Neal Manufacturing
The leather seals in a hydraulically powered sealcoating machine…
Machine sizes and weights
If you work primarily on smaller jobs such as bike paths, a 750-gallon tank should be enough to complete each project without refilling. But if your department’s jobs are usually larger, like parking lots, you may need a tank as large as 1,500 gallons.
In conjunction with tank size, consider how you plan to transport the equipment. You want to be able to easily move the machine without placing too much strain on the vehicle or trailer.
Before you buy a machine, make sure your truck or trailer has the axle capacity to support the system’s weight. Remember to calculate the weight of the equipment plus the material that will be inside it. Sealcoat generally weighs around 10 pounds per gallon. That means a 750-gallon tank that weighs 4,000 pounds empty will put another 7,500 pounds of pressure on the axle when filled.
If the tank is mounted to a trailer, be sure to check the vehicle’s towing capabilities.
For skid-mounted units, you’ll need to determine the vehicle’s gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR). For example, a skid-mounted unit with a 750-gallon tank needs a vehicle with at least a 15,000 GVWR. A 1,500-gallon tank will require 30,000 GVWR.
Maury Bagwell is lead engineer at Neal Manufacturing, a division of Blastcrete. For more information, visit www.nealequip.com. E-mail maury@blastcrete.com.
