1000g propane tank floated out of the ground.

   / 1000g propane tank floated out of the ground. #1  

Singlecoil

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Feb 26, 2006
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Location
Eatonville, Washington
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Kubota BX-24D Cub Cadet LT42e
So I spent the money on a 1000g propane tank last summer and had it buried with about a foot of sand all around it. A couple of months ago we had a very rainy stretch in Western Washington. The tank had right about 490 gallons in it and the bugger floated out of the ground! I'm not sure what to do about it at this point. The longer I wait the lighter it gets so in this case, procrastination pays. The propane guy will lift it and set it aside. Then I'll need to re-excavate and reset it, but what are the options for holding it down? Ecology blocks are expensive and a pain to get. Is there some way to screw some anchors into the clay and hook a cable to that?
 

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   / 1000g propane tank floated out of the ground. #2  
Surely you're not the only one in your area that has had this problem. Two places I'd start with are the propane company for their recommendations, and also check if there are any city/county/state codes that have to met for a buried fuel tank. Once you know where you stand you decide how best to approach the problem.

Ken
 
   / 1000g propane tank floated out of the ground. #3  
Looks like you are on a hillside. I would put in some gravity-flow drains from the bottom of the hole. Move it to a higher spot if needed to arrange a drain.

If I calculated right, your empty tank would have about 4000 pounds of buoyancy.

I've seen photos of swimming pools that did the same thing if emptied when the ground was saturated.

Bruce
 
   / 1000g propane tank floated out of the ground.
  • Thread Starter
#4  
Thanks for the tips! I'm on s slight slope but where it is at I don't have enough fall to get drainage at the bottom of the hole. The lowest I can go is about the top of the tank, which I plan to do.
 
   / 1000g propane tank floated out of the ground. #5  
Thanks for the tips! I'm on s slight slope but where it is at I don't have enough fall to get drainage at the bottom of the hole. The lowest I can go is about the top of the tank, which I plan to do.

It looks to me like you were lucky you didnt rip the copper line out of the tank, and lost all that spensive propane.
 
   / 1000g propane tank floated out of the ground. #6  
If you can't keep the water out, you have to get the water out, or use several tons to hold it down.

Maybe a collection system under the tank, connecting to a large vertical pipe, with an automatic sump pump in it.

Here are some numbers:

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:0Z1cA9Iaa2AJ:www.tiedown.com/pdf/d909.pdf+&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESitOuB0_uzesTNd3XhXAjIbaPDue0YSiQiC_1Rz505TDwGKUgHYjJgIQi3urcXK8EUomzeFi2bt-T7giQ6mGFViZqzmyD7xn1QItEJ-lhu6O49KCdhWfpF8u09N_wubdqWn1aHg&sig=AHIEtbRaTFeYyy8h_n6vvavwOgYLSByp1w&pli=1

Bruce
 
   / 1000g propane tank floated out of the ground. #7  
I would think some concrete "dead men" woulda been in order from the start. Say 12"deep'x24"wide x 8 feet long and the tanks legs bolted to two of those at installation time. The tank would then have to lift those 2 steel reinforced concrete beams and all the dirt on top of them.
 
   / 1000g propane tank floated out of the ground. #10  
American Earth Anchors

These anchors are rated for 3,500 lbs each (in optimal conditions). I have never done anything like this, so I can't say for sure whether it's a good idea or not, but what if you sunk three or four of these on each side of the tank (eight total) with steel cable going over the top. With 4,000 lbs of buoyancy (empty tank--assuming the previous commenter's math is right), eight anchors would be holding just 500 lbs each.
 

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