What is the Poly-Mart Difference?

What sets a Poly-Mart Tank apart from the competition? We use only the highest quality materials, deliver superior workmanship, develop superior tank designs, have a better warranty, offer 13 color options, and provide application-specific configurations of our tanks. We also proudly display our tank weights online. Our staff is knowledgeable and takes pride in delivering excellent customer service. We hope you will take the time to read about “The Poly-Mart Difference” to help you make an informed buying decision. A quality plastic tank should last you many years with proper care.

#1 Highest Quality Materials Used

We are often asked specifically about the materials we use as some consumers elect to research plastic material before filling their tank with water. Poly-Mart will NEVER sacrifice quality for price, as our name and reputation are crucial to us. Therefore, we use premium High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) that complies with NSF/ANSI Standard 61. Our resin also complies with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s food additive regulation 21 CFR 177.1520(c), paragraph 3.1a.  When manufactured in our Natural Translucent color (since sunlight passes right through, natural translucent tanks have a shorter life span), our material has a 15-year UV stabilizer package added. This is 33% longer than some tanks on the market. Additionally, we have been manufacturing plastic trash containers for 19 years with the same material we use in our tanks. Our Waste & Recycling Plastic Containers get picked up and slammed on the ground once or sometimes twice a week and sit in the sun their whole life. Our oldest containers in the field are still alive and well without color fading! If you have ever seen a color faded plastic tank, it’s quite possible that low-quality pigment was used which allowed the fading to occur. We hope that being transparent about our material quality helps in making your buying decision easier. Here are some more specs on our HDPE resin:

• California Proposition 65 (Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986): Our HDPE Material contains no listed substances known to the State of California to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm, at levels which would require a warning under the statute as of 7/11/2018.

• BPA-Free: Our material is BPA-Free, or is NOT manufactured or formulated with Bisphenol A (CAS# 80-05-7).

• Conflict Minerals (Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform & Consumer Protection Act): The manufacturer of our HDPE material has received responses from their raw material suppliers indicating that none of the raw materials used to produce our resin contain tantalum, tin, tungsten, gold, or their derivatives, and these materials are not used in the production of the raw materials.

• Kosher: The raw materials used in the manufacturing of our tanks are derived from non-animal sources. There is no animal fat and no animal-derived materials, grain derived materials, or fermentation products are used. Our tanks are not certified as Kosher but will comply with the Kosher dietary laws. Therefore, our tanks can be used in Kosher applications without compromising the status of the products.

• Halal: Our HDPE Material has not been manufactured or formulated with animal fats or ingredients derived from animal or fermentation products.

• Animal Derived Components: To the best of our material manufacturer’s knowledge, this product is not manufactured or formulated with ingredients of animal origin.

• Food Allergens: To the best of our material manufacturer’s knowledge, there are no raw materials, including additives, that have their origin in peanuts, soybeans, milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, mustard, celery, sesame, and/or wheat or gluten. No sulfates or sulfites are used in the synthesis of this material. This evaluation is based on the information provided by the manufacturer’s raw materials and additive suppliers for the presence of the allergy-stimulating substances shown above. Therefore, although we believe our material to be free of the specified, known allergy-stimulating food substances, we cannot guarantee this.

• Phthalates: Our material is not intentionally manufactured or formulated with phthalate esters

• Halogenated Flame Retardants: This product is not intentionally manufactured of formulated with halogenated or phosphorus based flame retardants.

Compound High Density Polyethylene

All Black and Dark Green Tanks manufactured by Poly-Mart are made with compound, High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) material that won’t allow sunlight in. Although taking our material through the compounding process is costlier, we know it makes for a better performing and better looking product. The compound process mixes pigment at a high enough concentration to block the sunlight, as well as mixing it in evenly with the base material. The majority of the plastic tanks on the market being used in water applications are Black. This is because Black is the darkest color by nature and therefore should block the most sunlight from entering your tank. This is important in most water storage applications because NOT blocking UV Rays results in algae growth inside your tank. Algae growth will cause maintenance issues. You certainly don’t want algae growing in your drinking water tank and certainly don’t want to send algae through your filtration system as filter replacement will become expensive. Blocking sunlight in water tanks, surprisingly, isn’t an industry standard. In fact, the majority of plastic tanks on the market let sunlight right in. Check out the below image to the right. Ask your tank representative if the tank is made with “Compound” material. If sunlight comes through the sidewalls of your tank, you are looking at a tank that is made with material that is not “compounded” and you may elect to shop for a different brand of tank at a different retailer/dealer. This is one of the main components of what makes up “The Poly-Mart Difference”. Below are 2 images taken from a competitor’s tank in the field. There is no flash used on a cell phone camera on a sunny day in California. These tanks will allow algae growth inside.

