MMI Enterprises

Great stuff indeed, but I am lost in the math a bit. Can someone explain what the 144 in the cell E30 stands for under the spindel section? I am stuck on why not dividing by 12 to get feet out of inches on some of these cell formulations.. I must be missing something important in the math formula or what the spreadsheet program is capable of... As example on the 4x4 post cell D25 why is the formula =B25*(C25*0.33*3.6) instead of =B25*C25*(3.6*4)/12 ? I mean the .33 stands for the 4 sides but yet it doesn't, does it? :) Does the cell formulation not allow what I just formulated to allow for the infinate number a bit better ? I don't see rounding up making up for the larger quantities of items..Seems there is room for either more understanding on my part or accuracy for everyone... someone please help me out here if ya can.. Also, just like Tropical Wave, I am not sure what the market will Behr in my area (Sacramento, Ca) for deck work. Anyone got first hand knowledge for here? One large commercial real estate client calling me totally balked at my idea of working $80 per hour on what I described as a 4 hour job plus chemicals. And then when I offered to measure it out at .20 sq.ft. they still acted like I was off my rocker. It was rediculous and would have to wonder if it was a legit call even if it weren't for knowing exactly where the location was and who they were. I most likely would have been doing 1k sq/ft plus some linear on the rails and they seemed to want a $100 bid. Is that just the way it goes sometimes? I would think so. In inside work on vinyl floor stripping I see customers both expecting and paying rates from .09 to .30... I tend to go middle of road at .20 for such work. But where am I to start on the wood? ~Kevin

Thanx Alan!.:lgangel: Life must really be like a box of chocholates. Didn't expect that when I put up that picture..Will yank that thing right of in quik order then :) Any additional ideas or comments on this thing?

Ok, so your refering to the unloader part pictured as being a piston then.. I don't know the history of this machine and can't really say how long it was in there nor can I really picture a low side or high side it coming from. I cracked the head of my pump off just to see what goes on in there a bit and there it was on the bottom. I've had the unit for a tad over a year and finally blew a cylinder in the opposed Briggs. That says it all on how old it is..My neighbor, who has plumbing experience, called this thing a ball check valve. Beats me where it came from though and why it has a bored out hole into it.. Would kinda defeat such a purpose in a free float situation. That is why I was asking if it goes inside the unloader. It seems to fit right on the end of that piston stem pictured except that it is tapered. Its like what else in one of these systems has a protruding tip for it to go on? I have always ran it with a hose strainer before float tank and but I have no strainer on the float tank outlet into machine. Maybe it comes from part of the float mechanism but it seems to be working fine in blocking the incoming water. Sure is puzzling me a bit so I am about to chalk it up to historical unknowns.. The machine is working sorta decent after putting on a new engine and am just tinkering with the unloader and throttle settings for pressure and generator now.. So onto next set of questions: The machine is a 3000@5gpm. Is a old verticle burner Mi-T-M 5005 skid with a general pump labeled as theirs (model 3000)which makes it really a 4.8 or 4.9 right? I installed one of their pressure guages and I know darn well that it had read 3000 psi working pressure while in use most of the time. Now the needle seems to be starting off wrong direction and gets me only at 2500 to 2700 depending on throttle on the new 18 hp Honda. When I release trigger the st280 unloader goes in bypass and takes the needle on up to 3000 or over depending how much I tighten it down. Why is it starting backwards and why does it not go down to zero on trigger release and why no 3000 psi working pressure? I currently am bypassing coil and no downstream injector is installed while tuning to prevent complications. The only other thing I have done to system prior to engine swap was to install a fatter 3/4" low side hose and ball valve between float tank and what I thought was a vacuum valve. This old time valve that I thought was a vacuum switch for the heater was described by a shop when they seen it as something different like a flow valve. The thing has a contact switch with spring and has given me nothing but trouble. I actually installed the ball valve so as to adjust the flow (or vac) on it so it turns burner on. Sometimes the burner doesn't come on right away due to no diesal inline (understandably) but then when this silly thing decides to not work proper then I am out of heat for the long haul of a job unless I took apart. I should be able to run any size intake hose or volume that the pump wants without a valve restriction right? Should I switch it out to another modern type to acheive this? So in summary: Is my pressure guage broke(also sits at 500 when off-see pic) or has shop set me up with wrong nozzle size of 5.5 causing the lower pressure, and do I have to go back to a smaller intake hose unless I change type of heater valve? Or does all three issues apply?,lol The following three pics show the guage while machine is off, then the flow or vac switch, and then the intake hose to it. Is there something inherently wrong here with plumbing ? :lgsick: maybe I need a new machine:lgsad:

For what its worth... I harvested a sureflow out of a carpet cleaning machine and mounted it directly on top of a 5 gal. bucket and only use about 20' of the clear hose hooked to a quik connect so I can use my main wand which has a dual tip on end of a single lance. I then use whatever length extension cord runnin off my generator or customers wall outlet.The dual tip on my single lance lets me pick how much chemical will go down. The high pressure tip helps put down less for carpet cleaning via the chemdry bonnet method inside a building but a big soap nozzle will soak concrete fast for pressure washing. I do not want a ton of chemical in the hose before I spray it. Just doesn't work for me with some chemicals and leads to waste. A bucket or two per storefront or section to be cleaned if I am doing bleach, degreaser, or acid. If I am doing something bigger and it needs more dilution I just downstream it. ~Kevin

Those rubber ones are almost a standard item on verticle engines as found in floor burnishers and I have used them plenty. I dislike them for such application as they are usually mounted with an elbow straight up and then ya got to bend and prop something to hold them down to drain. They drain slow and are not fun. They would work better in the horizontal engine application if laid straight down though. The ones on some onan engines I've used are better as they are fatter hose and you can just turn this little cylidrical drain valve thingy built into the end. My Briggs twin that I just yanked off has my favorite heavy duty type. It used pipe and tapered npt elbow which now does not fit my new Honda..darn it.. If I make another it will be with brass fittings so as not to possibly induce casting sand into engine. Not sure if that can happen but why risk it?

Russ, Right..it does not come off piston and I don't see it coming anywhere else inside pump area.Pump is workin fine. I believe the bypass outlet of this st280 is too small for it to go through and back around into system prior to vacuum switch and on through. Not even sure if inlet side of unloader is big enough for that. Maybe it came off my cat unloader that I changed out or maybe off the vac switch? Anyone know what this thing is and whther such a thing is meant on the tip of my unloader? A closer pic is attached..