I used to be in the window washing business but am no longer due to being in school. I have been on this forum a lot before and now have another question. I am now a volunteer firefighter and had a question. I used to know a lot about pure water and all that but need some clarification. When we wash our apparatus we often end up with water marks on the apparatus and I thought about possibly using pure water to rinse them? The TDS in our area is around 200 and one engine gets washed probably 4-5 days a week depending on the weather. What would we need to use pure water to rinse the engine? Also, would you need to use pure water for the whole washing or just the final rinse? I was thinking we just need a DI tank (the larger one in the store for around $340), a hose going from the tank, and some sort of sprayer on the end. Is this correct? Also, the pressure from the hose would be enough pressure correct? Would any type of garden type sprayer work? Also how long would that tank last before switching the resin?
Any and all information is appreciated and I know it has nothing to do with window cleaning but I know people on this forum know best when it comes to pure water.
You would not wash the truck with DI ,
Just use DI for the final rinse after
you rinse the soap off with plain water.
Depends on how much rinse water you use for your final rinse.
Can you estimate the amount ?
Man, that truck must get washed 3x more than it gets used… I guess they gotta keep those firefighters busy somehow… Or perhaps rename them “auto detailers”
Actually yeah, a WFP would work well for cleaning a fire truck, all you need is a DI tank from a local supplier and a 8’ pole…
[MENTION=36498]tjcrosson[/MENTION], I rinse my car with my DI tank using a standard hose nozzle- it works great. As [MENTION=3025]pagliachi[/MENTION] mentioned, you would only need it for the final rinse. You could pre-rinse the soap off with tap water, in order to use the least amount resin.
I get a full 5 gallons per minute with my 1/2 cube tank. It causes basically no restriction to the regular water flow from the garden hose. I imagine you could expect similar flow from a full cube tank at your location. So however long it takes for the final rinse would indicate your water usage and how long the DI resin will last. There’s a table around here somewhere that estimates how many gallons you can get from a tank of resin at various TDS readings.
hey TJ, I have washed our Rescue and Ladder utilising a pure water rinse. Not only will it save time but save your paint in the long run also. Check with your local culligan dealer to rent a full cube tank. With 200 tds and 4-5 washes a week your tank should last at least 3 months. my cost was $22 a month and $100 for every tank swap.
