skydawg Posted September 24, 2022 Share Posted September 24, 2022 I got a bit of water and several ounces of tan goop from my B air tank.I know that shouldn`t be there,but I suspect it had been years since it was last drained.Any good method of cleaning?I was thinking of repeated acetone pours of maybe 8 oz,until it comes out clean.Thanks. Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/70475-cleaning-air-tank/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirtymilkman Posted September 24, 2022 Share Posted September 24, 2022 Just drain it. No need to clean. That's just oil and water mixed together in it. 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/70475-cleaning-air-tank/#findComment-510226 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joey Mack Posted September 24, 2022 Share Posted September 24, 2022 Yea, you can let it drain... any chance you have a bore scope that you can put in one of the ports just to see inside,, I mean, if you have a real concern... other wise, you can just hook shop air to the tank, dial it down to about 20 PSI, and crack the drain valve and wait till it stops pushing the goop out.. dirtymilkman is likely right about this.. jojo 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/70475-cleaning-air-tank/#findComment-510234 Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsmackpaul Posted September 24, 2022 Share Posted September 24, 2022 As said just drain it, back in the day before we were all soft there were no air dryers at all on trucks As part of your daily job as a truck driver was to drain all the air tanks at the end of each shift They used to have taps on them and you left them open over night Leaving low air pressure as Joey suggests has never worked for me as the air doesn't seem to pick up the oil at all but rather leaves it behind You could pull the tank off and put petrol (gas for Yanks) in it and slosh it about, drain and repeat a few times Only a litre or quart I think you blokes call it at the most of petrol each time Apparently even in good old Australia we have air dryers on trucks today, I have never seen one fitted to a truck or otherwise Paul 1 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/70475-cleaning-air-tank/#findComment-510240 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joey Mack Posted September 24, 2022 Share Posted September 24, 2022 i was only thinking about the oil that is in the tank.. low pressure, allows the sludge to settle rather than stir it up.. and yes draining tanks is a thing of the past for some reason,,, hell I was trained to pull air tank cables and let a little fuel out of the fuel water seperator, check oil, and wash windows and mirrors, while in the fuel island, and too pull the cables at the end of the day to drain the junk out and re-set the unloader valves.. I cant tell you how many truck owners/drivers I had to explain that too... and i'm no genius....jojo 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/70475-cleaning-air-tank/#findComment-510242 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swishy Posted September 24, 2022 Share Posted September 24, 2022 (edited) Good advice from Mrs Mack drain them with a open tap to get a bit more our with less restriction take the drain tap completley out n let m drain o/night then see wot develops nex day cya Edited September 24, 2022 by Swishy 2 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/70475-cleaning-air-tank/#findComment-510244 Share on other sites More sharing options...
mechohaulic Posted September 25, 2022 Share Posted September 25, 2022 At one of the fleets I worked for, I took a quart of AIR LINE alcohol (not from a package store) :drained the wet tank and pour the quart in. with marker wrote date on the tank. tanks were orange = black marker showed easily. every month drained did process over again. this was done yr round. never had a problem with frozen brakes in winter either. the alcohol kept system clean, many people wait till cold weather to add alcohol. this loosens all the crud sends it through lines. union company== drivers never drained tanks. far as this unit; i would suggest the airline alcohol treatment ; the alcohol will mix with the water /oil make it easy to drain till it's clean. as above stated, regular drain is best. starts showing up in other tank or goes brown to black that's raw oil not condensation . Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/70475-cleaning-air-tank/#findComment-510263 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brocky Posted September 25, 2022 Share Posted September 25, 2022 As long as you only get a small amount of oil each time you drain you are fine.. If you continually get a large amount, a cup or so, then you have to start thinking about rebuilding / replacing the compressor as the rings have lost their tension and are pumping motor oil into the air system. 2 Quote Brocky Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/70475-cleaning-air-tank/#findComment-510302 Share on other sites More sharing options...
h67st Posted September 25, 2022 Share Posted September 25, 2022 Mine had years of goop in the bottom when I bought the truck. I put some mineral spirits in it and let it sit, then drained it out...worked pretty good. Less harsh than acetone. 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/70475-cleaning-air-tank/#findComment-510325 Share on other sites More sharing options...
skydawg Posted September 26, 2022 Author Share Posted September 26, 2022 I`ll try mineral spirits. 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/70475-cleaning-air-tank/#findComment-510350 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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