 This program covers tar pot operation from daily checks and filling the tar pot through heating and circulating the material. Using the spray equipment and cleanup. But before we get to all the details of operation, let's take a quick look at the tar pot and how it works. The biggest part of the tar pot is the tank. Our small units hold 200 gallons of material. The big ones can carry up to 600 gallons. Liquid asphalt or oil is added through the hatch from the top of the tank. You'll also use the hatch to measure how much oil is inside. The oil is heated by the burners and flus that extend through the full length of the tank. And the propane tanks provide the fuel for the burners. The liquid asphalt or oil has to be kept hot so it won't stiffen in the tank or in the lines. And even though the flus extend through the full length of the tank, that's still not enough to keep all the material hot. So all tar pots have a circulation system powered by a small engine. The circulation system does two things. First, it keeps the material moving to prevent it from stiffening. And second, by constantly circulating the oil, it gets heated evenly. All the oil has a chance to pass over the flus. Here's how it works. There are three valves at the rear of the tank. An upper tank valve, a lower tank valve, and a distributing valve. The upper valve sucks the oil out of the tank and into the lines. And the lower valve allows the oil to return to the bottom of the tank, right above the flus. Again, to heat the oil evenly. The distributing valve is used to apply the oil. All you have to do is move the valve to the distribute position and the oil will flow freely through the spray bar. Actually, the circulation system does one more thing. It cleans the unit. When you're done with a tar pot, you can flush out the system with diesel fuel. Well, as I said, that's just a quick look. But before I go any further, there are several things you have to know. First, whenever you work with a tar pot, be sure to follow all safety precautions to the letter. What you have here is a flammable liquid, a flammable gas, and an open flame. Now I'm not saying that the tar pot is a death trap, but I am saying that it's potentially very dangerous. So if you're not sure of any step along the way, check with your supervisor or the operator's manual. Don't take any chances. And second, the material that you're heating in the tar pot is oil. That means if it gets on you, it'll stay on you. So always wear protective clothing, boots, gloves, and long sleeves. And finally, always know exactly what type of oil is in the tar pot. You have to know the maximum temperature that the material can be heated to. Heating the material beyond the maximum temperature can cause an explosion. With all that in mind, let's look at the daily checks. The first thing you should do each day is make sure that you have plenty of oil in the tank. Obviously you want enough to get you through the day, but there is more to it than that. If the oil isn't at least six inches over the flu, you could cause an explosion when you heat the oil. So if you don't have enough oil, add some before you do anything else. All you have to do is run the hand hose through the manhole and attach the other end to a distributor and fill it up. But there are two very important things to keep in mind. First, don't fill the tank completely. Leave some room for the oil to expand as it heats up. And second, don't mix oils. The heating temperatures for cutbacks and emulsions are vastly different. And if you add a cutback to an emulsion, you'll almost certainly cause an explosion. So if there's already some oil in the tank, be sure to add the same type or flush the other out completely. Okay, the tank is full. Now you can continue with your daily checks. Make sure you have a charged fire extinguisher on hand and that it's accessible. That means don't put it on the tar pot. You have to be able to get to it if there's a fire. Check the gasoline and diesel fuel tanks. Make sure you have enough fuel for the engine and enough diesel for clean out. The next step is to make sure you have enough propane. If you don't, either refill the tanks or exchange them for full ones. There are some more checks to do, but they should be done after you light the burners, which I'll cover now. The first step is to set the main gas valve for the propane tank you're going to use. When the valve's in the center position, gas will be drawn from both tanks. Turn it to the left to use only the left tank and to the right to use only the right tank. Both burners will light in all three positions. Then open the valve at the tank and make sure the dampers are open. Now all you have to do is light the hand torch and hold down the starter button as you light the burners. When the burners ignite, adjust the flame and continue holding the starter button. You'll know everything is working as it should if frost forms on the gas lines and you have a yellow flame with a blue tint. If there's no frost on the lines, shut off the hand valve at the burner and the supply valve at the tank. And if the flame doesn't look right, adjust the hand valve until it does. After a minute or so, release the starter button. If the flame starts to go out, push the button right back down and hold it for another minute or so. The starter button is actually a bypass switch. Here's how it works. Inside each burner is a thermal coupler. When the coupler