Dry Bulk Sugar Unloads

I ran sugar similar to Powder Joints except no aerator while unloading only when cleaning a compartment out. I would run my blower around 13-1500 rpm. I kept my pressure around 8 to 10 psi. I ran sugar in Atl for Bulkmatic for a long time. It really depends where your off loading. Gen Mills and Quaker could take up to 4 hrs or a small plant could be off in 45 mins. 2 hrs was the avg time just because of Gen Mills and Quakers setup. Just be patient with it. Plug ups can be a BEAR!! One place in Augusta Ga could take up to 5 hrs to unload. I'd invest in a large rubber mallet and wrap it in duct tape ( to not mark the trailer). Flour was easy. I used a little top air. You'll have feel out where your unloading if you can use top air. I used my aerators with flour. Also if your running flour be sure to run that screen I ran mine on the trailer. Man I think I just had a flashback with this post.

 

I pretty do everything dry food grade. Mostly flour, some sugar, semolina, starch, rail transfers and vac jobs. I'm actually getting a HydraPak put back on my truck so I can do some liquid as well.

I will never use aerators with sugar. There is no need to fluff a granulated product that will fall on its own. I run my pump at 1000 max, and save the screaming for the vac jobs. I can do a 14.5 lb. push with anything at 800 RPM. ( Yes, that's a healthy pump, and it stays healthy because I don't beat the crap out of it. I cool it down every time as well )

100% top air to pressurize. Once you hit 10 PSI, bring the top air valve to about 35% and open the product line 100% to push. Start a hopper valve at about 50% open and I don't typically go past 75%. You open a hopper all the way, and you'll plug, because sugar drops fast. When a hopper is done, it will be done, as there is no "fall back" like flour. I find my best unloads with the least amount of trouble is staying under 10 PSI. I have been to ADM Cocoa in Milwaukee and have had to exercise a lot of patience on that one. One floor up, 200 ft. across, 6 more floors up, and then a 400 ft. horizontal run at the top. 4 hour unload, and my phone lights up every time someone new goes there. That's a 5-7 lb. push. You don't need a lot of tank pressure with sugar. Think about holding a 5 lb. bag of it in the air and cutting a slit in the bottom.

I will use the aerators to rattle the tank when I'm done for a clean out, and that's it. I have seen a tank where a guy cooked the sugar in the middle of the summer, where they had to disassemble all the hopper valves and break up the rocks, and it was a mess. And we bought 25 tons of sugar.

 

I never use top air except on sugar. Use vibrators on everything else. We haul tons and tons of salt, never any issues, as long as your vibrators were dried properly. Haul starch, flour, sand, sugar, corn, wheat....whatever is dry bulk, we haul...except cement, of course.

With sugar, I might use the vibrator on the hopper I'm unloading from time to time but really have to be careful, especially in warmer weather. You'll melt the sugar pretty easy. The sugar we haul is out of Neosho, MO. They really have some lumpy sugar, so you need to hit your vibrator from time to time to bust it up. Was running like four load back to back a couple weeks ago to some plant in IL, about an hour east of St Louis. Centralia, IL, I believe. But Bulkmatic and another company were also hauling it. Rail cars weren't able to make the run so trucks were. But those guys ran their vibrators the entire time. I asked them if they were concerned about melting the sugar and they said nope. Didn't care or what, I don't know. None of them were very friendly. LMAO

Each place will dictate your unload time. Like that plant said 5-8 psi. I found if I got near 8, I'd start to plug. But it was pushing it a long ways. Out of four loads, shortest took me 2.5 hours and longest 4. As with any product, the thing that dictates your time and pressure is where you are unloading. How far the push is, do they have vacuum etc... We run salt out to St Louis to a Conagra plant...takes 45 minutes max to unload 24 ton. Blowing it right in a brine tank. Soybean meal at Del Monte in Topeka, KS can be unloaded under an hour. Take salt to Hormel in Osecola, IA and it takes 3-4 hours.

I've noticed every driver does stuff different. Seen a driver unloading limestone once that had one product valve all the way and another half way. Personally, I'd never try that. I'd plug. lol My brother was unloading sugar in Albuquerque and a Foodliner driver had his product valve all the way open and bottom air all the way open. I'd think with sugar, being it's granulated and heavier, you'd not unload that way. But the guy told my brother he does salt the exact same way.

I've also learned each trailer is a bit different. Brands and ages. But unloading pneumatic is really pretty simple. You'll learn what works best for you and pick up different tips from other drivers over the years.

 

Sugar seems to be the most sensitive to it. And in the winter months, guys can get away with running vibrators. The sugar I run is out of Dominos in Yonkers, and it's pretty clean.

That's funny. The Bulkmatic guys are complete tools to us. Like us hauling into the same place is stealing food out of their kids mouths or something.

We all have our own unique style. And you know how that goes, everybody's way is the best way. I do what works for me. All product and all trailers have their own personalities.

Even right down to the last wash date. A 14 day old trailer on flour is a lot of mallet work. I go from rear to front as well, but it's taught the opposite, because if you have to bring product back, we don't want it all in the nose. That's just knowing your customer, what will fit - and what won't.

 

Maybe because I've just gotten trending a blower on my truck and am now starting to do pneumatics and not just hoppers and vans I would really like these types of threads to cont like the flatbed or hopper threads @Raiderfanatic are you leased to dahlsten??

 

Having problems with rain/road water getting in line can't figure out where it's getting in,
it's not much but enough to get sent to the tank wash.
Anyone else have this happen?
Any suggestions?
Thanks - A Tanker Yanker wife

 

Have you checked all your gaskets

 

So where should my line pressure be at for blowing the sugar off? My tank pressure stays at 10 I’m think my like is too high at 12.5

 

I'd run the line at a point where your able to balance the tank, if you run it wide open you won't have any air going into the tank, which maybe ok, depending on how its feeding.

 

Wow, what kind of blower is that?