Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums General Petroliana Discussion proper removal of fry 17

Hey everyone! Thanks for your responses to my glass question but I have one more regarding the fry17. This pump is still attached at the ground. I was going to cut the pipes going into it and I was going to remove the fill glass and top but the drain pipes will still be attached. How tall and heavy is just the base because I will be taking this pump home in two pieces. what is the best way to remove and bring this pump back home? The car ride will be about 2 hours. will a standard truck work? Thanks I know this is alot but I need all the help I can get.

Ryan, you will definetly need a truck. 8'bed preferably with tie downs and cushion. I have several sections of 10" foam rubber I use. Cylinder removal is no easy task as you can tell by the many responses on the subject on this site. I'd leave it on the pump until you get it home. I don't know how you are going to break this pump down into just two pieces...the piping is part of the support frame, so the pump is going to be about 8 feet tall with or without the cylinder. Bring a truck and at least one extra helper. Rust breaker and a pipe wrench are needed along with your normal sockets and wrenches just in case you need them. Remove the two access panels on the base and this should allow you access to the piping below the pump itself. As you are two hours away, I'd purchase/rent a reciprocating saw with a generater. (I don't trust battery powered tools). If the pipe couplings don't break easily with the pipe wrench, you can cut them off. If the pump is bolted down in concrete, the saw comes in handy there too, so also bring a hammer and chisel for the concrete. You have a full day ahead of you retriving this pump. Good luck.

I dont know about anybody else, but when I hear cutting pipes that are still attached to something below the ground that use to keep fuel who knows how long ago, well... a red flag just pops up.

Use as big a pipe wrench as you can beg, borrow or steal (I mean buy), and take a nice long piece of pipe that will slip over the wrench for extra leverage on that old frozen "quick-connect". You may want two pipe wrenches, one to pull on, and one to hold/brace some of the other pipe and/or fittings so that you undo only what you want to undo.

Gary was right. The structure of these babies is the piping, and the whole network goes from tip to toe, while the base, skins and cylinder are mostly ancilary.

You'll want to do most of your work at home rather than "in the field" so plan on a slow ride in the back of the truck to keep from bending/twisting/torquring the skins and/or piping too much. There is some adjustment during reassembly, but I had one that I could just never get to stand straight. USe lots of cushioning to protect the jar and take your time removing it in the comfort of your own shop.

Go a couple days early and soak the u-no-what out of the coupling with your favorite brand of liquid wrench. Take a propane torch or better, but remember my first remark above.

Good luck, and let us know how it goes.

Brian

Gary has the right idea, use a hack saw, power or by hand. Your life and safety are much more important than saving time getting the pump home. If you can't get the connections loose with a large pipe wrench the hack saw method is the way to go. I have done many and never had a problem. If the pump has electric lights be sure to use a good pair of side cutters and remember to cut only one wire at a time even if you think there is no power to the unit. I once had a guy tell me " ok go ahead, the power is off" I found out quickly he turned off the wrong breaker!!
Good luck and be safe.
An old tire under the lower cylider casting and lying it in the back of a truck makes for a great cushion, never broken a cylinder yet using this hauling method.
I don't know what Brian was going to have you do with the propane torch but DON'T GO ANYWHERE NEAR AN OLD ATTACHED GAS PUMP WITH A TORCH!!!! tanks that have been empty for many years still explode!!!

Cutting old gas pipes is a chancy thing!!!!!!! Soak with penetrating oil all couplings and try them with a pipe wrench (prefferably Aluminum) and a cheater bar or use a pipe cutter NO TORCH ! Also take a big CO2 or ABC dry powder fire extinquisher as stand by. It's no fun to watch you or your prize go up in a ball of fire .THINK GAS !

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