There is not sufficient evidence available to generalize on the relative 

 costs of operation in terms of electricity and repairs. Each case will require 

 individual evaluation depending on prevailing power costs in that area and 

 the extent of adoption by othex farmers. The major costs which can be com- 

 pared however are for capital and financing. Expressed in terms of cost per 

 hundredweight of milk pej day, the farm tank is considerably higher than 

 the can cooler. 



Table 3. Comparison Between Prices of Tank and Can Cooler per Hundredweight of Milk 



per Day Based on Two-year Financing* 



Hundredweight Per Day 



Cost Per Hundredweight 



Tank 



Can Cooler 



5.16 



6.88 



10.32 



$ .23 

 .20 

 .19 



I .12 

 .10 

 .10 



What Tank Size? 



The price of a tank used for cooling milk becomes measurable and 

 more appreciated when allocated to the quantity of milk sold. The more 

 complete the utilization, the lower the unit cost per hundredweight of milk. 

 One of the most important decisions when making the initial investment, 

 therefore, is on the size and the extent of the use of the tank. 



There are at least two important questions to be answered when deciding 

 which size of tank is most economic. 



1. What is the maximum daily requirement based on current and pro- 

 spective milk production during the next 10 years? 



2. What allowance over and above the daily requirement should be 

 made for emergencies, and every-other-day or three-times-a-week pickup if 

 this system becomes common? 



The extent to which a tank is utilized will govern the unit cost of oper- 

 ation and depreciation. The less a tank is used, the higher will be the cost 

 per hundredweight because the fixed or overhead costs are spread over 

 fewer units. On the other hand, under-estimation of requirements would 

 create waste and inconvenience or unexpected future investment. To facili- 

 tate decisions as to size and to estimate the probable cost in terms of milk 

 produced, the following charts have been developed. 



Chart 1 relates the size of the pickup in cans or pounds to the size of 

 tank necessary for that amount of milk. For example, reading on the vertical 

 axis, a pickup of 3 cans or 258 pounds of milk would utilize 50 percent of 

 a 60-gallon tank or 30 percent of a 100-gallon tank as indicated on the hori- 

 zontal axis. If 10 cans or 860 pounds of milk is the estimated pickup, then 

 this would use a 100-gallon tank at 100 percent of capacity. 



Having decided on the size of tank necessary for a particular farm from 

 Chart 1, it is now possible to estimate the cost per hundredweight of milk 

 of this particular tank. 



Three tanks, of 60 gallons, 100 gallons, and 150 gallons, and the per- 

 cent usage as derived from Chart 1 are given on the horizontal axis of Chart 



*Two-year financing refers to 25% down payment with remainder costing 11% 

 interest paid in equal monthly installments. 