is heated to a high enough temperature, it allows gas to enter the burner. If the flame should go out for any reason, the coupler automatically shuts off the gas supply. The starter switch bypasses the automatic shut off so you can get the burners lit. One more thing about the thermal couplers. They're designed only to shut off the gas if the burners go out. They will not shut off the burners in case of overheating. So always stay with the tar pot whenever the burners are lit. Okay, the burners are going. The next step is to get the oil circulating so it will heat evenly. But before you do, make sure the valves on the spray bar and the hand hose are both closed. Now you can start the engine. Next, engage the clutch to get the pump working and move the upper tank valve to the circulate position. That allows the pump to draw the oil out of the top of the tank. Now move the lower tank valve to the circulate position so all the oil can return to the bottom of the tank right above the flues. Now that you have the oil circulating, you can continue your daily checks. Keep an eye on the temperature and be sure that it stays below the maximum temperature recommended by the supplier. And remember, stay with the machine whenever the burners are lit. There are troubles about the last thing you need, so check the pressure and condition. Check the battery. Make sure all the cables are tight and corrosion free and that there's enough water in the cells. And don't forget to trailer hook up. Make sure the safety chain's in place. That's it for the daily checks for now. You're almost ready to head to the job site. But first, shut off the tank valve, then the valve's at the burners. That's right. Shut everything down. Never travel with a burner's lit. In fact, don't use the tar pot for anything when the burners are lit. Remember, the oil is flammable and there's an open flame at the burners. Any contact between the oil and the flame and the least you'll have is a big fire on your hands. Only when everything is shut down is it safe to travel. When you get to the job site, check the temperature of the oil. If it's not up to application temperature, relight the burners. But in any case, start the engine and circulate the oil. If you're going to use the spray bar, move the lower tank valve to the circulate-in-bar position. That way the bar gets heated to the same temperature as the oil, so the oil will flow freely when you're ready. Now all you need to know are the starting and ending points for the application. And remember, shut off the burners before you apply the oil. When the truck gets up to speed and you reach the starting point, just move the valve to the distribute position. And of course, to stop spraying, just return the valve to the circulate position. You can also use the hand hose to apply the oil. Again, the first step is to make sure the burners are off and that the hand hose valve is closed. Then turn the lower tank valve to the hand hose position, and you're ready to go. Now whether you're using the spray bar or the hand hose, the amount of oil to apply is very important, and it changes from one job to the next. So always check with your supervisor to find out how much oil to apply. Okay, now the last step of operation. Clean up. This step of the operation is critical. In fact, it can't even wait until you get back to the yard. Clean up has to be done at the job site. If the material hardens in the system, you'll have an unbelievable job trying to get it out. So clean up the system as soon as possible after you're done using it. Here's a demonstration of the procedure. First, make sure the burners are off. Then close the upper tank valve. That keeps the oil in the tank. The next step is to get the oil out of the pump, the spray bar, and the hand hose. So move the lower tank valve to distribute. Open the solvent valve at the pump. Open the spray bar or hand hose, whichever you need to clean, engage the clutch. When the solvent is flowing freely, close the spray bar, shut off the engine, and shut off the solvent valve. Well, like other pieces of equipment, tar parts come in different makes and models, but the way they work is substantially the same. It's just that the valves may be in different places. So let's look at clean out on one other type of tar pot. Again, the first step is to make sure the burners are off. Then start the engine and engage the clutch. Now close the upper tank valve, move the lower tank valve to distribute, and open the spray bar. That allows most of the oil to drain, but it still needs to be flushed out. So close the spray bar, open the solvent valve at the pump, and on this model, open the valve at the solvent tank too. Then wait a few seconds for the oil to circulate through the pump, and open the spray bar. And that's it. As you can see, the procedures are very similar, but you should still always read the operator's manual for the machine you'll be using. Again, don't take any chances with a tar pot. Know the procedure before you do anything, and here's something else you should be familiar with. The tar pot safety checklist. In fact, until you're completely sure of all the procedures, refer to it while you're on the job. I just can't stress safety enough when you're working with a tar pot. And with that, we've come to the end of the program on tar pot operation. Daily checks, filling the tar pot, heating the oil, circulating the oil, application, and clean out.