#2 Better Workmanship

Our people have high workmanship standards and take pride in every tank that leaves our factory. Therefore, we take several extra steps to ensure each tank has a nice finish before leaving the factory. Before assembly, each tank has the seams and the excess flash trimmed and removed from the tank. This makes it more visually appealing and removes any sharp edges that would otherwise be there. After the tank is assembled, the tank is vacuumed to remove plastic shavings. Finally, the tank is cleaned and the outside is given a detailed finish showing the true color of the tank. Tanks that don’t go through this finishing process exhibit a white film on some portions of the tank. Here is an image taken from the field. Although there is a lot to look at here, just pay attention to the red arrows and the white film. This is a brand new tank that is for sale at retail. This is not dirt.

#3 Superior Tank Designs

Poly-Mart’s versatile tank design allows for optimal customization in a number of different applications. Whether you have a Well Water Storage Application, Irrigation or Drip Irrigation System, Rainwater Harvesting System, or Chemical and/or a Liquid Storage Application, our tank design has built in features that give contractors a more user-friendly plumbing experience.

Dome Flats

The domes of our tanks have molded-in flat surfaces. These flat areas allow for large flanged fittings to be installed. For example, the Overflow Fittings that come standard on our Rainwater Harvesting Tanks are installed on a dome flat. This allows the flanged portion of the fitting and the gasket to rest securely on a flat surface and prevent leaking. Many tanks on the market are completely domed on the top, not allowing for the installation of a large flanged fitting like an overflow fitting. This forces it to be installed on the side wall (which is a radius), and results in a sacrifice of dome capacity. The top of our dome flats are also flat. Therefore, if you are installing a Tank Gauge, for example, you have a level surface at the top of the tank to install it. They are also great for installing Float Switches and additional Bulkhead Fittings.

Layout Flats

Directly below our Dome Flats at the base of our tanks are what we call Layout Flats. Like Dome Flats, Layout Flats provide a large flat surface at the base of the tank to install a large flanged fitting, such as a 4″ Bulkhead. For example, Fire Suppression System applications require fire hose connections at the base of the Tank. Pumps on Fire Engines draw a lot of water, so having large fittings at the base of the tank is required. Our 100 Gallon to 3,000 Gallon Tanks all have these layout flats at every 90 degrees. Our 5,000 Gallon Tanks and greater all have Layout Flats at every 45 degrees! All Layout Flats on 1500 Gallon Tanks and larger have Layout Flats big enough to install a 4″ Bulkhead Fitting. Are you needing your tanks to show up assembled and ready for plumbing? No problem, we’ll install the fittings where you need them. Let our dealers know your specifications and we’ll custom assemble the tanks for you!

Lifting Lugs

On the dome of our 2500 Gallon Tanks and larger are four Lifting Lugs that double as Tie-Down Lugs. Sometimes the only way to get a tank into a home’s backyard is to lift it over the house with a crane. Here’s a video example from our YouTube Channel. These can also come in handy when setting a tank on the pad and getting the tank outlet fittings lined up in the right spot. If you are storing water in a coastal region or a region with seismic activity, you might want to consider securing your tank down to your tank pad. This is usually done on concrete pads with eye bolts set into the concrete.

Our Tank Weight

Does the weight of the tank matter? The short answer is Yes. Some manufacturers don’t use pure HDPE Polyethylene like we do. Some use a multi layered tank approach and market it as a more advanced tank. In reality, foam is sandwiched in the middle layer for manufacturer cost-cutting measures. Not only is foam very cheap, it also expands and helps the manufacturer meet wall thickness requirements while allowing them to use far less material in the net weight of the tank. Therefore, they may not want you to know the weight of their tanks as you could then see in plain site how much material they AREN’T using in their tanks. At Poly-Mart, our tank weights are proudly listed online and are a great baseline reference for what a high quality plastic tank should weigh. Every tank part number has its own individual page on our site. If you are interested in the weight of any of our tanks, just reference that page or give us a call at 817-246-4567. Here are some sample pictures of these multi-layer tanks so that you can see for yourself. As you can also imagine, foam is quite a bit less durable than pure High Density Polyethylene. The end of a small paper clip can easily penetrate the black layer with very little force.

