Buried Propane Tanks

“My tank is buried, how long will it last?”. This is a great question that we are glad to answer.

For tanks that are buried with no protective coating or sacrificial anode, they can be subject to rust and corrosion. This is because of chemical reactions that occur because of voltage differences between steel surfaces and various substances in the soil. This corrosion can happen in mountain soil particularly, or in areas with high concentrations of moisture, rocks, salts, and fertilizer.

For all underground tanks, we install an ‘anode’ that offers cathodic protection to your tank, so that the soil doesn’t corrode the steel of the tank. There is also a special external coating on the tank that uses an epoxy powder paint. The special coating protects the tank in tandem with the anode. By utilizing both of these methods, tanks can stay in the ground for literally decades.

Anode bags are made of magnesium, which has a very low electrode potential. This helps dilute any voltage in the ground and stops the current coming from external sources. The technique controls the corrosion of a metal surface by making the metal in the ground the cathode by installing an anode next to it. When the two metals are connected there is a difference in current flow which prevents corrosion. The sacrificial anode then corrodes instead of the protected metal.

All new installations are completed with this added layer of cathodic protection. If you have any questions about your tank, call us at 828-733-3603 with any questions.