no matter how many years you do it, then the job can be great.

If you rush around like your arse is on fire it will go pear shaped sooner or later, guaranteed, i’d rather take 20 minutes longer at a tipping point than have the hours involved in sorting a balls up plus the repercussions down the line, reports etc, remember it’s a pressurised tank whilst tipping not something to take for granted.
Looking after your kit is of paramount importance, working with good clean kit is a pleasure, it’s a job you can still take some pride in.
Taking care is a must, denting or especially puncturing a pressure vessel is not like tearing a curtain, a curtain repair might be £120, a new panel in a tank might be 8 to 10k and 6 weeks off the road.

You’ll find the drivers are usually a helpful bunch, and that goes for competing outfits too, if you get somewhere and are having problems chances are another tanker driver will give you some help to sort the issue out, just let him know you’re new to the game and they’ll normally give you some pointers cos every tip is different…though if by rushing around instead of doing the job right a main feed pipe comes off and you blow 3 tons of product up the wall (you won’t believe how far and fast it can flow once there’s no restriction ) don’t expect the other driver to be helping you clear it all up

Icing on the cake is no more RDC hell

Can’t add anything to that except don’t leave it unattended or that 3 tonne Juddian mentioned soon turns into 23 tonnes.

Every tip is different unless you are doing Proctor and Gamble for civil and marine [emoji14]

There’s not much to add to Juddian’s comments, the two main things are it’s not a race and don’t be afraid to ask. Better to take 15 minutes longer tipping than 2 hours sweeping up, and if you get really worried about what you’re doing whilst your new just shut it down until you get advice. If your on plastics it’s clean, although you will get wet occasionally at washes if it’s minerals or detergent, well then it might not always be clean. You will be well trained before you start no matter who you’re on for, large or small operator but still take your time, watch others and learn the wrinkles as you go. Never leave it unattended and never loose respect for it; it can take kill you, you’d need to do something pretty stupid for it to happen but never forget that it can. Watch and check all the time.
Best of all you’ll never visit an RDC, wait for a forklift, hand your keys in or sit in a waiting room ever again, and usually you will be the only delivery on site. Give yourself chance to get into it and you’ll never willingly pull a curtain again.

Interesting topic. I’ve been watching some videos on youtube a Belgium driver made about hauling a bulk powder tanker around Europe. He carried a lot of pipe couplings with him so he could connect to different size pipes on the silos and as he carried food grade product that trailer was washed out after every tip before it was loaded again.

remy:
Interesting topic. I’ve been watching some videos on youtube a Belgium driver made about hauling a bulk powder tanker around Europe. He carried a lot of pipe couplings with him so he could connect to different size pipes on the silos and as he carried food grade product that trailer was washed out after every tip before it was loaded again.

Yes, if you are doing continental or the tanker does you will need several delivery and air couplings. French Coupling, Stortz, Unicone, Camlok, Elaflex, Ball & Clamp, plus spare seals and spanners. Don’t hammer the tank, tap the base, make sure your rear landing legs are used. I drop my air suspension before tipping.
Check the silo and check again, 7lb of air pressure can take your head off, you are working with 28lbs per inch, that’s an awful lot of hot air in a 40’ by 8’ vessel

remy:
Interesting topic. I’ve been watching some videos on youtube a Belgium driver made about hauling a bulk powder tanker around Europe. He carried a lot of pipe couplings with him so he could connect to different size pipes on the silos and as he carried food grade product that trailer was washed out after every tip before it was loaded again.

Back in the day when I was on EBT I seem to think it was about 10 different adapters that we carried, and 2 or 3 of some types, there is no european standard for pipe couplings, of course if it’s just domestic work there is no need for so many.

As for washing the cement and lime guys don’t know what a wash is, but for everything else you wash out between every load, not just food grade but pretty much everything, unless you are dedicated to one product for one customer then you may not wash so often but maybe every 5 or 6 loads. Although some plastics manufacturers demand a cleaning certificate for every load even if you are dedicated. All this washing makes the backload calculations rather different than for general. If you can just run back for another load without washing when the alternative is a £60 wash plus 30 miles out of you way and 2 hours at the wash to pick up a backload and then the same again to go back to your main traffic well 200 or 300 miles empty and forget about a reload starts to look more appealing.

Wheel Nut:

remy:
Interesting topic. I’ve been watching some videos on youtube a Belgium driver made about hauling a bulk powder tanker around Europe. He carried a lot of pipe couplings with him so he could connect to different size pipes on the silos and as he carried food grade product that trailer was washed out after every tip before it was loaded again.

