DIY hot wash tank

[asallwey]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

David,

Have you thought about using an automotive oil filter on your setup?

John

David,

I liked your work on this project. Filtration is the remaining project I have to undertake on my parts washer.

The 2/03 Auto Restorer magazine had an article where the fellow recommended a tractor fuel filter from Tractor Supply that has 2 internal mesh screens that can be cleaned TSC # 3350-0059A (bar code # 3494? 00335), Poly Line Strainer, Screen 90/20, NPT of 1?

then a reader recommended (6/03) using a hydraulic fluid filter - no word if anyone tried one.

The original writer tried an oil filter and found it was too good and cut his flow when it got dirty, which didn't take long.

The best approach is to use 2 baths, one for dirty parts and one for parts cleaned in the "dirty" bath. Filtering would help with both. I don't have room for 2 baths though.

Alex
See the parts washer page on my site,
http://mysite.verizon.net/cathyandalex/
When you

[dfarning]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

Hey dekebell glad we could help,
A link to the tank can be found at http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...temnumber=7340
Menards sells them under the brand name TOOL SHOP.

A couple of helpful modifacations are:

Adding 2 inches of pink insulation foam (R value of 11)to the outside of the tank.
Glueing 2 windshield wipers to the bottom inside of the cover near the hinge prevents condensation from running down the back of the tank.
I just attach the incoming line of the filter system to the nozzle of the sprayer with a hoseclamp with which I replaced the screw with a thumb screw.

As for performance it heats up from 70 to 140 in about 40 minutes. when the lid is closed the heat element run between 5 an 10 minutes per hour. When the lid is open the element runs between 10 and 20 minutes per hour.

Dave

[sheffd]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

In my day job as a licensed water treatment specialist, the filter set-ups sound great. With the 'String wound gradient density' filters you need to be aware that there is what is called dumping. Because of the porous nature of the filter, when it gets full it will dump to your second filter causing it to clog faster. My suggestion would be to change your 5 micron a little more frequently than your your 1 micron or even your .5. Since you don't have gauges to look at the pressure gradient from inflow to outflow you would definately need to pay attention to output flow at your cleaning nozzle. Also, keep in mind that the sprial wound filter is usually only good up to about 150 degrees. Beyond that, it starts to melt.

[dekebell]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

Wow! I have been looking for a cleaning system and ideas and here it is! I am very interested in the HF system you guys are referring too. Please send me pictures and information- I would be greatly appreciative. Thanks in advance.

[email protected]
Deke

[pickleboy]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

Pickleboy,
To do flow rate comparisons, I have just been measuring the amount of time it take for my rinse nozzle to fill a quart jar Do you have any ideas about what sort of flow rate reductions I should be changing filters?

in my day job i am in the aviation fuel industry. we use differential pressure as the measure of filter life but also if there is a noticable flow rate drop at a given time it means that the filter is getting plugged up. lets say that you can fill the jar on a new filter in 15 seconds. when you drop to around 60 seconds it is getting time to change the filter. at that time and maybe before the filter has given its best filtration and will start to degrade the filter media. if you use auto filters (spin on) most any auto parts store can get you a remote filter relocating kit. this will bolt on to the wash tank and will be pipe thread in and out. then use the appropriate spin on for the thread on the adapter. if you do go this route keep in mind that most engine oil filters have a bypass function that if they get plugged they will bypass so as not to starve the engine of oil.

[dfarning]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

Pickleboy,
To do flow rate comparisons, I have just been measuring the amount of time it take for my rinse nozzle to fill a quart jar Do you have any ideas about what sort of flow rate reductions I should be changing filters?

Weighting the dried filters was more of a way to see which size filters were pulling stuff from my tank.

John,
I looked at auto filters but I thought they might be harder to plumb than a standard 10 inch cartridge filter housing. I am curious if the plastic filter housing and o-ring will hold hold up to the cleaner.

David

[jrow]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

David,

Have you thought about using an automotive oil filter on your setup?

John

[pickleboy]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

when using micronic filters the best indicator is flow rate. it will tell you when you are loosing filtration due to the filters being blocked. the other option is if you are real crafty you could install gauges on the inlet and outlet of the filter housing and then compare the inlet to the outlet pressure and this is the differential of the filter. you would need to measure a new filter to get a base line reading then work from there with somewhere around 15-20 psi difference being the max before filter change.

[dfarning]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

Just thought I would update my filter results.

Currently I am running a 5u and a 1u filters which are driven by the built in pump (50gph).
They have been in use about 5 days. The pump has been running about 8 hours per day.
The cleaner is getting quite dark but still feels very soapy and cleans well. I need to figure out how to determine total dissolved solids. Feels soapy is not very accurate.
I took the filters out and dried them in an oven. The 5u filter gained just over 1/4 pounds and the 1u filter gained just under 1/2 pounds.

