Jim@GarageCleaning
New member
In 1992 ish, I built my filtration unit at a cost of $72,000 and some change. Back then, no one could tell me if this filter wash going to comply with the requirements for discharge. We built it and rolled the dice and it paid off.
Today, we see many manufactures saying that their filter is the most advanced, best built and most cost effective, but what are they really saying?
The purpose of a filter is to take particles out of the flow ( "Flow" meaning water in most cases ) and suspend them. Allowing clean water to flow out from the unit.
This is where it gets tricky....
Recently I was bidding on a parking garage. A competitor had their own filter as well. My filter was 24 ft long with a capacity of filtering about 40 GPM and suspending particles of up to 50-100 gallons before a clean out would be necessary. My competitors on the other hand, Had several under the counter gallon size filters. We both had an active carbon filter, we both had a cartridge filter, in fact they were almost 65% the same elements of filtration, however his capacity was about 2 gallons. When we brought this issue up, he replied that he was going to empty the units on the job and/ or replace the cartridges when clogged. This would of been a very long and time consuming endeavor.
My point here is that his units had the similar spec's as mine when 10 gallons of water went through them. However, his was for a restaurant use and NOT for garage cleaning.
When shopping for a filtration unit, one must think of the application one is using the filter for. The bigger the area, the bigger the filter is needed. In fact, our filter which is about 17 years old now, is a bit too small for our other equipment. The fact of the matter is, our filter, when in combination with our pressure washer units, coinciding with a fire hose rinsing, cannot keep up. A filtration unit of 80-100 gallons per minute is going to be required in the near future. The cost currently will be over $135,000.
What I am trying to say here is this, " If you are going to clean a drive thru and nothing but a drive thru, then you can get away with a 2 to 5k system in general. If you were to do several large gas pads or a few shopping centers, then a 20 to 40+ k unit may be needed. Parking garages... the sky is the limit.
Don't be fooled by someone saying that these are the specs so therefore this unit will do the job. As you filter, your unit will pick up particles out from the flow. The filter is designed to get clogged in time. If your filtration elements are small or limited, your flow rate will decrease quickly thus slowing your cleaning abilities. ( No filtration, no pressure washing) You will need to "Dump" that class II Hazardous waste at some point. If you are on the job, you would have to stop when full, and go to an approved depot to dump it. Time is money and this WILL take allot of time, perhaps most of the day.
The bigger filters allow you to clean a much larger area or much more smaller areas, without this worry being clogged.... the need to dump the waste at a depot that maybe 20 to 40 miles from your work area. Time that is wasted.
Thats my 2 cents !
.
Today, we see many manufactures saying that their filter is the most advanced, best built and most cost effective, but what are they really saying?
The purpose of a filter is to take particles out of the flow ( "Flow" meaning water in most cases ) and suspend them. Allowing clean water to flow out from the unit.
This is where it gets tricky....
Recently I was bidding on a parking garage. A competitor had their own filter as well. My filter was 24 ft long with a capacity of filtering about 40 GPM and suspending particles of up to 50-100 gallons before a clean out would be necessary. My competitors on the other hand, Had several under the counter gallon size filters. We both had an active carbon filter, we both had a cartridge filter, in fact they were almost 65% the same elements of filtration, however his capacity was about 2 gallons. When we brought this issue up, he replied that he was going to empty the units on the job and/ or replace the cartridges when clogged. This would of been a very long and time consuming endeavor.
My point here is that his units had the similar spec's as mine when 10 gallons of water went through them. However, his was for a restaurant use and NOT for garage cleaning.
When shopping for a filtration unit, one must think of the application one is using the filter for. The bigger the area, the bigger the filter is needed. In fact, our filter which is about 17 years old now, is a bit too small for our other equipment. The fact of the matter is, our filter, when in combination with our pressure washer units, coinciding with a fire hose rinsing, cannot keep up. A filtration unit of 80-100 gallons per minute is going to be required in the near future. The cost currently will be over $135,000.
What I am trying to say here is this, " If you are going to clean a drive thru and nothing but a drive thru, then you can get away with a 2 to 5k system in general. If you were to do several large gas pads or a few shopping centers, then a 20 to 40+ k unit may be needed. Parking garages... the sky is the limit.
Don't be fooled by someone saying that these are the specs so therefore this unit will do the job. As you filter, your unit will pick up particles out from the flow. The filter is designed to get clogged in time. If your filtration elements are small or limited, your flow rate will decrease quickly thus slowing your cleaning abilities. ( No filtration, no pressure washing) You will need to "Dump" that class II Hazardous waste at some point. If you are on the job, you would have to stop when full, and go to an approved depot to dump it. Time is money and this WILL take allot of time, perhaps most of the day.
The bigger filters allow you to clean a much larger area or much more smaller areas, without this worry being clogged.... the need to dump the waste at a depot that maybe 20 to 40 miles from your work area. Time that is wasted.
Thats my 2 cents !
.
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