Found it · linked from the footer only
Twelve rules, pinned inside the dock office.
THE CODE
Written 2013, revised 2019 and 2024
In the order they appear on the wall
No written cargo declaration, no purchase. This costs us deals every month and has never once been the wrong rule.
A grade is a promise, not a mood. Nineteen points, fixed thresholds, one card per unit, seven years on file.
Reuse before recycling. Grinding is a last resort and we document it per unit.
If we got the grade wrong, we pay the freight. Both directions, no form, no restocking charge.
Never say food grade without all three conditions. History, listed chemistry, sealed on exit.
Publish the exclusions. Any carbon claim improves if you quietly drop a boundary, so we list ours.
Use the low end of every published range. A company selling the saving should err against itself.
Subtract our own burden before claiming a benefit. The wash costs energy; it comes off the number first.
Name the residual. We are at 99.4%, so we say 99.4%, and we itemise the 0.6%.
No phone room. Written questions reach the right bench and come back as answers you can file.
Tell the customer when a cheaper grade would do. Then sell them the cheaper grade.
Keep the mistakes on the website. A history page that only lists wins is a brochure.
“Four of these rules lose us money. Those are the four that make the other eight believable.”Desmond Ayer · Founder, ToteOrbit
Why it is a hidden page
Because a code of conduct in a main menu is marketing, and a code of conduct on a dock wall is a working document. We put it on the website so customers can hold us to it, and we left it out of the menu so it does not become a brochure.
If you found this page, you were either reading our footer carefully or somebody sent you the link. Either way, hello.
WHAT EACH RULE COSTS
Four of these lose us money
The rules with a price tag attached
| Rule | What it costs us | What it protects |
|---|---|---|
| No written cargo declaration, no purchase | Refused loads most months | The meaning of every grade card we issue |
| Grade wrong? Our freight, both ways | Eleven replacements since 2015 | A buyer's ability to plan around our word |
| Never say food grade without all three conditions | Lost food-grade sales to looser competitors | The phrase staying useful where it matters |
| Refuse terpene and flavour-history totes | Plentiful, cheap, immaculate-looking stock turned away | Every downstream cargo in an HDPE bottle |
| Publish the exclusions in our carbon method | A less flattering headline number | Being able to defend the number at all |
| Use the low end of every published range | Understated savings figures | Erring against ourselves, which is the correct direction |
| Subtract our own wash burden first | 19 lb per unit off every claim | A saving that survives scrutiny |
| Name the residual rather than rounding | 99.4% instead of a zero-waste claim | The 0.6% staying on somebody's project list |
| No phone room | Deals lost to suppliers who answer instantly | Answers that can be forwarded, filed and checked |
| Tell the customer when a cheaper grade would do | Margin, every week | Customers who come back |
| Keep the mistakes on the website | A less polished company history | A history page that is not a brochure |
| Reuse before recycling, documented per unit | Slower throughput than grinding everything | 75.3% of inbound mass staying in service |
E / GRADING
A grade is a promise, not a mood
How every unit is scored
| # | Point | Critical? |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | Prior cargo declaration — present, written, specific | Yes |
| 02 | Residual liquid — any volume at all | Yes |
| 03 | Odour after wash — fixed odour by trained nose | Yes |
| 04 | Bottle corner stress whitening | No |
| 05 | Interior scoring you can feel | No |
| 06 | Interior crazing — fine surface cracking | Yes |
| 07 | Bottle bulge or deformation | Yes |
| 08 | Wall thickness at the thinnest point | Yes |
| 09 | Dome port condition and flange flatness | No |
| 10 | Outlet threads — cross-threading, chipping | Yes if crossed |
| 11 | Valve function, full open and close | No, replaceable |
| 12 | Gasket condition — compression set, bloom | No, replaceable |
| 13 | Cage squareness along the top rail | No, pressable |