For an example of HDPE durability, check out this video of us roughing up our tanks! The fun begins at 6:19!

#4 Better Warranty

Poly-Mart tanks come with a 5 year warranty. This is 2 years longer than the majority of the industry and 2 years longer than the majority of tanks offered by large, big box retailers. You can download our warranty by Clicking Here.

#5 Thirteen Color Options

Poly-Mart Tanks are manufactured in 13 different colors. This is by far the largest color offering in the industry. If making your tank look as aesthetically pleasing as possible is important in your application, consider getting a Poly-Mart Tank. Making your tank match the color to your home or blend in with the natural environment or vegetation is important to many people. And with our patented SunShield technology, you can get any color you want while also preventing algae growth!  

Also, our tanks do not have color dispersion as our workmanship standards, material choices and in-house processes don’t allow for color dispersion to occur. Check out this below picture of a competitors tank we captured in the field. This is a new tank that is for sale at the full retail price at a Feed Store. This tank is full of inconsistent color dispersion.

#6 Application Specific Tank Versions

Water Storage Tanks

If you’re building an irrigation system with a water well as the water source or if you’re building a well water storage system for drinking water, you need a Water Storage Tank. Water Storage Tanks are assembled with an Inlet Fitting at the top of the tank, an Outlet Fitting at the bottom of the tank, and a Vented Tank Lid. This is the traditional way most manufacturers assemble their Plastic Tanks, which works great for these applications.

Rainwater Harvesting Tanks

If your application calls for collecting Rainwater as your water source, you want a Rainwater Harvesting Tank, which is assembled specifically for the proper collection of rainwater. Unlike a Well Water Storage System, where a float switch would tell your well pump to shut off when your tank is full, you can’t tell Mother Nature to stop making rain fall from the sky! Therefore, you need a tank equipped with an appropriately sized overflow fitting so that you can let rainwater exit the tank just as fast as it can enter the tank. This is very important or else your system could back up and cause damage to your home’s fascia boards and gutters in a large rain event. Some consumers get bad information from Tank Dealers (not our Dealers) and try to utilize Water Storage Tanks for rainwater applications and use the Top Inlet Fitting on the Water Storage Tank as the overflow. These small fittings cannot overflow water as fast as a gutter downspout, 3″ PVC Pipe, or 4″ PVC Pipe can bring rainwater into your tank. In Rainwater Harvesting Applications, you also want a Screened Inlet and a Screened Overflow Fitting so that you can keep your stored rainwater free of mosquitoes and other insects. Nothing comes screened on a Water Storage Tank. Therefore, if you are collecting rainwater, the best thing to do is buy a Rainwater Harvesting Tank and save yourself from cutting big holes into your tank and retro-fitting a Water Storage Tank with a tank overflow kit. You’ll save time, money, and hassle.

Emergency Water Storage Tanks

If you’re wanting to store an Emergency Drinking Water supply at home in the case of a power outage caused by a Hurricane, Tornado, Earthquake, or other natural disaster, then consider the benefits of an Emergency Water Storage Tank. Again, these are assembled specifically for stationary drinking water storage. No retrofitting required. Just a turn-key experience shipped straight to your home or office! If you were to use a standard water storage tank in this application, you’ll experience a few issues. First of all, water storage tanks are assembled with pumping applications in mind. So if you’re thinking about keeping your tank on the concrete in your garage, there is no way to directly fill a bucket or cooking pot unless you put your tank on a stand and use the bottom fitting. Our Emergency Water Tanks comes with a raised fitting pre-installed (see the pictures), providing much easier access to your water. Secondly, there is an unnecessary top Inlet Fitting installed in standard Water Storage Tanks that, ultimately, you’re paying for. In this application, that fitting just gets plugged up and serves zero purpose. Often, that fitting doesn’t come with a plug, so you have to go buy one. Third, standard Water Storage Tanks don’t come with Lead-Free Brass Hardware for dispensing your emergency drinking water, so again going to the hardware store is required. This will only cost more time and money. Not only are our Emergency Water Storage Tanks assembled specifically for storing a stationary back-up drinking water supply at home, they are turn-key and ship with everything you need inside the tank. You just need to apply thread tape upon installing the hardware. Additionally, they are available in SunShield, have a 5 year warranty, are BPA-Free, comply with Kosher Dietary Laws, exceed FDA/NSF-61 requirements, and you get your pick from 13 color options.