Buy a tote —
walk out the same day.
Customers pick up totes at the yard by appointment from 7:00 AM. Bulk orders ship regionally the same day when ordered before 11:00 AM. We keep a very specific number of tanks in stock so we never over-promise.
Skip the phone tag. Leave a note — we'll reply by email.
Pick up at the yard
Our yard is at 1243 Thompson Ave, McKees Rocks, PA 15136, fifteen minutes from downtown Pittsburgh. We load trucks, trailers, vans, and the occasional pickup with side rails. Appointment only — email us a day ahead so we have your stack ready on the floor.
- · Mon–Thu 7:00 AM – 5:00 PM
- · Fri 7:00 AM – 4:00 PM
- · Sat drop-off only, 8:00 AM – noon
Regional delivery
We run three trucks — two box trucks and a 26-foot straight — in daily rotation. Same-day delivery across Allegheny, Beaver, Westmoreland, and Washington counties. Next-day to Columbus, Cleveland, Wheeling, Morgantown. Freight is a flat per-mile rate posted with your quote.
What we keep in stock
Our standing inventory runs 300–500 used 275-gallon totes, 60–100 used 330s, 20–30 reconditioned units of each, a rotating pool of new tanks, and the upcycled stock (whatever is coming off the fabrication floor that week).
If you need large volume — say, 80 Grade B totes for a seasonal irrigation project — reach out with a lead time. We can usually pre-stage your order inside a week.
What each grade
actually means.
Every tote in stock is graded A, B, or C before it hits the floor — the same system we use on the buy-back desk, in reverse. Below is the spec sheet so you know what you're paying for, not just a color-coded sticker.
Grade A
From $125.00/unitFood-safe prior, clear HDPE, square cage, fresh UN31A retest, new gasket.
Grade B
From $85.00/unitIndustrial prior (glycol, detergent, coolant), clean inside, minor cosmetic stains, cage straight.
Grade C
From $55.00/unitVisible body discoloration, bent cage strut (aligned, not failing), older date code. Not retested.
Reconditioned (rebottled with virgin HDPE inner) carries a modest premium over Grade A. New totes, when we keep any in stock, price against current Mauser/Schütz wholesale plus a regional freight spread.
Pick by use,
not by price.
Ninety percent of customer regret on used totes comes from paying too little for the wrong grade. A Grade C is a great deal unless you needed potable — then it's money you'll never get back. A few specific pairings from the last year of sales:
- Rainwater harvesting (residential). Grade B, painted opaque. Algae is the enemy; UV-stable exterior paint adds a small upcharge but doubles the tank's summer life.
- Cidery / brewery rinse tank. Grade A with a fresh UN31A date and a silicone gasket swap. Never take a Grade B here — detergent prior will leach.
- Livestock drinking water. Grade B is safe if the prior was food or glycol. Ask us to pull the actual tank log entry before you buy.
- Greenhouse fertigation. Grade B with a 2″ camlock valve swap. If you're dosing with fish emulsion, grab an opaque tank to slow biofilm.
- Construction potable. Grade A, new gasket, retested within six months. Many general contractors require this spec for OSHA 1926.51 compliance.
- Order confirmed by 11 AM (Zone 1)
- Same-day, 2–6 PM delivery
- Order confirmed by 3 PM (Zone 1)
- Next-morning, 8–11 AM
- Zone 2 · I-79 corridor
- Next-day, most stops
- Zone 2 · I-70 corridor (Columbus, Wheeling)
- 24–48 hour window
- Zone 2 · I-76 corridor (Akron, Youngstown)
- Next-day Tue/Thu
- Zone 3 · Central OH, Erie, Harrisburg
- 3–7 day scheduled
- Yard pickup (customer truck)
- Any weekday, 7 AM – 4:30 PM
Weather holds and DOT rest cycles occasionally push windows. We'll always call (well, email) before a miss.
A five-minute
pre-purchase inspection.
We encourage every buyer to open and inspect tanks before they leave the yard. The checks below take about five minutes per tote and catch roughly all the issues you could have with a used unit. Our yard crew will pull the stack and wait.
Stand at a corner. Sight down the diagonal. Verticals should track parallel; any visible bowing > ½″ is a downgrade.
Run a finger along the cage-to-pallet welds. Look for cracked paint or red-primer bleed. The UN/Mauser/Schütz badge should be legible.
Open the 6″ lid. The gasket should be supple, not glazed. Sniff — neutral or soap is fine, solvent is not.
Shine a phone flashlight down the fill neck. Look for white stress lines radiating from corners. Those mean prior overpressure.
Crack the 2″ butterfly. It should swing freely and seal completely. Sticky or wet-seated valves get swapped before load-out at cost.
Kick each foot. Wood pallets with soft feet or split stringers are a no — ask for a composite or steel pallet swap.
Buying 20+ totes?
Bulk orders get different math and different logistics. The thresholds below kick in automatically — no negotiation required, because we price them into the invoice on the first email.
- · 20–49 totes: 8% volume discount, priority dispatch, dedicated ledger line.
- · 50–99 totes: 12% discount, split freight across two trucks for faster unload, call-ahead on any grade substitution.
- · 100+ totes: By quote. Typical spread is 14–18% off posted. We'll often pre-stage the order over 7–10 days rather than pulling everything from floor stock on day one.
- · Standing fleet accounts: Monthly invoicing, NET-30 terms after the first two on-time payments, and a reserved shelf of 10–30 units in your preferred grade.
- Invoice + BOL. Each tote by ledger ID, grade, and last known prior contents. One page, no fine print.
- UN31A re-certification sheet. For reconditioned and Grade A, a printed hydrostatic test pass and retest date. Valid 2.5 years from test.
- FDA 21 CFR 177.1520 letter. For rebottled food-grade, the virgin HDPE resin compliance letter from our supplier, on request.
- Return / exchange policy. Any visible defect missed at inspection, 14-day swap or full refund. We'd rather eat the freight than fight about it.
What we get asked
at the gate.
Can I bring a 16-foot landscape trailer?
Yes, as long as it rates for at least 2,000 lb. A 275-gal tote full of water weighs 2,290 lb, but you'll leave empty — a stack of four empties fits inside 1,000 lb easily.
Do you accept credit cards at the yard?
Yes, Visa/MC/Amex, with a processing surcharge pass-through. Check or ACH is free. Personal checks over a small threshold require a prior account.
Will a used tote leach into my water?
HDPE is inert to water and food acids across the pH range you'll see in rain harvesting, brewing, or livestock. Prior contents matter — which is why Grade A carries a documented food-safe prior and Grade C doesn't.
How long do these last?
Structurally 10–15 years in covered storage, 5–8 in direct sun without UV paint. The limiter is usually UV embrittlement, not the HDPE itself. Opaque paint roughly doubles outdoor life.
Can I sell them back to you later?
Yes. Our buy-back desk will take any tote we sold you at current market, minus normal condition deductions. It happens every week on the fleet accounts.
Do you drop-ship directly to a construction site?
Yes, with a day of notice and a legible site contact. We'll dispatch the box truck with a liftgate if there's no dock — just note the ground conditions in your order email.