The saga of the bulk tank. Ah, what a story. First we were going to simply use a refrigerator to store our raw milk until cheese making time, since we weren’t going to be producing a whole lot to begin with. Then, once the interior walls of the creamery and the doors were put in, it became increasingly obvious that unless it was a very small refrigerator, not large enough for our purposes, it wouldn’t get through the 32″ doorway.
I had been toying with the idea of a MilkPlan bulk tank for awhile and knew they came in pretty small sizes, so I pre-ordered a 30 gallon from Bob White Systems, and was told it would be available for shipping to me in mid-June (they were waiting for a shipment from the manufacturer in Greece). That still fit into my plans to be open by the end of May, so it got checked off my list and I moved on.
The week it was supposed to arrive, I called to ask when I should expect delivery. Apparently, their shipment had been delayed until mid-June now and there I was, up a goat milk creek without a bulk tank. Enter the handy little tool I have that searches ALL of Craigslist in one fell swoop. Lo and behold, there was my exact tank for sale in Washington state, only 7 months old and a few hundred dollars less. What followed next was a week+ of texts, emails and phone calls between myself, the seller and uShip, which allows you to list things you need hauled and carriers bid on it. Well, yesterday, my shiny new (to me) bulk tank arrived and is ready for installation. Just in the nick of time, since inspection is NEXT FRIDAY, June 3rd. Sometimes I hyperventilate when I look at the calendar.
Here she is!
