How To Make the Right Purchase of an Atlas Polar Trash Raking System

How To Make the Right Purchase of a Trash Raking System

Trash raking systems are the ideal solution for any water operated facility that wants to increase efficiency and reduce potential hazards to employees.

What Do You Need To Know to Choose the Best Trash Rake Equipment for Your Facility?
The priority for this type of system is not only making sure that you are buying quality, cost efficient equipment, but that it is the right system for your facility. One of the best ways to ensure you are doing this is to know what questions to ask.

The more you know about what your needs are for your facility, the more it will allow you to ask the pertinent questions to help you make a buying decision. You need to know what the equipment is capable of, how it is operated, and its installation.

Do you require this type of water cleaning system?
The first thing to be determined is if, in fact, your particular facility requires a system such as this. If your facility uses high volumes of water for its operation and you require fresh clean water, then you will be able to put one of these systems to good use. It may be that up to this point, you have had to do the work of cleaning your intake screens manually. Not only is this time demanding, but it can create a potential health hazard for your employees. Our systems are designed to work 24/7 and have effectively replaced the old manual winch and cable systems. The Atlas Polar trash raking systems are all designed to remove the debris so it does not get past your water screens to prevent potential damage to your operating equipment and promotes a safer environment for your employees.

Before you start with your questions you will be asked a few questions  in order to guide you towards the best trash raking system that meets the needs at your facility. If you provide us with some photos of your facility it allows us to get a good feel as to the model  of equipment that would be best suited for the job. We need to know the size and depth of the intake. We review the type of debris and its average weight and also look at the type of water flow and rack angle helps us determine the best trash raking model for your facility.

Best questions you can ask
When you are trying to decide which system to go with, you need to base your decision on the experience of the supplier. Here, at Atlas Polar, our experience is based on the fact that we manufacture our own trash raking systems and the designs have been modified over the years based on our customer feedback.  Our credibility is built on the top quality performance and longevity of our equipment that is in operation.

You need answers to questions like…
– The method of operation, whether it is manual or automated, and levels of automation. We offer both types of flexible automation such as the use of time or calendar scheduling. We believe the most efficient is the level differential method. This works by measuring the water pressure on both sides of the racks, then comparing the data. Data is gathered as to the amount of debris that is present in the screen and the built in sensors then create an alert to the operator that a cleaning is required. Automatic cleaning of the intake is then triggered.
– You need to know the types of methods that can be used for starting the equipment and the efficiency it possesses for cycle times, and also how many units you will need.
– How capable is the equipment going to be in the different seasons, particularly your peak periods.
– What happens to the debris that is removed? What are the options for disposal of this waste? It is important to have a fast and efficient method in place and we believe the conveyance options ensure there is no cycle down time, which some of the other disposal methods can create.
– You need to ask questions that pertain to the hydraulic systems and what kind of safety features are built into the equipment. By not having the hydraulic systems immersed into the water, it eliminates the dangers associated with spills and leakage. There also must be a built in safety system as a backup precaution. Plus, you want to know that the equipment you will be using is capable of running on bio-degradable hydraulic oil.
– You may have questions or concerns about the lift capacity, and here you can rely on the experience of our representatives who will be familiar with the needs of your facility based on their involvement with similar facilities and environments.
– Questions concerning cycle time are important to you especially for your peak season. You need to know whether you will need additional units during this time. The focus has to be on the efficiency of your water flow, and methods that are in place to maximize cleaning.

What can Atlas Polar Offer? You need to know that you have options with different models depending on your requirements. We offer four different models of Hydrorake trash rake systems that are suited for almost any type of facility. A good example would be for a hydro electric facility where either our single boom model or the DT9300 unit would be the best choice depending on the size of the facility.

If you have any questions regarding trash raking systems, we would be happy to answer them. Just post them here.