[Vernon Purcell]

Custom Built Truckmount

    If you were to have a TM custom built, what would you choose and why
    What engine brand, size, fuel type?
    Heating source?
    Vacuum?

    And what would you be willing to pay for your custom built truckmount

[Shaun_Ashmore]

It's not buying it really it's the customer service for problems. If I had to recommend things I would look at easy of repair and use.

The Prowler and the Phoenix are maybe the simplist, the 1st being out the longest, as for the heat, smaller machines are usually renound for not as hot so a burner may be a good idea and then there would be no dumping.

May be have a look at Woodbridge Pro mount series not heared anything at all from Sapphire systems.

IMO I would import from the states ready to put in a van and take a cut.

Shaun

[Vernon Purcell]

Im looking to start with a 20hp diesel engine with a unique heat exchanger system.

[Mike Halliday]

kubota diesel engine. running on red diesel, there are 6 places withing 10 miles of my front door that will fix a Kubuta, don't use a Yanmar or Lombardini these are good engines but not  alot of companies available to fix them

cat 45 pump with a direct feed bypassing the heat exchanger so you can pressure wash without the water having to pass through th Heat exchanger, this will allow you to have the full power & flow of the pump (Hx coils are too narrow they restrict flow)

a small diesel hotbox to heat the water rather than a heat exchanger- instant very hot water and again 4 companies within 10miles of me who can instantly fix them.

a large filter system that allow the waste water to pass through the blower ( as per the prowler) so no waste tank needed.

engine & blower joined with a fenner flexible coupling that is 5 times larger than needed so a 20hp engine has a coupling that will handle 100hp- it will last for ever and  never needs changing.

no chemical injection,( they never work right) just fill your fresh tank with the pre-mixed solution.

mounted on a frame with forklift lifting points.

..............................................................................

who could build an excellent machine like this   ME

[Joe H]

An informative post Mike.
All we need now is the skill to put it all together.

Just a point on the waste water going through the blower therefore needing a good filter box before that.
I found it advantageous on the Prowler to fit a ladies stocking over the filter. This helps me to clean the filter easy when on a job. Once that filter gets full of rubbish the air flow reduces dramatically.
More recently (the last 6 months) I have used one of those inline filter boxes (the blue plastic ones) that catches the larger stuff. This means only the smaller bits get to the main filter and still using the stocking over that I can easily rinse the debri off.
I know there are large steel boxes on sale but these are quiet expensive I think - but then again over the life of a machine they are relatively cheap.

[gwrightson]

Joe Knowing Mike as I do , and seeing a number of homemade t/ms  he has built or converted,and I might add very powerful with out the glitter, I dare say if you are prepared to do with out all flashing lights, cut out swithches dials for this and that and all the rest of the icing  , it would be not that difficult for somebody who has some basic knowledge of how thing fit together , a little time and thought , I bet you would amaze yourself.
Not for me though, i have a prob changing a filter  
I just ring Mike

geoff

[Buckland]

Interesting fantasy(!) thread this - like Mike I would want a diesel option - is red diesel the same as ordinary diesel (but cheaper) or is it less good quality, that's always puzzled me - the savings would be pretty substantial if you could use RD - none of us should be paying fuel duty.

Yep you would need at least 25 hp, water-cooled engine, 400cfm and a high pressure pump to 2500psi min to also allow tile and grout - why lower powered machines should be short of heat is a mystery as I read on a thread the other day - its purely a case of clever plumbing - my larger machine uses a very efficient helicoil HX combined with a catalytic exhaust sleeve - Its never short of heat and the first stage hx is bypassed for that reason - diesel should be less noisy as well - more thud thud than clank clank. I would favour belt driven as the the flexible drive systems dont seem to have a very good reputation in terms of mis-alignment etc

BTw Vernon that wand I bought off you on fleabay is awsome - that was some bargain!

[gwrightson]

Red deisel is exactly the same as derv {white deisel} the only differnce is that red dye is added to detect the misuse in {deisel engine road vehicles )derv.

Nowadays, the tank does not even have to be dipped to detect, as far as i am aware , they simply hold a device over the exaust and can detect the misuse of red, even if it has been used in the past !! but using red in machines etc is perfectly legal and a fair amount garages now stock red. I tend to get mine from a local farmer much cheaper but he does have keep a record of amount used. Cant think why you get the idea red is inferior!

Regarding the fenner couplings , if alligned correctly and like mike has said" fit larger than needed" shouldnt be a problem. I have had mine replaced  a couple of times in the last 4 years, never takes longer than a cple of hours and I get the guy to give the t/m a once over oil, filters etc whilst the machine is out .

