How often does one need to pump out ??

We own a small soft serve ice cream business.
We recently used a local self serve carwash to dump our waste water.
(our waste water consists of ice cream, water, dish soap, and sanatizer)
Completely neutral. The owner called the police, fire dept, Hazmat, etc.. thinking we were dumping illegally. The water tested neutral by hazmat. And we left...
Next day the owner wants to charge us over $1000. for having to clean out his system ! He said he had to pump out .. (his system is a recycle system).
Does this sound right ????
I need help..

why do you think this was an ok thing to do? its his property, used to dispose of his wastewater, would you bring your household garbage there too? that being said, he could have been kinder about the situation, and educated you rather than all the drama. he is probably trying to make a point with the $1000 number, or maybe times are tight and hes seeing it as an opportunity to make some money, really depends on his character.

No.. We do not think it is OK .. however .. small mobile businesses do have to use others for this sort of thing. The dept. of business and professional regulations tells us car wash sites are ok... however we admit we were in the wrong by not asking permission . No question about that !!
We have apologized.. we are willing to make some sort of restitution..however Im not sure he is being honest with us about the pumping out issue. Seems he is trying to get us to pay for something he has to do anyway.

Its called theft of services. For all he knows, you may have been dumping some kind of toxic waste. Are you trying to claim that a government agency told you it was ok to dump your wastewater at a carwash? Depending on what you dumped, if he has a closed recycle system, its possible that he may have to pump out his pit.

If he pumped out it could have cost $1000.00, or even more. Pump out costs varies widely state by state. Did he catch you guys in the act, or were you captured on video? There could be some residual smell caused by what you dump as it ferments in the pit.

Most SS carwash operators have pretty short fuses when people use their facility to get rid of their problem. We deal with dumping on a continual basis. he has a right to be really pissed, but it sounds like he is overreacting. I don't know his side of the story, though.

I agree. We were caught redhanded. The sherriff was called out, fire dept., hazmat... They tested our water and it did prove to be neutral. Regarding smell... well... ice cream is a milk based product.. (picture a gallon of milk in the sun for a day or so... not so nice).
We register through the state to use businesses to dump our wastewater, unfortunately we did not ask the carwash or register..so we ADMIT... we ARE in the wrong here and I agree he has a right to be mad. I do believe his system is closed recycle...and if we owe, well then we owe. Just checking here to see if $1000. is too much !! Doesnt he have to maintain his system by pumping from time to time anyway ?? Just dont want to pay for routine maintenance.

Car wash reclaim system are designed to handle the residue from automobiles only. It can not handle food waste bacteria. Milk and soap would be sprayed on all the cars using the wash, not a pretty sight. It might even clog the sand filters that they use!
Who ever told you to use a car wash should be responsible to pay together with you.

OK..Looks like we may be responsible for payment then .. $1000. ?? Sound right ??

And... back to my orig. question...Does his system have to be pumped periodically as part of reg. maintenance anyway ??

To give you an answer that you pose as a Question. Yes, he does has to pump out on a periodic basis. It is part of his business. He washes Vehicles for living. Washing a car means all of his customers leave residual dirt or anything else that comes off of the vehicle. This does not include Milk.

He is in business for himself and handles the residual from providing his service to his customers. It is all factored in, aka, cost of doing of doing business.

BTW: I pay $1200 to dispose of 3,000 gallons of my pits that are solid mud. My entire reclaim system contains over 7,000 gallons of water when I look at wash bay pits and reclaim tanks. If I had to full pump out of my system for 7,000 gallons. It would $2800, so for me you are getting off cheap if you came to my wash

You are the same, in a business with byproducts like milk. It is cost of doing business, you found a way to do it free. Times are tough with these economic times. Free disposal of the goes straight into your pocket, but got caught.

Closed Loop, ask yourself, would you go to a car wash that sprays milky colored water trying to provide you a service of clean, shiny car.

Got dump into your nearest Lake or River the next time. Don't get caught, you will find out the price of FREE from the EPA, courtesy of the 1972 Clean Water Act, the reason we have the EPA to begin with.

Pay what he asks, he is letting you off the hook, just making his business operation what it was before your visit to him. How much you pay to save yourself money the first time? Ask yourself.

