hi-temp hydro
New member
In the spirit of this weekends roundtable in Alabama, I realize that what we do all the time we sometimes take for granted, and assume that everyone knows what we do. The following may be common knowledge to many, but a few guys may really benefit from it.
During this time of year daytime temps in many areas are becoming great for our line of work, however nighttime lows drop below the freezing mark. So if your like me and you keep your equipment outdoors in an un-heated area you may have frozen lines to contend with. Frozen water in lines you need clear the following morning for a job may be an issue, I hope to help with this one.
Since everyone's machines are different, I'll focus mainly on lines. When clearing a water supply hose (garden hose) I blow the hose clear using my air compressor with a regular 1/4" male air fitting, a male pipe to FIP hex bushing 1/2"x1/4", and a male hose to MIP adapter tapped 1/2" FIP 3/4"x3/4"x1/2". All seen in the pic. This screwed onto your hose will push all water out of the hose, reel, and jumper into the tank.
For the high pressure lines I use again use a 1/4'" male air fitting, 1/4" x 3/8" adapter, with a 3/8" MPT plug attatced to the coupler. Unconnecting the jumper from the washer unit itself you can totally clear the high pressure lines.
For the water supply line from a buffer tank, I cut off my supply line next to the machine and empty the in-line filter. On my set up I open another valve at this time that supplies the washer itself with antifreeze from a self contained resevoir. Now back to the water supply line. I put a 3/4" T-fitting coming directly out of the tank, one line supplies the machine, while the other I use for a dump valve to empty the tank. I drain the tank and elevate the supply line so that all water is cleared out of the lines.
Doing all this makes it easy for an early morning job the next day. Just one time of stretching out hose and using a blow dryer will have you wishing you did this.
If anyone else has any other ideas for a nightly cold snap, or improvements on mine, let us all know.
During this time of year daytime temps in many areas are becoming great for our line of work, however nighttime lows drop below the freezing mark. So if your like me and you keep your equipment outdoors in an un-heated area you may have frozen lines to contend with. Frozen water in lines you need clear the following morning for a job may be an issue, I hope to help with this one.
Since everyone's machines are different, I'll focus mainly on lines. When clearing a water supply hose (garden hose) I blow the hose clear using my air compressor with a regular 1/4" male air fitting, a male pipe to FIP hex bushing 1/2"x1/4", and a male hose to MIP adapter tapped 1/2" FIP 3/4"x3/4"x1/2". All seen in the pic. This screwed onto your hose will push all water out of the hose, reel, and jumper into the tank.
For the high pressure lines I use again use a 1/4'" male air fitting, 1/4" x 3/8" adapter, with a 3/8" MPT plug attatced to the coupler. Unconnecting the jumper from the washer unit itself you can totally clear the high pressure lines.
For the water supply line from a buffer tank, I cut off my supply line next to the machine and empty the in-line filter. On my set up I open another valve at this time that supplies the washer itself with antifreeze from a self contained resevoir. Now back to the water supply line. I put a 3/4" T-fitting coming directly out of the tank, one line supplies the machine, while the other I use for a dump valve to empty the tank. I drain the tank and elevate the supply line so that all water is cleared out of the lines.
Doing all this makes it easy for an early morning job the next day. Just one time of stretching out hose and using a blow dryer will have you wishing you did this.
If anyone else has any other ideas for a nightly cold snap, or improvements on mine, let us all know.
