The Chem-Tainer 550 gallon gray vertical water storage tank is a polyethylene vessel built for straightforward bulk water storage where you need real volume without the cost or footprint of a steel or fiberglass system. It sits in the meat of the range for a household reserve, an irrigation buffer, or a rural water supply line, and the gray exterior cuts light penetration to slow algae growth in stored water. This page pairs the published specs with the technical drawing so you can confirm fit before you commit.
Will it work for your water storage job?
This is a 550 gallon vertical tank molded from polyethylene, designed to stand upright on a level, fully supported base. The first question is not just total volume but whether 550 gallons matches your refill cycle: it covers a solid household reserve or an irrigation buffer per draw-down, but if your draw outpaces your refill rate you may want the next size up. Run the numbers on the Tank Sizing Calculator to match draw against refill before you commit, and read the Tank Sizing Guide if you are still weighing capacities. For the footprint dimensions, fitting locations, outlet placement, and overall height, see the technical drawing on this page rather than guessing.
Foundation and placement
The tank arrives nearly empty as a bare polyethylene shell, light enough that a forklift or two people can set it in place. The moment you fill it, that changes: at full capacity it carries roughly 4,587 pounds of water, a load of more than two tons that cannot be moved again. So pick the final spot before you add the first gallon. Water makes up nearly all of that figure at about 8.34 pounds per gallon, and the pad or foundation underneath has to hold the load across the entire footprint, not just the perimeter. An undersized or uneven base is the most common reason a vertical poly tank leans or stresses over time. For an above-ground slab, our guide to concrete pad sizing for above-ground polyethylene tanks walks through the ACI 360R-10 framework so the pad carries the load correctly. If this tank is part of a larger setup, our pieces on industrial water reuse tank topology and fire-water reservoir tank design for rural and remote sites cover how a vertical poly tank fits into reuse trains and private fire-protection storage.
The mistake to avoid
The most common error with a tank this size is treating it as a chemical vessel. This is a water storage tank; it is not specified here for chemical service, so keep it on water duty. If you are comparing brands at the larger end of the range before you size, our Snyder vs Norwesco vs Chem-Tainer 2000 gallon vertical storage tank comparison shows how these manufacturers stack up on a comparable vessel. Keep this one on water, set it on a properly sized base, and it will hold up for years.
This 550 gallon vertical water tank ships LTL freight from whichever of our plants is closer to you: Hanford, CA serves Western ZIPs and Marked Tree, AR serves central and eastern ZIPs, so you can sanity-check that your quote ships from the logical plant rather than getting cross-hauled. Freight is quoted live to your ZIP code, since the cost depends on distance and your delivery site. Get a number in seconds with the Freight Cost Estimator, or call us at 866-418-1777 and we will work it out with you and confirm the right tank for your water storage project.
