The Numbers Don’t Lie: OPW’s ElectroTite Has Optimized Tank-Sump Water Tightness

About the Author: Ed Kammerer is the Director of Global Product Management for OPW, based in Cincinnati, OH, USA. He can be reached at ed.kammerer@opwglobal.com. OPW is leading the way in fueling solutions and innovations worldwide. OPW delivers product excellence and the most comprehensive line of fueling equipment and services to retail and commercial fueling operations around the globe. For more information on OPW, please visit OPWGlobal.com.

OPW ElectroTite - Is your site underwater? OPW’s Watertight Wonder, the ElectroTite Tank Sump

Tank sumps are critical components in the fueling systems at retail and commercial fueling sites in their role as isolation chambers that provide secondary containment for tank fittings, valves and submersible pumps, along with easy access to the storage tank itself for service and maintenance. Since the creation of underground fuel-storage systems, however, fuel-site operators have waged a constant battle against water intrusion into their tank sumps.

This is a major concern as water that enters a tank sump can trip alarms, cause microbial growth, induce rusting of metal parts and, in the worst-case scenario, invade the fuel that is contained in the underground storage tank (UST), which will compromise its quality. Preventing water intrusion is so difficult because there are a number of ways it can enter the tank sump and fuel-storage system: through leaking tank-sump lids; cracks in sump walls; damaged entry fittings; and, most commonly, through conduit runs.

When water intrusion does occur and an alarm is tripped, the sound that accompanies it may as well be the ringing of a cash register, since the site operator will soon be reaching for his or her checkbook in order to pay not only for the service call, but for a pump out of the tank sump. The cost for the following hypothetical pump out example is based on conversations with the service manager of a United States UST service and installation company based on the East Coast:

Sump Pump Out Cost Calculator

Activity Input Cost
Labor Hours 4 hours $358.00
Travel Miles ($0.85/mi) 65 miles $55.25
Vacuum Trailer Rental Fee 1 $75.00
Gal/Petroleum-Containing Waste (PCW); $1.80/gal 350 gallons $630.00
TOTAL COST $1,118.25

The costs, miles and hours for a pump out will obviously vary from site to site, but the price for this average example – multiplied by the 15-20 pump outs per UST, on average, that can occur annually at a fueling site – will result in an exorbitantly high cost to remediate water-intrusion events, with many fuel-site operators unable to reconcile this expense.

To The Rescue

The year 2017 will be looked back on as a landmark one for fuel-site operators in their constant battle against tank-sump water intrusion. It was then that OPW Retail Fueling, Smithfield, NC,  introduced the revolutionary ElectroTite No-Drill Tank Sump to the market. What made ElecroTite a true game-changer was its status as the industry’s first and only tank sump that featured factory-installed conduit ports with an integrated electrical wiring junction box. This allows the sump to be installed as-is at the fueling site, with no intrusive drilling required. This feature eliminates the risk that unintended leak points will result due to the drilling of entry points, while also optimizing installation time.

Other beneficial features of the ElectroTite tank sumps include:

  • Water Tightness
    • Sealed conduits are located above the water table
    • Elimination of all conduit entry fittings
    • Reduced entry points lower number of potential leak points
  • Accessibility
    • Conduit lines can be installed, inspected and repaired through the top of the sump
    • Can access wiring box for inspection without entering confined sump area
  • Versatility
    • Explosion-proof junction box allows space to reroute or daisy-chain communication wires to spill containers and tank monitors, eliminating additional conduit runs to the tank field
    • Electrical shield allows positioning of high- and low-voltage sensor wires in same box
    • Conduit can be potted entering box, exiting box, or both
  • Consolidation
    • Will replace up to six:
      • Conduit entry fittings
      • Conduit sealoffs
      • Explosion-proof junction boxes

The bottom line is that the design and operation of ElectroTite tank sumps make it the most watertight system available, resulting in a fueling system that optimizes efficiency, reliability, cost-effectiveness, environmental protection and the safety of both the site and the customers who patronize it.

Seeing Is Believing

Of course, it’s easy to say that something is the best thing since sliced bread, but proving it is a different matter entirely. Well, after nearly four years of observation of in-the-field installations, the ElectroTite has more than lived up to its advance billing. The chart below compares tank-alarm remediation costs for two United States sites that have had ElectroTite tank sumps in operation for nearly four years to an average non-ElectroTite site:

SITE 1 SITE 2 NON-ELECTROTITE SITE
# of Months Installed* 40 42 40
Total Tank Sump Alarms 0 1 48
Avg. Pump Outs/Month 0 0.024 1.2
Gals/PCW Removed 0 250 12,000
Cost to Remove PCW ($/gal) $1.80/gal $1.80 $1.80
Overall Tank-Sump Maintenance Cost $0.00 $450.00 $21,600.00

*-as of January 2021

Let’s take a closer look at the individual installations and the conditions the sumps have encountered:

  • Site 1: Three ElectroTite tank sumps were installed at this Midwestern U.S. site in November 2017, one each for unleaded gasoline, premium gasoline and diesel USTs. As you can see, this is turning out to be the poster child for the effectiveness of the ElectroTite tank sumps. In that time, not one single tank-sump alarm event has been recorded, resulting in zero cost for the overall maintenance of the sumps.
  • Site 2: Two ElectroTite tank sumps were installed at this Southeastern U.S. location that is situated near an extremely high water table in September 2018, one each on the unleaded and premium gasoline USTs. Since then, two alarm events have been recorded at the site (both on the unleaded sump in July 2018 and September 2020), but only one required a pump out.