The .5u filter lasted less then 8 hours before the flow had dropped to less then 25% of the original flow. I guess that was 12 bucks wasted.

David

[dfarning]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

I am a computer programmer by day so my knowledge of filters and detergents is pretty limited I was pretty hopeful when the I could not tell the difference between the .5u stuff and the new stuff. It has only been running about 2 hours now and there is already about a 2% drop in flow rate. I wonder if the filter will be clogged in just a few days? I'll see how long the filter lasts and then bump up to 1u and report the results.

Dave

[pickleboy]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

the problem is the .5 micron filter for this kind of application that is way to fine. i work in the aviation fuel biz at my day job and that industry only goes as low as a 1 micron. i would suggest a 5 as second behind a 25 primary to pull the big sediment out. this should give you good fluid movement and still keep it clean.

[dfarning]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

Here are the ongoing results of my filter test.

Cost
2 X Basic water filter housing 2 X $9.89
2 X Hose barb ? to ? threaded 2 X $1.50
2 X hose clamps 2 X $.50
1 X ? x 4 nipple $0.90
1 X 5 Micron string wound filter $1.60
1 X .5 Micron carbon filter $12.80
4 ft ? hose

I have tried two tests. One with just the 5 Micron filter and a second with both filters in series. The results can be seen below. With both filters, I can not tell the difference between clean solvent and filtered solvent.

With just the 5u filter there is enough pressure to go straight to the sprayer. With both filters there is a steady flow of output fluid, but not enough to run the sproyer. I will have to set up some sort of bypass valve so that when the sprayer valve is shut off the flow is redirected to the filters.

All of the fitting on HF's pumps are ? hose. It should be pretty straight forward drill two holes above the tanks water line to mount the filters externally and conect with hose.

The filter housings are standard 10 inch units. If these filters can't handle the solvents, there should be others available online.

In the three jely jars below going from left to right are unfilter, filtered to 5u and filtered to .5u.

The second picture are the two filter bodies before mounting.

Dave

[LakeRacer99]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

I am gonna look for an element out of a coffee maker or electric skillet (or other 110v immersable element) to try for my 110v heating needs. I will be intersted in your filtration experimentation as well, I currently have the chinese washer from HF. and its stock filtration system.
What are you using for a cleaning solvent and how often do you guy change it? I bought some parts washer solvent from a farm store and looked up the MSDS onthe net and found it to be 90% Naptha, so I returned it and looked for something more bio friendly. I bought the heavy duty parts washer degreaser from HF and have an issue with it. I left it in my washer for a couple weeks and mold started to grow on the surfaces in there. I understand this stuff is bio-friendy, but should I expect to grow organisms in my washer...hehe? By the way, it does a decent job of cleaning up greasy boat motor parts.

[dfarning]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

Just got back from the store, I took John's advice at started looking for a GFI. I seems to be a bit had to find 30A 240 Volt GFI.

15A 120V were between $5 and $10 bucks. that would give you 1800 watts with no room to spare. At the upper end, there were several 50A 240V GIF/circuit breakers for around $90. I didn't see and 30A 240V GFIs. I guess I need to get on the phone and start calling around.

It should be easy to add a filter system all of the major brands of water filters sell a standard 'whole house' system for around $10 that uses a cartridge. I am testing a five micron filter currently. It cost about $1.50. There is no noticable decrease in pressure at the sprayer.

1 micron filters are around $2 while .5 micron filters were a bit more at $24.

I am think two filters in series a 5u and a 1u should clean up the tank pretty well.

I like the idea of being able to drop a filter off at the local transfer station every month or so rather than run all my dirty water through the city system.

David

[dfarning]

Re: DIY hot wash tank

As long as every thing is grounded correctly there shouldn't be any danger. Heater elements are designed to last many years in water heaters with out fail. Is there any difference between a water heater element and a dishwasher element. I would be interested in learning abut what dishwashers use for thermostats. No mater what you try make sure the tank is well grounded. Good point a GFI is now on my shopping list.

3500Watts is plenty of heating capacity for 20 gallons. It can warm up my tank from 60F to 110F in less than 30 minutes. It could also hold the tank at 165F without insulation. The tank ran very quietly with farm and fleet cleaner but makes a weird bubbling noise when filled with 25% oil eater. I wonder if a different type of element would be better?

Does anyone have any thoughts on filtration systems? This tank has become my prewash/presoak tank, so it gets grimmy pretty quickly. The tank already has a nice pump, so I thought I would hook up a 25 or 50 micro water filter with replaceable cartridges to clean out the gunk.

Dave