ALBUQUERQUE YARD WASHPIT PROJECT

First, clean the area you plan to erect the pit in. Any debris, rocks, hardware, or junk that can puncture your pit will compromise your containment.

Next, erect your frame. Framing material is a 2x2 laminated on top of

a 2x4 with 3 inch screws.

Insert your liner. A new medium duty tarp is sufficient, and free of leaks.

Clamp your liner in place.

Spot the rig you want to wash inside the pit, and secure the back piece of frame for

containment.

Set up your pressure washer.

Wash away.

When you’re finished, pull your back piece of frame out, and roll your tarp forward, to hold in the contaminated water. Back your

forklift out, and replace the framing.

You’re left with a pool of dirty water.

Pump the water into a container. We originally used a trash can, to test whether or not the water would evaporate, and how long it would take. We eventually settled on a 55 gallon

drum. Photo is of pump in a mud puddle, not of contaminated water from wash pit.

The evaporation test was done by tracking how fast the water in the trash can evaporated. We also constructed a small 2x2 pit out of a piece of scrap

4mil plastic doubled over to create more surface area, and more evaporation.

It took 11 days to evaporate a full trash can (33 gallons) of water. We were left with a trashcan with some grime in the bottom, and a dirty piece of plastic. We threw the plastic in

the dumpster.

We stored the wash pit setup on an old flat cart for portability.

More framing and a bigger tarp increase the size of rigs you can wash.

If you’re using chemicals or solvents to wash, make sure to wear PPE for

eyes, skin, and hands.

Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plans [SWPPP] are mandated by

the EPA, OSHA, the State, and the DEC. They apply to any site where

contaminated water can be introduced into the water table,

public drains, active waterways, or refuges. Lack of containment and proper disposal of contaminated water is a violation, and can yield

fines that are capped at $32,500 per day.

Disposal of contaminated water in a cost efficient manner is the most

challenging part of fabricating your own pit. It takes some

thought, and some creativity, but there are avenues that can be

taken to dispose of waste water cost free.

Evaporation Evaporation is free, and

happens fast in the hot New Mexico Climate. A translucent drum with the bungs out will evaporate at the rate of about ½ to ¾ of an inch per day. Depending on how many rigs are in your fleet, and the frequency that you wash them, this may be a viable option. Any container that holds water and is sealable (to prevent overflow from rain) can be used.

Leaving your pit erected The larger the surface area

of a body of water, the faster it evaporates. Consider a mud puddle that’s an inch deep, and consider a drum that’s four feet deep. Puddles evaporate after a rainstorm in a day or two. If your pit is out of the way in your yard, and you can leave it alone, it will usually evaporate inside of three days, depending on the weather and wind. This is the fastest, cheapest way to go, but isn’t always feasible depending on the size of your yard.

Why wash our own rigs? Because we can do it more frequently,

and maintain a cleaner fleet. Cleaner fleets look more professional,

have less issues than equipment that is filthy, and are easier to service and PM.

Dirty rigs often cover warning labels and decals, which is a DOT violation.

Not all contractors that wash our rigs at their shops or with mobile wash units in our yard do so in compliance with SWPPP regulations. This puts us at risk.

What are the savings?Our pit overall cost about $185 to fabricate. The shop we were taking our trucks to charged us $35 a rig to wash with their personnel, and $20 if our guys did it. There was no SWPPP in place, which put us at risk when we did it. Also, the same vendor came to our yard with his mobile steam cleaner, and charged us $65 per forklift to wash those (again, with no SWPPP). We used him an average of twice a year. There are seven forklifts in our yard, and five fleet rigs. The math, for two washes per fleet rig and forklift per year, came out to $1260 annually. With our pit now in place, at a base cost of $185, we save $1075 per year. And we don’t have to limit our cleaning to 2 times. We can wash as often as we like, or need. If your yard doesn’t have a pressure washer, you can get a new one for less than $300. They’re a good long-term investment, and a versatile tool.

Sams Club/$299

End