Insulating Your Chemical Storage Tank: Why It Matters and How to Do It

Maintaining the proper temperature of a chemical inside a high density crosslinked polyethylene tank can be critical for safe and effective storage. For example, sodium hydroxide and caustic soda need to maintain temperature to prevent crystallization at lower temperatures.

For polyethylene chemical storage tanks, heating pads and insulation can maintain the specific temperature of the chemical you’re storing—even when your chemical tank is exposed to low air temperatures.

To give you one of the most reliable temperature control systems in the industry, Poly Processing provides a state-of-the-art heating controller for your chemical storage tank.

Reliable Heating System for Chemical Storage

Our chemical tank heating system consists of tank heating pads and a temperature controller with a thermostat. The quantity and size of the silicone heating pads depends on the size of the chemical tank, the required chemical temperature, and ambient environmental conditions.

Poly Processing Company, along with our heat maintenance system suppliers, has designed a Digital 2XTC Tank Heating Controller for all of our upright tanks including our vertical tank, IMFO tanks, SAFE-Tanks, cone bottom tanks, and even our horizontal tanks. The heat pads and controller are normally installed at our factory to ensure the system is properly connected and ready to be wired in when it gets to the user site.

For the SAFE-Tank, we offer oversized heater systems, which calculates for the interstitial space. The rest of the tank heating controller and product features are the same as our single-wall system.

The SAFE-Tank System is a double wall tank that safely stores a wide variety of chemicals without an expensive permanent containment, such as a concrete basin or vessel. This makes it easier to change industrial applications at any time without the expense of additional chemical containment structures.

Let’s take a look at the Digital 2XTC Tank Heating Controller.

Download Our SAFE-Tank® Guide

The Digital 2XTC Tank Heating Controller

The 2XTC Tank Heating Controller is one of the most complete and versatile tank heating controllers in existence. It is specifically designed for heating systems that need process temperature control with high limit temperature protection. And as a digital controller, it provides significant advantages over standard analog boxes.

HTD Tank Heating Systems are designed for chemical temperature maintenance on Poly Processing’s polyethylene storage tanks. HTD Tank Heating Systems maintain the desired product temperature, not to exceed 100F. Each heating system consists of tank heating pads and a temperature controller. The controller comes in a NEMA 4X / IP66 polycarbonate enclosure so that it can be safely used indoors or outdoors.

The heating controller is convenient to monitor, whether you’re up close or away from the chemical storage tank. High-visibility LED lights indicate the process sensor temperature, over-limit sensor temperature, and heater current using a simple settings menu. Alarms and system status can be paired with remote monitoring systems, so you can monitor the temperature or current to make sure they haven't gone out of acceptable range. Two controllers may be used for larger tanks or for redundant systems if necessary.

Download the HTD Tank Heating System installation, operation, and maintenance manual

2XTC Heating Controller Features

The 2XTC heating controller comes with industry-leading features that other systems don’t match, including:

• Process temperature control with high-limit protection
• 100-277 VAC, 50/60 HZ, 30A
• Use with up to 6 SPX heating pads
• Simple operation and customizable presets
• High temperature, low temperature, and low current alarms
• Alarm contact for communication with customer systems (NO or NC, selectable)
• NEMA 4X, IP66, polycarbonate enclosure
• 4-20mA retransmission output
• Two RTDs (resistance temperature detectors/thermometer)
• cETLus-approved for use in the USA and Canada

The Advantage of a Digital Heating Controller

The 2XTC is a digital heating controller, which provides important advantages over other double wall tanks that are still using analog controllers:

• Digital temperature reading replaces hard-to-read analog dials.
• High and low temperature limits can be reset in seconds by pushing a couple buttons. No need to unscrew and replace control dials with preset locks.
• 4-20mA retransmission output allows you to use remote monitoring.
• A single digital box can handle either 120V or 240V. Analog systems require a different box for each.
• The control system is on the outside of the containment tank.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are a few frequently asked questions that we hear from customers who are interested in setting up a HTD temperature control system for polyethylene chemical storage tanks.

• What is the insulation R-value (measure of thermal resistance)? The tank insulation used in heating systems has an R-value of 6.3 per inch.
• How thick is the insulation? Insulation is a standard 2" thick with an R-value of 6.3. Keep this addition to the diameter of the tank in mind when determining placement of the tank, shipping, and any restraints or fittings that may be impacted.
• How do you determine the correct delta T of a system? First determine the lowest temperature that you could experience in the environment where the tank is stored. Next take the delta T number and subtract that lowest temperature. If the result is higher than the delta T rating for the tank, then your tank is not adequate to handle the ambient temperature and you need to move up to a higher delta T rated system.
• How do you determine wattage of the heating system? To determine the wattage of the tank heating system, note the name and quantity of the heating pads. The SPX Pad® SPX210 produces 210 watts while the SPX Pad® SPX420 produces 420 watts. Multiply the number of pads by the wattage to determine total heating wattage.
• How do you determine the amperage draw of the heating system? Unless a system has been modified, typically all systems are based on a 110 to 120-voltage supply. Amperage draw can be determined by dividing the total watts by the voltage supply. Here's an example. If the system you have has three SPX Pad® SPX210 heating pads, you would multiply the watts per pad (210) by 3 pads for a 630-watt system. Then, divide the total wattage of the system by the 110-volt supply, giving you a 5.73-amp system.

When it comes to protecting your stored chemicals in a Poly tank system, from low temperatures and overheating, it's hard to do better than the digital heating controller that Poly Processing provides. HTD Heat Trace’s 2XTC is one of the best controllers in the industry, giving you peace of mind that your chemicals are within the proper temperature range.

Flame Control for Chemical Storage Tanks

In addition, if you’re looking for a flame control solution or a thermal barrier, we recommend using Flame Control 60-60A. Flame Control 60-60A is a 15-Minute Thermal Barrier for Spray Polyurethane Foam Insulation. As a water-based, low VOC, intumescent latex paint, 60-60A has been tested to NFPA 286 test standards and has been approved for use on spray foam insulation. 

Flame Control 60-60A is suitable for use in inhabited (occupied) spaces where spray foam insulation must be coated with a thermal barrier per the IBC.

60-60A should be applied in a single coat and does not require priming. These features make 60-60A the easiest to use, fastest to apply thermal barrier available on the market. The coating is also ICC-ES Evaluated.

Get more information on the HTD - 2XTC controller and tank heating system — download the spec sheet or talk to a Poly Processing tank specialist with your questions.

Industry News

For over five decades, Poly Processing has been at the forefront of innovation in chemical storage tank design and manufacturing. Reinforcing our commitment to advancing high density crosslinked polyethylene (HDXLPE) tank technology, we are thrilled to unveil our latest update to our  vertical storage tank solutions: the 15,500-gallon IMFO tank, the 15,000-gallon Sloped Bottom IMFO tank, and the 15,500-gallon Vertical tank, are all available in specific gravities up to 2.2 design.

These large innovative HDXLPE tanks are designed for exceptional durability, reliable performance, and an extended lifespan across a variety of applications. To enhance protection and prolong service life in oxidative environments, such as those involving sodium hypochlorite, they can be manufactured with our industry-leading OR-1000 engineered resin system, known for its remarkable resistance to oxidative chemicals.

These tanks represent the best engineering and design in the tank manufacturing industry, and they are covered under PPC’s industry-leading warranty.

At Poly Processing, we’re focused on delivering high-quality, forward-thinking solutions to meet the evolving demands of the chemical storage industry.