The Journey of the Gaslow LPG Bulk Tank Install
So the journey of the bulk LPG tank started a few years ago with the idea of having a bulk tank installed at our Loughborough premises. A walk round the carpark one afternoon gave us an inkling that it may not be as easier project as first thought, but still enquiries were started to ascertain what direction we needed to go to get the project started.
A few weeks down the line we had received all of the standards and codes of practices to do with bulk tank installations to enable us to plan more deeply with the project. All I can say the decision was made its going to happen!
All of this was going on whilst COVID was happening.
The next few weeks passed whilst getting our ducks in a row with suppliers of tank equipment, fencing etc. Planning consent was not required on the initial enquiry with the council. having a discussion with a person in the know then pointed out we needed to have approval from the council due to trading restrictions placed on the land where the tank would be placed. This is where we stumbled across a long delay waiting for approval.
March 2022 we finally had approval from the council to proceed with the bulk tank install whilst also meeting all the standards for a permanent fixed tank.
So now the work load ramped up getting all the contractors in place to bring the project together,. What became very evident was the shortages of stock held by suppliers for fencing, crash barriers etc which delayed the start date of the install!
HERE WE GO!!!
25/07/2022
Work finally starts on the carpark area where the tank will be. The area was marked out for placement of security fencing, crash barriers, lampposts and tank base, whilst also scanning the area between the tank area and building for underground cables and water pipes, before digging commenced..
Tough going removing builders rubble and breaking concrete from the central island where the electrical ducting will be laid from the offices to the tank area.
29/07/2022
Finally electrical ducting laid with masses of broken concrete and builders rubble to show what a hard task it was!
Time to backfill the trench dug for the ducting, tidy up and to move onto the compound works!
3/08/2022
Work is well under way on the compound area with a 300mm diamond tipped hole cutter being used for the crash barriers to be mounted in. 22 holes required in all which felt like it took an age to complete! Work is also underway bringing the ducting into the building.
Work commenced at a good pace for the next 5 days as you will see.
9/08/2022
So as you can see work has progressed very well over the last few days. Tank base installed, crash barriers going in and even a lamp post is standing! All whilst we had that really hot weather to deal with, which made things a little bit harder to deal with than normal.
By the end of the day good progress was made, even another lamp post standing.
Finished the day with a tidy up so we can see the wood for the tress as they say.
No going back at this point that for sure!!
16/08/2022
Fencing starting to take shape, at least the weather has cooled down a bit now!
17/08/2022
Fencing complete for now as front fencing run cannot be put in place until the tank is on its base. Mainly due to the weight of the tank and the reach weight the delivery vehicle boom arm can carry.
31/08/2022
So a slight delay waiting for the tank to be delivered and placed on its base! Dispenser unit follows on shortly after and placed next to the tank.
By the end of the day the tank and dispenser are situated where they will live. The front fencing panel has now been installed to make the compound secure, which is a relief and looking more like an LPG supply depot.
1/09/2022
Electrical contractors are on site for two days to install all the necessary cabling and safety equipment to meet the required standard for a bulk tank installation. It was a pleasure to see Andy turn up to inspect his guys work ! Oh and held a length of cable 🙂
5/09/2022
Our first delivery of LPG! 1686 litres delivered ready for testing and commissioning.
7/09/2022
The yellow bulk tank gets the Gaslow treatment with its branding 🙂
8/09/2022
And here it is, a complete LPG gas tank install from start to finish. its been a labour of love, most of the time anyway. All this from an idea one day, wondering if we should sell LPG!
Thank you for reading and hopefully you can see the time the project has taken isn’t from just the paperwork side but also the time the build has taken.
The Gaslow Team 🙂