mshaffer wrote:
On Sep 4, 11:43 am, "Ed Pawlowski" wrote:
"mshaffer" wrote in message

...

Hi, I just bought a large air tank on ebay to use with my air
compressor. The guy said I should wash it out though before I use
it. I'm kinda worried about what kind of chemicals might be in it
since it came from an industrialized area. Is there anything I can
use to totally clean it out? Should I just use normal dish soap or
is there something better?

Here is the tank:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...47946127&ssPag...

Thanks,
Michael

There should be NO chemicals in it. Air tanks hold air (and
moisture) and nothing should have ever been in it. There may be rust
inside.
There may be some oil residue if the tank was downstream of a crappy
compressor with no separator. If you want to clean that out, any
detergent that cuts oil will work.

How old is the tank? Is there an inspection tag on it? In some
states (and insurance companies) the air tanks have to be inspected
every two years to insure the integrity of the metal. In MA, where I
work, the tanks will also have a state tag on them. After the
initial state inspection, the insurance company can inspect them. In
the old days, the inspector used to look inside and tap around it.
Today, they use an ultrasound device.

There is a plate that says it was inspected in 1996.. The plate is
welded on though so I don't know if it's the original. There is a big
sticker with the dealer's name where it was bought. Maybe I could call
them and see if they know what it was used for?

At least take a whiff of the air in the tank for odor. That might give you a
clue.

I called the city Boilers and pressure vessels inspector to ask about an air
take I got used. He quickly volunteered to come out and inspect it with an
ultrasonic thickness guage, and told me it was fine. Such a person would
probably be an excellent resource for your question. A commercial compressor
shop could probably help also.