This case study focuses on the industrial tank cleaning service provided to a mill in the Peak District, prior to the uplift and disposal of their oil tanks. Industrial tank cleaning refers to the cleaning of bulk storage tanks in operational areas such as factories or mills, often housing products such as heavy fuel oil or diesel.
In this particular case, our industrial tank cleaning team were utilised to clean three vertical heavy fuel oil tanks. The tanks housed a quantity of oil, totalling 35,000 litres, all of which had to be heated and transported from site for disposal at a licensed facility.
On this occasion, we were fortunate that the site’s own steam fed heating system was operational, and the tanks contained suitable steam coils. Previous projects have led to us having to fabricate steam lines and provide temporary steam boilers in order to heat heavy fuel oil to a sufficient temperature for pumping.
Upon removal of the heavy fuel oil from site, our industrial tank cleaning team then set about gaining entry to the tanks. Being vertical in construction, the only available lids were on the tank top, but our cold cutting equipment allowed us to cut suitable entry points into the tanks. This ensured that safe access and egress was achievable throughout the process at ground level. Wherever possible, our methods will always try to avoid works at height, particularly for longer durations such as tank cleaning.
Although the tanks had been pumped out using the bottom outlet, a very thick layer of sludge and sediment remained in each tank, a by-product of heavy fuel oil being stored over long periods of time. Using a combination of hand scrapers, vacuum equipment and old-fashioned elbow grease, our industrial tank cleaning team were able to successfully clean all three tanks in preparation for their uplift and removal. The tanks were cleaned to a suitable standard that allowed for hot works to be conducted on each tank.
The experience of our industrial tank cleaning operation ensured that the project was completed on time and within budget. This was critical to our client, as the works were being conducted during a planned factory shut down. The removal of the tanks was pivotal in ensuring other parts of the project were completed on time.
If you have any enquiries regarding industrial tank cleaning or any other tank cleaning requirements, please feel free to call us directly on 01132635163, email [email protected] or fill in a contact form here.