Making D.E.F. Regulations Suck Less

D.E.F. Regulations

Stan: The lawn care landscaping construction industry has dramatically changed in the last five years and the problem is we have more rules, restrictions, and regulations than ever before and this is the tip of the iceberg. It's only going to get worse. Luckily we have small companies out there that are helping contractors like you and I deal with these new regulations that the EPA likes to put on us. I want to introduce you guys to Thunder Creek, first they're going to teach us what DEF. is. And then they're going to show us some unique ways they're helping contractors like us work around the new regulations. So let's get started. Alright guys what we're going to be talking about today is that we want to de-mystify it. DEF is a new regulation that the government has imposed on all of us. And that's going to impact you, it's going to impact me. If it hasn't caught up to you yet, it eventually will. Luke is going to tell us a little bit more about these regs and how you can utilize their services in your business. Thanks for being here. Luke: Yeah, absolutely.

What is DEF?

Stan: Can you explain to us a little bit about what DEF is? Luke: DEF is just 32 % urea, it's a highly pure urea, and 67.5% de-ionized water. Stan: What does DEF actually do? Luke: DEF takes the NOx out of your exhaust. The EPA says we need to get rid of nitrous oxide. Stan: Ok, so it cleans out the exhaust. And it's simply an additional fluid that you add into your machine, and the machine does the rest of the work. Luke: The machine does the rest. And  just like you put fuel in every day, now you're going to be putting DEF in as well, every day. Separate tanks, separate products. You can do them both at the same time.

Separate Tanks

Stan: So it's just one more step in this routine. But you have both tanks to help handle them. Because if you don't have the DEF, your machine can't run properly. Luke: If you run out of DEF, it's just like running out of fuel. The machine is programmed to shut down. Stan: Now you have different applications, you have bulk tanks, you have ways that you can deliver that out to the job site. Luke: Yeah, so we want to help guys get DEF out to where the machine is, add fuel and all that other stuff, so we've got a variety of things. Trailers, units to go with bedded trucks, a bunch of things to get this out there and make this transition to DEF really easy.

Transition

Stan: Now guys out there, they're trying a few ways to get around using DEF. But the unfortunate truth is, it's going to catch up. 75 hp engines or less, a lot of guys are trying to get underneath that or trying to buy older equipment. But eventually you're going to run out of those options at some point and the DEF regulations are going to downscale to the smaller equipment. This is just the first step, so you might as well just learn how to handle it. But you guys have new, very innovative technology. Now this is the transfer tank that you're going to be putting into the back of your pickup truck, but this is an upgrade, because it handles your DEF fluid as well. Can you show us how you do that? Luke: Yeah, so this is a hundred gallon fuel tank with an 18 gallon DEF tank. So you can see when it's all closed up, it's all nice and concealed. And when you open it up, all our fuel and DEF equipment is in here. We just grab the fuel hose nozzle, we grab the DEF nozzle and we pull stuff out. We fuel the machine, then we tuck everything back in here and we close the door.   Stan: Now how many gallons does this hold? Luke: A hundred gallons of fuel and eighteen gallons of DEF. Stan: Ok you don't need as much DEF, let's get it straight, you never need as much DEF as you do bulk fuel. It's not the same 1:1 ratio. Luke: No, it's about, in most cases, 3-5% what an engine would use of DEF compared to what fuel it will use. Stan: And for all practical purposes, this is no different than your standard transfer steps, you can now carry your DEF along with you. Making it one less step. Get rid of those five gallon pails, the one gallon containers, worrying about contaminating your DEF system because that's a big issue too, isn't it? Luke: It is, yup, so we keep everything cleaned again and with the doors closed it's concealed inside. We can heat these cabinets because DEF will freeze, so where you're at in MN or wherever in the north, we can keep the DEF warm and use it all winter. Stan: All right, let's talk about the freezing component. 12 degrees Fahrenheit, DEF will freeze so you have an integrated heating component that's a plug and play component. Just plug and go. Luke: Yeah, in Michigan we're actually using a diesel heater. So we use the diesel in the tank here and we use that to generate heat in the box so whether your truck's on or off, you're parked in the garage or out at the job site, you've always got reliable heat in this tank. Stan: (laughs) Perfect! So thanks! Trailer guys, I absolutely love this trailer behind me. The reason I love this trailer, is it's a four hundred and sixty gallon bulk fuel trailer that you don't need a HAZMAT license to tow. The rule is, if you handle over one hundred and twenty five gallons, a hundred and nineteen gallons at one time, you got to have a HAZMAT license. With this trailer, you don't need it. Luke: We compartmentalize the tanks, because it's not over a hundred and nineteen gallons, it's a hundred and nineteen gallons per container. So you can have as many containers as you want as long as it's not over a hundred and nineteen gallons. There's other details about it but that's the law. So we just designed this trailer, where on this one, it holds four hundred and sixty gallons. We have four, one hundred and fifty gallon tanks. They flow into a common manifold and the way everything's plumbed and designed, we've done our homework. And I  know in all fifty states, this thing is A-OK. Stan: (laughs) I LOVE this trailer. Legal in all fifty states. Innovation is helping contractors like you, it's helping contractors like me. But where can we find out more about Thunder Creek? Luke: ThunderCreek.com, man that's our website. Everything is out there, all the stuff on DEF, you know we've got a ton of information on DEF out there so if you've got to or want to learn more about DEF, we'd love to help you out in any way. Stan: Family run business, right in Iowa. Right? Luke: Pella, just southeast of the border a few miles. Stan: American made, all the way, check out their great website the next time you're looking at buying a bulk tank for your fuel transfer needs. These are the guys. Luke: Thanks guys.