Yes, if you are doing continental or the tanker does you will need several delivery and air couplings. French Coupling, Stortz, Unicone, Camlok, Elaflex, Ball & Clamp, plus spare seals and spanners. Don’t hammer the tank, tap the base, make sure your rear landing legs are used. I drop my air suspension before tipping.
Check the silo and check again, 7lb of air pressure can take your head off, you are working with 28lbs per inch, that’s an awful lot of hot air in a 40’ by 8’ vessel

Your last sentence reminded me of my first day pulling a flat bed trailer for a firm in Teeside. I was talking to a driver who was also starting that day and he was going to pull one of the bulk powder trailers but he admitted he’d never driven one before but would figure it out. I learned that later that day he got killed while trying to unload one, apparently he’d hooked up the pipes and started the compressor but no product was coming out so he climbed on top to look in one of the hatches. He was leaning over the hatch to undo the last latch when the lid blew off throwing him up into the air then fell onto the concrete below.

A sad case of a little learning being a dangerous thing.

Juddian:
Once you get your head around it you won’t want to do anything else.
If you take your time to think about what’s happening, assume it will take a long time to perfect the job, and you never stop learning nor fine tuning your own way of working no matter how many years you do it, then the job can be great.

Correction
Liquid tanker driving is much better, we have both on my company and I do liquid only work, just hook up the hose and pump, 30 to 40 minutes later the tank is empty and you are on your way home

Pat Hasler:
Correction
Liquid tanker driving is much better, we have both on my company and I do liquid only work, just hook up the hose and pump, 30 to 40 minutes later the tank is empty and you are on your way home

The question was about powder tankers, I agree that your work is easy, it’s not all the same, temperature control, cold or hot water washes, 3 hour blows, 6hour pump jobs or drumming off.

Couple of additional questions on this.

• If you’re washing out, do you have to stand at the top and fill it with water then empty it or does the wash station place take care of all that for you?

• Are powder tankers as tricky to drive as liquid with the contents sloshing all over the tank on corners and trying to force you forward when you brake?

Must admit, tankers has always appealed to me but I guess it’s one of those things you get into after many years experience (especially with the cost of tank repairs).

I had the chance of going on powder tanks years ago when they were a driver short but declined, the money was far better than tippers on the same company though. Back then you climbed inside and swept out, probably not allowed now though? Regular runs can become repetitive I suppose, I preferred the variety of tipper work.

Pete.

The cleaning stations take care of the cleaning up top, you are responsible for opening the man lids, back discharge dish, filter and pipe racks, some stations let you use a pressure lance to wash fittings etc, some will remove you by force [emoji12]

At the end of the cleaning process the tanks are dried and closed, you will have to use a sealing cord through the valves, manlids, down to the discharge valves,

When I started you swept them out or washed them and drove down the road with lids and valves open, that’s all changed due to hygiene and h&s.

remy:

Wheel Nut:

remy:
Interesting topic. I’ve been watching some videos on youtube a Belgium driver made about hauling a bulk powder tanker around Europe. He carried a lot of pipe couplings with him so he could connect to different size pipes on the silos and as he carried food grade product that trailer was washed out after every tip before it was loaded again.

Yes, if you are doing continental or the tanker does you will need several delivery and air couplings. French Coupling, Stortz, Unicone, Camlok, Elaflex, Ball & Clamp, plus spare seals and spanners. Don’t hammer the tank, tap the base, make sure your rear landing legs are used. I drop my air suspension before tipping.
Check the silo and check again, 7lb of air pressure can take your head off, you are working with 28lbs per inch, that’s an awful lot of hot air in a 40’ by 8’ vessel

Your last sentence reminded me of my first day pulling a flat bed trailer for a firm in Teeside. I was talking to a driver who was also starting that day and he was going to pull one of the bulk powder trailers but he admitted he’d never driven one before but would figure it out. I learned that later that day he got killed while trying to unload one, apparently he’d hooked up the pipes and started the compressor but no product was coming out so he climbed on top to look in one of the hatches. He was leaning over the hatch to undo the last latch when the lid blew off throwing him up into the air then fell onto the concrete below.

A sad case of a little learning being a dangerous thing.

I was building discharge equipment before I went driving and my first powder job was on Huktra. I loaded a tank in Hartlepool and shipped it over to Belgium [emoji1045], we heard of a fatal accident where a Belgian had been trying to cure a leaking lid with a hammer [emoji375] the lid blew off and took the drivers head with it, it was a couple of days before I found out it was another tank and not one I loaded.

Wheel Nut:

Pat Hasler:
Correction
Liquid tanker driving is much better, we have both on my company and I do liquid only work, just hook up the hose and pump, 30 to 40 minutes later the tank is empty and you are on your way home

The question was about powder tankers, I agree that your work is easy, it’s not all the same, temperature control, cold or hot water washes, 3 hour blows, 6hour pump jobs or drumming off.

Ok mate, I was merely making an observation

Wheel Nut:

remy:

Wheel Nut:

remy:
Interesting topic. I’ve been watching some videos on youtube a Belgium driver made about hauling a bulk powder tanker around Europe. He carried a lot of pipe couplings with him so he could connect to different size pipes on the silos and as he carried food grade product that trailer was washed out after every tip before it was loaded again.

