Heartland Tank Services Founder Chris Brooks accepted an award from Illinois’s AG-SOLVE group for the continued donation of an API 653 inspection service to the AG-SOLVE fundraising auction at the IFCA trade show. Dan Mogged of AG-SOLVE presented Brooks with the Leadership Award. This award is named in honor of Senator Harry “Babe” Woodward, the late Illinois State Senator known for being a spokesman for farmers. Heartland Tank Services received the award for the continued support of the Illinois group that supports legislators who take a leadership role in the priorities and policies of the Ag-Input Industry.

Since 2016, Heartland Tank Services has annually donated an API 653 inspection service to the AG-SOLVE live auction at the Illinois Fertilizer and Chemical Association Annual Convention. The API 653 inspection service was for a full internal and external tank inspection for a tank up to 1 million gallon sized tank. The service was valued at up to $6,250. This was the highest valued item donated each year to the live auction.

Heartland Tank Services has offered API 653 tank inspections since its inception in 2007. Heartland Inspectors are API 653 certified and pride themselves on doing more than simply knowing the API 653 requirements. The inspectors take time to inform the tank owners of the best decisions for maximizing the tank longevity and the owner’s dollar. Beyond the required API 653 tank repair, recommended repairs are discussed to take advantage of smaller tank repairs before a larger, more expensive problem develops. Heartland Tank Service tank inspectors strive to assist customers to be proactive rather than reactive in their maintenance of API 650 storage tanks.

Requirements for mandatory fertilizer tank inspections vary based on state and local regulations. Some states still have no mandatory inspection requirement for fertilizer tanks. The Fertilizer Institute recommends an API 650 storage tank storing fertilizer to have a full inspection every five years. While some states do not have inspection requirements, the tide is turning as more states experience environmental spills from leaking tanks (Examples include West Virginia and Indiana). Another recent source requiring API 653 inspections for fertilizer tanks are insurance companies. Insurance companies have realized the potential loss from tank failures and leaks. To protect their interests, many have started requiring regular API 653 inspections on tanks they insure. Without a federal requirement or consistent state requirements of API 653 fertilizer tank inspections, a tank owner can be confused as to whether they are required to perform an API 653 inspection and if so, how often. Heartland Tank Services tracks the state requirements. If you have any questions, please contact our professional API 653 inspection service team at 800-774-3230.