$1,000 is not unreasonable at all. Although we are a tunnel and wash a lot of volume, it costs us $2,000 every six months to have our pits cleaned and they hold 3,000 gallons. So $1,000 to have his pits sucked out is entirely reasonable. This just goes to confirm the 10 most dangerous words, "I'm from the government and I'm here to help you." Maybe you can sue the individual or agency that told you it was okay to dump your wastewater at a car wash.

jmh5530

How can you even think of trying to justify what you did!?! Think about what you are asking, is $1000 too much? It really does not matter.

You are just mad you got caught and now have to pay some kind of restitution to the carwash owner.

I am really enjoying this thread :) Our 6 bay ss car wash is nothing more than a place all the local Tradesmen bring their trash, nails, shingles, plaster, mud, paint you name it. I watched a painter clean out his spray system one night on video, next day found out it was some sort of silver coating, all over the place. O and the OIL,Grass, Manure, it goese on and on and when i catch them they act like ,,,,whats the matter man, ITS A CAR WASH AINT IT. I have come to the conclusion that some day, we (CARWASH'S)) will all be banned from the earth as the major poluters . When in truth its the general public that just loves taking the oportunitie to DUMP where they can get away with it.
O I forgot the Animal parts, dead fish and human waste. Did you know carpet cleaners carry a filter with them to put on the discharge hose when they dump at the local car wash to catch the carpet fragments.
If theY would JUST ASK FIRST :( maybe it would be different. This topic is just the reasoN I dont have a conceal and carry permit hehe I know I would shoot somebody. Now on with the show. let the guy have it for what he did, he surrely deserves being raked for dumping HIS BUSINESS'S WASTE ON ANOTHER SMALL BUSINESS. AMEN
I forgot to mention the TRASH, FURNITURE, LUMBER, BUILDING DEBRI __-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WOW!!! Jmh5530 did you ever screw up
I’ve been laughing my butt off all day over this one. The general public doesn’t have a clue about what goes on at a car wash much less what it costs to keep one operating. I hate to be the one that tells you this but the “dept. of business and professional regulations” doesn’t have the authority to tell another business to come on to there property and dump there waste. If you’re concerned about him having to pay $1000 to have his system cleaned out, ask to see the invoice.
You’re lucky we didn’t catch you. We would have confiscated your vehicle until you made restitution.
The State of Washington used to tell Carpet Cleaners it was OK to dump there waste water at a Self Serve car wash until one of the carpet cleaners that just got out of a state sponsored class got caught by us dumping his waste water tank.
After 28 years in the car wash business I can tell you guy’s stories for hours on how stupid the public really is. I always love to line “but it’s just a car wash” I just want to kick them right in the nuts when I hear that.

If this made you laugh all day you really need to get out more.

Remember, just because you own a car wash doesn’t exclude you from the "public" I am guilty of this, I remember working at the car wash getting frustrated with customers that struggled swiping their credit card right, but I would be lying if I said I never had a similar issue while at the c store or where ever buying something. I doubt you guys have never done something to make a business owner roll his eyes. I don’t know, I just think yall are being a little tough on this guy.

If he has to pay someone to pump out all the water from his system because you put milk product in it, then yes, you should have to pay for it. If you think it's too much, just ask him for a copy of the invoice. Ours costs $3,500 to clean out; sounds to me like you're getting off easy. Maybe he's trying to make an example out of you, but that's his right to do so.

Make sure to send a letter along with a copy of the bill you received to whomever told you it was ok to dump your waste at a car wash. I've been told many times by carpet cleaners that the people who sold them the equipment said it was ok to dump the effluent at a car wash. Well, it may be "safe," but as has been said already it's theft of services, and just because it's not toxic doesn't mean it can't do harm to the business.

I reread this thread and want to more directly answer your question of whether he has to pump his pits on a regular basis. Yes, but only for dirt accumulation. There is usually a long period between those occasional jobs. But when you dumped milk product into his system, you necessitated him having to pump them right away just to stay in business. It's like paying a monthly fee for a dumpster service that's emptied only once a week as part of your paid service. If someone comes in and fills it with construction debris, the operator would have to pay for an extra pickup (which in our case is more than the cost of a month of service). I have so far caught and billed two people for that. Both times I gave them the choice of paying for the pickup or calling the police and having them fine the guy for illegal use of a privately-maintained trash receptacle, which is a bigger fine than the cost of an extra pickup.

i just pumped out my system 2 days ago got a deal cause i paid cash money $850