| 14 | Cage weld integrity at tube intersections | Yes |
| 15 | Cage coating and galvanising loss | No |
| 16 | Pallet condition — cracked feet, rot, corrosion | No, replaceable |
| 17 | Forklift pocket integrity | No |
| 18 | UN marking legibility and date | No, re-markable |
| 19 | Leak test under our procedure | Yes |
F / END OF LIFE
Reuse first, recycle last
What happens when the container is finally finished
| Step | Outcome | Share of mass | Cost to us |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Reuse as is — wash and redeploy | 63.9% | 11 gal of mostly reclaimed water |
| 02 | Repair and reuse — valve, gasket, pallet, cage | 11.4% | Parts and bench time |
| 03 | Rebottle — new bottle, reclaimed steel | 9.6% | A new bottle, two thirds of mass retained |
| 04 | Upcycle — rain kits, grow beds, wash stations | 3.2% | Fabrication time |
| 05 | Material recovery — HDPE regrind, steel, wood | 11.3% | Grinding, washing, drying energy |
| 06 | Residual to licensed disposal | 0.6% | Sludge, gasket rubber, fasteners, laminates |
D / ORDERING
Commercial terms, up front
Lead times, minimums and what happens when it goes wrong
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Minimum order | One unit. No account minimum, no membership. |
| Stock lead time | Grade A and B 275 gal usually ship the same week |
| Rebottled lead time | 2–3 weeks, built to order in bay D |
| Food-grade lead time | 1–3 weeks when stock exists; supply-dependent |
| Full truckload | 45 on a 48 ft flat, 48 in a 53 ft van, 90 empties double-stacked |
| Payment, first order | Prepay by ACH or card |
| Payment, established | Net 30 on credit approval |
| Grade guarantee | Regrade or replace, our freight both ways, 14 days |
| Leak warranty | 30 days from delivery, normal atmospheric service |
| Cancellation | Free until the truck is loaded |
| Returns | 14 days on unused stock units, freight at your cost |
| Sales tax | Indiana resale certificates and out-of-state equivalents accepted |
A / SPECIFICATION
Reference
Dimensions, fittings and seat materials
Fig. 1
Fig. 2| Capacity | Litres | Footprint | Height | Tare | Gross (water) | Stack loaded |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 275 gal | 1,041 | 48 × 40 in | 46 in | ≈140 lb | ≈2,435 lb | 2 high |
| 330 gal | 1,249 | 48 × 40 in | 53 in | ≈155 lb | ≈2,905 lb | 2 high |
| 350 gal | 1,325 | 48 × 40 in | 56 in | ≈165 lb | ≈3,075 lb | 2 high |
| 120 gal | 454 | 40 × 32 in | 38 in | ≈95 lb | ≈1,095 lb | 2 high |
| 180 gal | 681 | 42 × 36 in | 42 in | ≈115 lb | ≈1,616 lb | 2 high |
| 550 gal | 2,082 | 60 × 48 in | 60 in | ≈240 lb | ≈4,830 lb | 1 high |
B / FITTINGS
What threads onto it
Fittings, threads and seat materials
| Fitting | Size | Seals by | Seat options | Typical service |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S60x6 butterfly valve | 2 in | Flat gasket face | EPDM, Viton, PTFE | The standard IBC outlet |
| S70x6 butterfly valve | 2 in | Flat gasket face | EPDM, Viton | European and some 330 gal units |
| 2 in NPT ball valve, poly | 2 in | Thread flanks + tape | EPDM, Viton | Retrofits, metered dispensing |
| 2 in NPT ball valve, stainless | 2 in | Thread flanks + tape | PTFE | Solvents, pressure, hot cargo |
| 3 in butterfly valve | 3 in | Flat gasket face | EPDM, Viton | Viscous cargo, high flow |
| 6 in fill cap | 6 in | Gasketed lid | EPDM, silicone | Vented or solid — choose deliberately |
| Camlock adapter, type C | 1.5 / 2 in | Cam arms + gasket | Buna, Viton | Repeated connect / disconnect |
| Bulkhead tap | 3/4 in | Both-side gaskets | Brass, poly | Rain kits, site water |
| Material | Good with | Avoid with | Temperature | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EPDM | Water, acids, caustics, brine, ag-chem | Oils, fuels, aromatics | -40 to 250 °F | Low |
| Viton (FKM) | Solvents, oils, fuels, aromatics | Ketones, amines, hot steam | -15 to 400 °F | High |
| Nitrile (NBR) | Oils, diesel, greases, hydraulics | Ozone, strong oxidisers | -30 to 250 °F | Low |
| PTFE envelope | Almost all chemistry, high purity | Needs very flat flange faces | -100 to 450 °F | High |
| Silicone | Food contact, wide temperature | Solvents, abrasion | -60 to 450 °F | Medium |
C / COMPATIBILITY
Will HDPE hold it?
