Interesting facts about Vacuum Trucks

When there’s a small mess, usually there’s no problem in cleaning it up yourself. Bigger messes, however, need bigger solutions and that’s where the vacuum truck comes in. These heavy duty workhorses can be called in to clean out the debris in the catch basins and storm sewers so we don’t need to worry about overflows when there are big storms.

These are big tricks that do a big job and they need to be looked after with the proper maintenance procedures. Of course, there are the things that need to be inspected on a regular basis like the tire pressure and the fluid levels, but these vehicles also have tanks to hold debris and hoses that suck up the muck from the storm sewers and catch basins, so there are some unique concerns too.

For example, while these trucks have an oil filter that needs to be changed regularly, they have another final filter too. This filter is responsible for filtering out all the foreign materials that might otherwise get sucked up by the hose and damage the holding tank. The tanks are one of the biggest parts on these trucks and usually they range in size from the smaller ones that hold 50 gallons to the larger variety that holds 5,000 gallons.

Keeping the tank from overfilling

There are some other interesting devices these vehicles have that allow them to do their part to clean the catch basins and storm drains in your area. The primary shut off is a steel ball resting on a rubber seat and it acts to shut off the tank when it’s full. The secondary shut off is designed just like the primary one and, like the name suggests, it does the job by preventing the tank from overfilling.

There are also some things that every vacuum truck operator needs to know about the hose that does the job of sucking up the debris into the tank. For example, a driver might need to use different sized hoses for different jobs but changing these in the middle of any one job is considered dangerous.

Finally, one of the most important pieces of these vacuum trucks is the hydraulic system. These need to go through regular maintenance at least twice a year that includes checking the fluid levels and flushing the system by draining the old liquid and replacing it with fresh liquid.