Yes, if you are doing continental or the tanker does you will need several delivery and air couplings. French Coupling, Stortz, Unicone, Camlok, Elaflex, Ball & Clamp, plus spare seals and spanners. Don’t hammer the tank, tap the base, make sure your rear landing legs are used. I drop my air suspension before tipping.
Check the silo and check again, 7lb of air pressure can take your head off, you are working with 28lbs per inch, that’s an awful lot of hot air in a 40’ by 8’ vessel

Your last sentence reminded me of my first day pulling a flat bed trailer for a firm in Teeside. I was talking to a driver who was also starting that day and he was going to pull one of the bulk powder trailers but he admitted he’d never driven one before but would figure it out. I learned that later that day he got killed while trying to unload one, apparently he’d hooked up the pipes and started the compressor but no product was coming out so he climbed on top to look in one of the hatches. He was leaning over the hatch to undo the last latch when the lid blew off throwing him up into the air then fell onto the concrete below.

A sad case of a little learning being a dangerous thing.

I was building discharge equipment before I went driving and my first powder job was on Huktra. I loaded a tank in Hartlepool and shipped it over to Belgium [emoji1045], we heard of a fatal accident where a Belgian had been trying to cure a leaking lid with a hammer [emoji375] the lid blew off and took the drivers head with it, it was a couple of days before I found out it was another tank and not one I loaded.

Thats simply badl maintenance, the clamps and bolts should be clean and adjusted correctly and the lid should be clean where the seal touches.

I spent years servicing/repairing bulk dischareg belly tankers and sadly actually miss it as it was interesting.
There loads of horror stories out there and most if not all are simply casued by bad practice.

The guy blowing lime whos pipe blew apart and had to go to the hospital and have his eyes popped out so they could clean behind them.
The guy who knew his safety valve didnt blow off at 2 bar but who said nowt as he could get the load off quicker, went for a ■■■■ came back and noticed dust blowing form the weld seam and rana way before the side of the tank blew out, but thats also the workshops fault and the annual safety insepcton where they check the tank internally for damage and cracks etc

Pipes dont just blow off for no reason, they blow off becasue the clamps are full of ■■■■■ which in turn folds the cones in so they dont grip so well, add in a worn cone seal and thats it.

To answer the second part of TrevHCS’s question, no, powder tanks do not behave like liquid tanks there is no rock and roll sloshing at all. The centre of gravity does vary considerably depending on the density of the product you are carrying and to a lesser degree the type of tank, belly or silo but just drive accordingly and they are never any worse than a curtainsider with tall ish pallets and a dense product sat down in the bottom will drive like it’s on rails, although it could take a while to tip.

For anybody who fancies a go but is getting put off by all these horror stories, don’t be. Listen to the training, engage brain at everything you do and if in doubt ask and you will be fine. Always carry a few spare new seals, the UK standard unicone is liable to leaks as the previous poster explains when things get worn so carry a spare clamp and seal but to be fair most modern instalation use the German Stortz coupling which whilst not faultless doesn’t leak as much.

acd1202:
For anybody who fancies a go but is getting put off by all these horror stories, don’t be. Listen to the training, engage brain at everything you do and if in doubt ask and you will be fine.

Exactly this ^^^

If you use your loaf at all times, respect the dangers, and look after your (and the collection and delivery points) equipment, the job is sound.

It can seem a lot to take in a first, and your first few days out on your own can be daunting, but if you take your time and don’t try to keep up with the rush about mob who often cut corners during the discharge process, then all will be good.

No one goes on top of a pressurised tank, many delivery points won’t let you up go up on top for any reason whilst on their premises, and you don’t start hitting lids or fitting with hammers, especially when the tank is under pressure, top lids should be secured hand tight only (though you’ll have proper tools for tightening the other various fittings, hammers not needed), if that doesn’t seal it then either the seal is dislodged, usually laziness after a tank wash, the sensible driver thoroughly re-dries the lids and seals once out of the wash, if they are even slightly damp after cleaning and dry whilst clamped against the lid then the can get pulled out of place when the lid is next lifted, and are a sod to put back in hence the lazy just ram it down by overtightening the lid…this is not the job for such people, a bit of care and responsibility is needed.

It takes 5 minutes to re-dry them and retighten the lids, and you don’t get that bother again.
Some companies allow the use of a rubber mallet to hit the tank at the end of the blow, because some products stick, it isn’t a competition to show how macho you are, you want to send a vibration up the body not make as much noise as possible and you avoid hitting welds obviously, better specced vehicles will have one or more air driven vibrators fitted and if sited well on the tank will shift everything no bother.

When you’ve finished tipping is the time to clean your seals and clamps before putting them away, clean well maintained kit doesn’t leak, will tighten and lock in place when next used and are safe because you can see deterioration and replace as necessary…most operators realise this isn’t a game for bodgit and scarper methods, so no trouble getting new replacement seals clamps and fittings when you need them.

Take care, use common sense, some pride in your work, and jobs a good un.

If anyone saw the news today with the inflatable that exploded, they work on a couple of pound of pressure from an electric fan.

I imagine they will soon be banned