Geoff

[Buckland]

Ill tell you exactly where I got the idea, I was chatting with a bloke who was selling an Apex Diesel with less than 500 hours - mark dibbs I think in Cambs somewhere - he said what a 'clean machine' it was and that it had been never been run on red diesel - I thought that was a bit strange at the time as the price of red must be one of the advantages of buying a diesel - never having used rd I just took what he said as evidence it was different

thinking about it tho I know  they use alot of rd in road cars in N Ireland apparently as many farmers sell it to supplement their income - apparently it is very widespread practice in republic too wher in rural areas joe public knows the garda wont test his landy tank

haway we live and learn

on the fenner couplings I heard the Chemspec machines had an issue with this -

[Vernon Purcell]

Keep your replies coming please.

[Mike Halliday]

why not throw something into the pot instead of stealing all our good ideas & knowledge

or will you be sending out commision cheques when we've told you how to do it and you start making them to sell :

[Vernon Purcell]

Interesting fantasy(!)

BTw Vernon that wand I bought off you on fleabay is awsome - that was some bargain!

Which wand was it? TM or portable

[Vernon Purcell]

why not throw something into the pot instead of stealing all our good ideas & knowledge

or will you be sending out commision cheques when we've told you how to do it and you start making them to sell :

Was think of a custom service where you tell me how to configure your truckmount, from a ranger of engines. blowers, pumps and heater. As well as a standard range of machines.

[Shaun_Ashmore]

What about if you were to buy the clean and dirty water tank as standard if they were in an L shape and the clean water tank on the bottom and dirty water tank on the top at the back pretty much how you see them now BUT as one unit,

then

you could have a power unit of various power which could be taken off and swapped or lifted off the tanks to be repaired/serviced or upgraded, the power unit (TM) could draw water from the clean water tank like a pressure washer does, the vacuum system could work like the prowler and draw water into the dirty water tank, I bet the unit wouldn't have to weigh much either.

The water tanks could be made so it could hold various size and models so upgrading could be easy as lift off then lift on all in 15 minutes.

Shaun

[Mike Halliday]

vernon, from what i read & hear the big thing truckmount buyers want is reliability,or ease of repairs.

if you look at hydramaster all the way down in Cornwall, they are a great company and always willing to give advice over the phone but its a massive distance from most of the Uk

if you built a machine that had an engine warrentee that will be serviced by a official stockist that had trained engineer, a bit like buying a new ford car in London but  i could have any warrantied work done in beverley where i live. this is what people want.

if i built a T/M for sale i would provide the buyer with a local list to them of all the official companies that can do warranty work on the engine, or give a 'money returned' guarantee where if anything goes wrong in the first year they can take it to a local engineers and then send the bill to you and you will reindurse them, nobody want to return to the company for warrentee work

[John Kelly]

Thats great Mike if you can find companies to do it. Once they clap eyes on a truckmount which is usually something they have never seen let alone worked on they run a mile.

[Joe H]

Thats exactly what happened to me with my Chemspec Avenger with an 18hp Brigss&Stratton engine.

Took it to the local B&S lawnmower dealer (big lawn mowers), they had done work on this engine type before but didnt want to know cause it was in a van. They had a fork lift on site too.

[Buckland]

Vernon - it was a TM wandd you said you'd had forever and never been used - weighs a ton but is an excellent wand

Shaun's modular idea is sound, the unit approach would mean you had just four basic elements -

water clean and recovered, engine, blower, solution h/x

If the frame allowed for fitting a variety of different (matched) engines and blowers you would have a flexible offering - not cheap but a machine built to last that could be upgraded throughout its life

I guess the secret at the end of the day is selling them and as we have seen elsewhere on this board there are alot of boo sucks merchants shouting down the tm concept as outdated and expensive - unlike the US we may see a situation here where in 10-20 years time the TM never achieves widespread ascendency (like it has in the US) and instead becomes a dinosaur and new technology steam cleaners that can scrub/agit, flush and recover in one easy electric? package supersede the TM - personally I believe the future lies in that direction for an innovator and that it should be a multi surface device with contra rotating brushes (like a duplex or host machine) but with steam and vacuum (either onboard or vented outside the building - Im sure Dyson is probably trying to come up with a decent domestic steam cleaner or has looked at it.

Also the volume for a new Tm is going to be frighteningly small - no idea how many machines Hydramaster sell - probably same or less than prochem - but either way the sector is not really powering ahead is it? I think its well known the Hydramaster operation is for sale (or was) and am I right in thinking they are ultimately behind the new Phoenix TM? Presume the terms of their Hydramaster agency do not allow them to get involved with another TM but the costs of bringing machines over from the US for UK customers with import duties VAT etc is no doubt a factor.

 How many new TM units a year of all types are being sold PA either via agencies or operator personal imports  - I suspect its in the sub 300 range - anyone else got any guestimates?

[Vernon Purcell]

Vernon - it was a TM wandd you said you'd had forever and never been used - weighs a ton but is an excellent wand

Yes I rember it must be over 17 years old and still brand new, is a great wand as it has an 1-3/4 pipe reducing to 1-1/2 real heavy duty, they were the original scrub wand. I have the hand tool to that wand aswell.