Conclusion

Fuel-site operators have always had to keep water from intruding into their below-ground fuel-storage systems, but that has proven to be easier said than done. Until 2017, that is. With the introduction of no-drill tank-sump/conduit-less technology to the market, epitomized by OPW’s ElectroTite system, the battle against water intrusion is being won more often by site operators. The result is a fueling operation that can more reliably deliver uncompromised fuel to its customers while helping to make expensive, time-consuming and frustrating sump pump outs a welcome thing of the past.

Check Out The OPW ElectroTiTE Sumps In Our Web Store!OPW ElectroTite Tank Sump

You can also find many other great OPW products in our webstore as well.

OPW Retail Fueling Components

Fibrelite

OPW Engineered Systems

OPW Fuel Management Systems

And if you don’t find the ElectroTite tank sump in the configuration you are looking for , have further questions about them  or any other OPW product, feel free to contact us at 1.800.451.4021 or email us!


The John W. Kennedy Company appreciates your business and continued support!

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Check Out OPW’s Virtual Trade Show!

When The Trade Show Must Go On…
OPW is Bringing the Trade Show Experience to YOU – Virtually!

Since all the Spring trade shows have been canceled, OPW decided to bring the trade show experience to you by way of our new OPW Virtual Trade Show.

Through a series of short but comprehensive videos filmed at the Exhibit Logistics studio, Ed Kammerer, OPW Director of Marketing and Global Product Strategy will walk you through one of OPW’s trade show booths and guide you, feature-by-feature, through new-product demonstrations. You’ll also have instant access to OPW’s library of animations and product literature that support these new products, just like you were at the show! Watch. Learn. Discover more about the latest and greatest product innovations from OPW, including:

  • 14 Series Nozzles
  • Product Guide App
  • High-Flow Loop System
  • Much more!

The OPW Virtual Trade Show is now live. Click here to sign up today for free access.

OPW University on YouTube

OPW University on YouTube

And if you are one of the many that is in lock down looking to brush up on product knowledge, another great OPW online resource for binge-watching industry videos can be found at OPW University on YouTube. They cover a variety of topics across their wide line of product offerings and OPW is constantly adding to it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And don’t forget, you can purchase many of OPW’s products online at johnwkennedyco.com. And if you can’t find it on our site, not to worry!  Feel free to contact us by email or give us a call at 1.800.238.1225.

OPW Engineered Systems OPW Retail Fueling
OPW Engineered Systems Fibrelite OPW Fuel Management Systems OPW Retail Fueling
OPW Engineered Systems Fibrelite OPW Fuel Management Systems OPW Retail Fueling

 

The John W. Kennedy Company appreciates your business and continued support!

 

JWK USA Logo

OPW Introduces the ElectroTite Tank Sump – No Drill DRY Sump Technology

OPW ElectroTite - Is your site underwater? OPW is proud to introduce their newest Watertight Wonder, the ElectroTite Tank Sump

Developed in the collaborative engineering labs of FlexWorks and Fibrelite, OPW’s latest tank sump innovation is the most watertight system on the planet and features no drill dry sump technology. The ElectroTite ships factory-installed with conduit ports and an electrical wiring box, which eliminates tank sump leak points at site installation.

By becoming conduit-entry-fitting-free, the market’s most watertight tank sump is now the most innovative. Extremely versatile, the ElectroTite is available in a wide variety of models to accommodate virtually any tank sump application.

A few of the many innovative features and benefits include:

  • Sealed conduit threads on outside of sump – enter above water table.
  • UL-Listed, explosion-proof junction box allows space to reroute. communication wires and loop additional sensors without entering sump. Junction box is also used for wiring seal off.
  • The “Kwik Wire” junction box is partitioned and allows for high voltage and sensor wires in same box.
  • Reduces the number of entry and leak points into sump.

In the meantime, check out the ElectroTite resources below:

 

ElectroTite Data Sheet

 

The sump will be on display at the PEI-NACS show in Las Vegas, October 7-10. Stop by the OPW booth (7021) at the show and see the sump in person and talk with the OPW team about this exciting new innovation!

Please feel free to contact us as well with any questions about the ElectroTite tank sump or any other OPW product at 1.800.451.4021.

The John W. Kennedy Company appreciates your business and continued support!

JWK USA Logo