Tank cleaners do not always require heated water for an effective clean. Increasing cleaning impact, reach and coverage through higher liquid pressure and flow can eliminate the need for hot water, which can lead to significant energy savings.

To reduce cleaning time and return tanks to service faster, you can increase impact by increasing flow and/or pressure, increase the temperature of the cleaning liquid, adjust the chemistry-to-water concentration, reposition the tank cleaning equipment, use multiple tank cleaners instead of a single unit, or use a more efficient tank cleaner.

Internal obstructions block the spray from hitting the tank wall. These obstructions, called “spray shadows”, create areas where nozzles can’t reach.

For a thorough clean:

• Optimize the location of the nozzles. A powerful tank cleaning machine may be able to provide enough impingement to get around the obstructions and reach tank walls, but it will take longer and require higher flow rates and pressures.
• Use two to three smaller, less powerful tank cleaners in different locations to ensure complete coverage.
• If the tank only has a single entry opening, special lances and flanges allow the nozzle turret to moved to multiple locations in the tank.

• Hot water may be needed to remove some residues. In some cases, increasing cleaning impact can reduce or even eliminate the need for hot water and lead to a dramatic reduction in energy use.
• In some cases, a simple increase in liquid pressure and flow may reduce the number of cycles needed for thorough cleaning. Faster cleaning can reduce downtime while also reducing water and chemical consumption.
• Internal obstructions, like agitator shafts and blades, block the spray from hitting tank walls. Utilizing equipment with the flexibility to reposition tank cleaning equipment can make it easier to clean tanks of varying shapes and sizes. Specialized lances and adjustable flanges can also be used to precisely position nozzles.