Water Well Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/529509
"Poorly prepared materials are sus- ceptible to rust," Haub says. "That's why we spend so much time preparing the materials first in the blast process." Once everything is blasted, the components are primed with an epoxy primer. The primer bonds to the metal, protecting it against corrosion. "Think of it like sunblock," says Rob Merry, lead painter at GEFCO. "It bonds to that blasted metal very, very well. It protects the product and doesn't let the elements affect it." Lastly, the components receive a top coat of urethane paint to protect the primer. Everything that goes onto a GEFCO rig is pre-painted before the rig is assembled. "We're not building a rig with a bunch of raw material and painting the outside," Nelson says. "The bottom, the sides, and the top—everything is getting painted. Nothing is going on that rig that's bare metal." How you can slow corrosion Although manufacturers try to build long-lasting equipment, it's up to the owner to inspect it for corrosion and maintain it. "(Manufacturers' paint jobs) really seal the truck up with a hard shell fin- ish," Williams says. "That helps to some degree, but they're in a pretty severe service environment. To protect this stuff forever is a pretty monumental task." Preventive maintenance is the key to keeping corrosion at bay. That means keeping the equipment clean and painted. "It's definitely the cheapest avenue," Williams says. "It takes diligence. You really have to keep after this stuff." Just like getting regular oil changes to prevent expensive engine repairs, reg- ularly power washing your equipment can help you keep damaging road salt and other chemicals off of it—saving you money in the long run. Williams washes his trucks every time they come off snowy or slushy roads. Each truck gets a thorough power washing when they come back in for the night. "The sooner you can get these trucks cleaned off, the better," Williams says. "The longer you let it sit, the worse it is. Nothing hurts a vehicle more than to just have it sit around." Williams' service trucks are often washed three times or more each week during the winter months because they're out on the roads almost every day. Because it's often well below freez- ing in the winter months, Williams uses a power washer that sprays hot water and has added radiant heating in the slab of his shop in Jericho—so the trucks have a chance to dry out properly. "I've found we've had less issues when we can pull them in at night and let them dry out," he says. "I have an- other shop that's forced air, and the slab is cold and wet. The undersides of the vehicle do not dry out." Thron also takes the extra time to wash his equipment, paying the most at- tention to the area under the equipment where road chemicals can collect. "We're probably taking as much time—if not more time—spraying the undersides of the equipment to get the salt off of them," he says. To further protect equipment, con- sider adding an anti-corrosion product to protect the metal. Williams uses Fluid Film, a rust preventer and lubricant, underneath his trucks and on his frame rails to keep corrosion from developing. Although critics say using products could make it more difficult to identify pitting corrosion, Williams says he has had fewer problems since adding the product to his vehicles. Keeping the truck's paint in good condition also prevents pitting and uni- form corrosion from beginning. If you accidentally nick the paint, it's impor- tant to repaint as soon as you can. Any- time you see bare metal, corrosion can start—and quicker than you think. To repaint, Merry suggests roughing up the area with a ScotchBrite® pad or similar item before applying an epoxy primer and a top coat. CORROSION from page 21 It is important to identify and understand these different types of corrosion in order to minimize or prevent corrosion damage to your equipment. 22 July 2015 WWJ CORROSION continues on page 24 DACUM Codes To help meet your professional needs, this article covers skills and competen- cies found in DACUM charts for drillers and pump installers. DO refers to the drilling chart and PI represents the pumps chart. The letter and number immediately following is the skill on the chart covered by the article. This article covers: DOK-1, DOK-6, DOK-10, PIG-4 More information on DACUM and the charts are available at www.NGWA.org. waterwelljournal.com