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I somewhat doubt that a hollow plastic tank is significantly more expensive than a concrete block. Factor in the added cost of shipping the much heavier concret

by omtose 9y ago

I somewhat doubt that a hollow plastic tank is significantly more expensive than a concrete block. Factor in the added cost of shipping the much heavier concrete block, and it seems like the manufacturer would also save money in the process.

jon-wood 9y ago
Is it that much more expensive to ship something in bulk with additional weight? I honestly don't know how distance shipping by the container works, but I always thought it was just a case of being billed based on volume.
- Retric 9y ago
  In bulk you basically per 40' container which are usually kept under ~45,000lbs* and have 67.7 m3 volume. So, you are either volume or weight limited, but not really both. Note: there are a few different container sizes, but 40' is by far the most common. Weight limits also very by location.
jaclaz 9y ago
The cost hasn't been cited in the "invention", but concrete is something that weights roughly 2,200 Kg per cubic meter, and has a cost (of course it depends on where it is produced) of less than 100 US$ per cubic meter, the 25 Kg counterbalance costs between 1 and 2 dollars, and is probably just barely comparable to a mass produced injected plastic tank, but I doubt that there will be any actual savings by the manufacturer. And there is no real "visible" added cost of transport. A 70 kg washing machine is typically 0.60x0.60x0.90=0.324 cubic meters, let's say 0.7x0.7x1,00=0.49-0.50 including packaging, it has a a very low "density" of 70/500=0.14. On a truck with a platform of 2.40 m x 13.00 m (a normal large truck with a loading accepted of around 30,000 Kg ) you can usually put (in two levels) between 100 and 110 washers (2.40/0.7=3 13/0.7=18 2x3x18=108). So you have this big truck, designed to carry 30,000 Kg and you load it with 8,000 Kg instead. Do you think you will get a discount from the trucker? And do you think that you will get a further discount if the load is 5,000 instead? As well, do you think that you will get a discount from the delivery (and installing) guy if it weights 20 Kg less (but the guy needs to remove the top cover, fill the tank, re-assemble the cover)? From an environmental viewpoint there are undoubtedly savings but the manufacturer (or the customer) won't be able to appreciate them in practice.
joezydeco 9y ago
How much energy do you need to harvest the crude oil, transport it, and refine it into ~3kg of ABS plastic? How much energy does it take to melt it into a slug and blow-mold it into a tank shape?

by omtose 9y ago

jon-wood 9y ago

Is it that much more expensive to ship something in bulk with additional weight? I honestly don't know how distance shipping by the container works, but I always thought it was just a case of being billed based on volume.

Retric 9y ago
In bulk you basically per 40' container which are usually kept under ~45,000lbs* and have 67.7 m3 volume. So, you are either volume or weight limited, but not really both. Note: there are a few different container sizes, but 40' is by far the most common. Weight limits also very by location.

jaclaz 9y ago

The cost hasn't been cited in the "invention", but concrete is something that weights roughly 2,200 Kg per cubic meter, and has a cost (of course it depends on where it is produced) of less than 100 US$ per cubic meter, the 25 Kg counterbalance costs between 1 and 2 dollars, and is probably just barely comparable to a mass produced injected plastic tank, but I doubt that there will be any actual savings by the manufacturer. And there is no real "visible" added cost of transport. A 70 kg washing machine is typically 0.60x0.60x0.90=0.324 cubic meters, let's say 0.7x0.7x1,00=0.49-0.50 including packaging, it has a a very low "density" of 70/500=0.14. On a truck with a platform of 2.40 m x 13.00 m (a normal large truck with a loading accepted of around 30,000 Kg ) you can usually put (in two levels) between 100 and 110 washers (2.40/0.7=3 13/0.7=18 2x3x18=108). So you have this big truck, designed to carry 30,000 Kg and you load it with 8,000 Kg instead. Do you think you will get a discount from the trucker? And do you think that you will get a further discount if the load is 5,000 instead? As well, do you think that you will get a discount from the delivery (and installing) guy if it weights 20 Kg less (but the guy needs to remove the top cover, fill the tank, re-assemble the cover)? From an environmental viewpoint there are undoubtedly savings but the manufacturer (or the customer) won't be able to appreciate them in practice.

joezydeco 9y ago

How much energy do you need to harvest the crude oil, transport it, and refine it into ~3kg of ABS plastic? How much energy does it take to melt it into a slug and blow-mold it into a tank shape?