Hotwater tank contamination

[stampedecarwash]

Hello, our hot water tank looks not as clear as if there is Wax material in it. I don't see soap and I already removed the lines going from the hot water tank to my triple shine and foam brush just to make sure there is no chemical coming back from those lien back to the hot water tank. (Just FYI those line just dilute the chemicals in the hydrometer for triple shine and foam brush functions). I'm thinking maybe one of the check valves under the hot water tank has failed (see the pic). The question is how do I know which one has failed???

View attachment 1156

 

[I.B. Washincars]

It’s probably the one with the black hose.

 

[stampedecarwash]

It’s probably the one with the black hose.

Black hose? They all have the black hose going to the bays.

 

[chaz]

Likely the black hose with yellow ring!

But seriously....looks like only four options, I’d look for debris and clean all th check valves.

 

[pgrzes]

Why they dont put a swivel in there anywhere??? Guess not too many problems with the setup? If I need to take any apart I am figuring I will cut just under the shutoff and put a swivel in there. Any one else do this?

 

[I.B. Washincars]

Black hose? They all have the black hose going to the bays.

Yeah, I was being a smart-aleck. You don't usually see things plumbed up with all of the hoses the same color. Just makes it so hard sometimes when trying to trace things down, or at least easier to screw up. Can you shut off the ball valve for the wax for a day or two and see if the problem goes away? I think that if it was soap you would see some bubbles.

 

[MEP001]

Why they dont put a swivel in there anywhere??? Guess not too many problems with the setup? If I need to take any apart I am figuring I will cut just under the shutoff and put a swivel in there. Any one else do this?

That's what I've done, except I use a union.

https://www.kleen-ritecorp.com/p-727-barstock-fittings-pipe-union-34.aspx

 

[Earl Weiss]

Hello, our hot water tank looks not as clear as if there is Wax material in it.

View attachment 1156

Can't tell from photo. Is this a setup were it looks like one large tank with dividers for the Rinse, soap, wax etc. ? I have hd the dividers leak to allow product into the rinse.

 

[stampedecarwash]

Can't tell from photo. Is this a setup were it looks like one large tank with dividers for the Rinse, soap, wax etc. ? I have hd the dividers leak to allow product into the rinse.

I have 5 wand bays. These are 5 ball valves under the hot water tank. After the ball valve there is a check valve. Then there is a Cross. One input to this cross is the hot water coming from the hot water tank. Another input is Wax/Soap (depending on which option the customer chooses). Another input is the City water (which is our Rinse option which is cold). And the last line goes to the pump.

 

[stampedecarwash]

That's what I've done, except I use a union.

https://www.kleen-ritecorp.com/p-727-barstock-fittings-pipe-union-34.aspx

Yes it is a bit of a pain/. I need to remove the all the hose from these fittings first and then turn the whole fitting if I want to change the check valve.

 

[stampedecarwash]

Yeah, I was being a smart-aleck. You don't usually see things plumbed up with all of the hoses the same color. Just makes it so hard sometimes when trying to trace things down, or at least easier to screw up. Can you shut off the ball valve for the wax for a day or two and see if the problem goes away? I think that if it was soap you would see some bubbles.

I don't think that I have a ball valve just for wax. I can remove the solenoids so the plungers wont open.
I think to check which check valve is bad I just need to use the Rinse option and if water is rising in the tank then the valve is bad. I did that but didn't notice any thing significant but I feel like I see just some contamination coming back into the tank (I had to look really hard from the top of the tank through the check valve inlet). So changed the check valve on only one of the bays and the water looks clear (although it looked clear before changing the check valve too)

 

[MEP001]

I don't think that I have a ball valve just for wax. I can remove the solenoids so the plungers wont open.

You should unhook the wire to the solenoid instead of removing the coil (if that's what you meant). The coil will melt if it's powered and doesn't have the stem and plunger in it.

I think to check which check valve is bad I just need to use the Rinse option and if water is rising in the tank then the valve is bad. I did that but didn't notice any thing significant but I feel like I see just some contamination coming back into the tank (I had to look really hard from the top of the tank through the check valve inlet). So changed the check valve on only one of the bays and the water looks clear (although it looked clear before changing the check valve too)

If you have hot water in the tank, run a bay on soap until the check valve gets hot, then switch it to rinse. If the check valve is bad, it will get cold from the backflow. You could warm them up with a propane torch if you aren't heating your wash water.

 

[MEP001]

Yes it is a bit of a pain/. I need to remove the all the hose from these fittings first and then turn the whole fitting if I want to change the check valve.

The first one of those I worked on had the manifolds much closer together, and it was seven bays. Of course the check valve in the middle was bad, and I would have had to shut down four bays and disassemble the manifolds because it was too tight to unscrew even the end ones. So I cut the nipple above the check valve with a hacksaw blade, took about 15 minutes instead of several hours.

 

[stampedecarwash]

Problem Solved: Had to open the Wax line to bay#2 Cross under the hot water tank for some other reasons and noticed Wax keep coming. Changed the plunger for that bay on Wax manifold and Bingo, it stopped . What was happening was the plunger had left open (perhaps the spring was not as strong anymore) and Wax kept being fed to the system. But since the check valve was not as strong either the wax was coming back over night to the hot water tank. That's why the tank looked good during the day but first thing in the morning looked contaminated. I did changed the check valve didn't had to since we never saw soap in the tank so the check valve was 99% good just Wax could go through it the wrong direction during the night when everything is off. Lessons learned: need to check the soap and wax lines coming to each bay crosses once a month making sure the plungers are working fine.