Propane Question

Unless the plant where you load has specific requirements, you can load with any amount of pressure - I've loaded a trailer that had been flared down to zero many times before.

If you need to raise your pressure, the only way I know to do that is to load through the liquid line instead of the vapor line or the spray bar. Or, you could load through the spray bar but leave the vapor valve closed for awhile, if your plant doesn't have a sensor in their vapor piping that will stop the flow of liquid if it senses low pressure.

@haz-matguru , @Nsterns , @Shyrage have y'all ever heard of having a minimum trailer pressure to be able to load?

 

Never,

Not sure where this facility is. But I've loaded product so cold that the trailer only had 35 psi. And no issues with alarms etc. I've only heard of high pressure alarms shutting off pumps. Not low pressure alarms.

 

A lot of the terminals I loaded out of had 50 psi minimum requirements, but I've never had my pressure checked by the plants. I've gone in with 30-35 and loaded just fine. Like @RockinChair said, you can raise your pressure by loading through the liquid line. Just be careful and keep a vapor recovery line hooked up in case you need it because when you get up towards 85-89% your pressure can jump really high unexpectedly. My pressure would start low at the beginning of the winter but would stay around 75 psi the rest of the season

 

When at a multiple tank facility always pump into the tank that uses to most gas first. If you don't know witch one it is. Look at the data plate on both tanks. Typically the older tank is the one that's used the most. Or just ask if the district is open.

As for overflow going into the next tank. You did right by closing the valve once you reached 90%. But realistically tanks aren't to be filled over 85%. However districts are so busy in the winter that they will ask drivers to fill to 90%. But you never want to run a risk of over filling a tank and making the relief valves pop off. Because the springs could be weak from not being changed for years. Then the leak would be continuing until the tank is empty. Or the propane could come out so rapidly that it freezes up. And the ice ball holds the relief valve open until its beat shut with a BRASS HAMMER. Never a steel one that could create sparks!!!

Here's an example of what I'm talking about. This happened 10 years ago. In an area where the tank was there long before the neighborhood got built around it. All the PTI driver had to do was get up there and beat it down.

 

Any facilities that I've gone to, the smaller tank never transfers to the bigger tank, it's always been the opposite. I never would assume though, I felt safer just shutting off tanks. Your pump definitely will slow down and it will unload slower once a tank is shut off

 

You did the right thing by isolating the tank that was almost full so that it wouldn't receive any more product. The pump sound might change a little when you block in a valve, but as long as the level gauge on the receiving tank keeps going up and the level gauge on your trailer keeps going down everything should be all right.

 

Maybe they should change the relief valve every 30 years or so…..they certainly are up the outside carriers butts about everything