Sixteen cargo families, rated
| Cargo family | HDPE | Seat | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water, potable and non-potable | A | EPDM / silicone | Food-history units for potable |
| Acids and caustics, aqueous | A | EPDM / PTFE | Vent fuming cargo |
| Liquid fertiliser, UAN, NPK | A | EPDM | SG up to 1.32 — check your lift-gate |
| Brine and chloride de-icer | A | EPDM | Hard on galvanising, kind to HDPE |
| Food syrups, oils, concentrates | A | Silicone / Viton | Documented food history only |
| Glycols | A | EPDM | Very common; SG 1.04–1.11 |
| Alcohols | A | Viton / PTFE | Flammable — bond and vent |
| Diesel and gas oil | B | Viton / NBR | Permeates slowly over long storage |
| Mineral spirits | B | Viton | Swells HDPE slowly |
| Surfactants and detergents | B | EPDM | Odour fixation risk — dedicate units |
| Latex, adhesives, water-based paint | A | EPDM | Cures if left. Wash promptly. |
| Ketones, aromatics, chlorinated solvents | C | — | Crazes HDPE. Stainless only. |
| Gasoline and low-conductivity fuels | C | — | Static risk. Steel or stainless. |
| Essential oils, flavour concentrates | C | — | Fixes into the wall permanently. Never. |
| Hydrogen peroxide above 10% | C | — | Decomposition and pressure risk |
| Dairy and hot-fill above 140 °F | C | — | Needs CIP and steam. Stainless. |
Permeation
Small non-polar molecules pass slowly through HDPE rather than attacking it. The bottle looks perfect and your cargo quietly leaves. It is a storage-duration problem: diesel for a week is fine, diesel for a year is not.
Crazing
Ketones, aromatics and chlorinated solvents cause fine surface cracking that propagates under stress. It is invisible until you hold the wall against a raking light, and it is a critical grading failure.
Odour fixation
Terpenes and some surfactants dissolve into the polymer itself rather than sitting on the surface. No wash removes them. This is why a food-grade tote has to have been a food tote from new.
G / PITFALLS
Learned the expensive way
Five mistakes that cost people money
Ordering a 330 without measuring the ceiling
A 275 and a 330 share a footprint; the 330 is seven inches taller. Two 330s stacked is 110 inches against 96 for two 275s, and most sprinkler regimes want eighteen inches of clearance below the deflector. That seven inches is frequently the whole margin.
Forcing an NPT fitting into an S60x6 port
Both are roughly two inches, so it bites and feels tight. It is not sealing, it is chewing the buttress thread. The joint weeps two days later, usually in transit, and cross-threading is one of the few faults that condemns an otherwise perfect bottle.
Reusing a flange gasket
A gasket is a one-use part the moment it has taken a compression set. Reusing one is the cause of most 'the new valve still leaks' emails we get. They cost a couple of dollars. Keep a box at the fill point.
Specifying a solid lid on a tote that sees sun
Sealed container, rising temperature, nowhere for the expansion to go. The bottle bulges between the cage bars and does not fully return. A vented lid is the cheapest risk control in this industry.
Ignoring specific gravity
A full 275 of water is 2,435 lb. The same tote of UAN 32 is 3,168 lb, and a 330 is 3,785 lb. Plenty of lift-gates are rated at 2,500 or 3,000 lb, and the rating assumes a centred load.
Accountability