Patent ID: 7373946

Claim:
A vacuum tank assembly comprising: a body having a plurality of sides and a bottom; a removable top operatively attached to the body; a dip tube integrated into the removable top thereby forming a first opening in the removable top, the dip tube further including a bottom and an opening at the bottom and extending from the removable top in a downward direction toward the bottom of the body thereby forming a gap between the bottom of the dip tube and the bottom of the body; a housing having a pump inlet port and a pump outlet port, each of the pump inlet and pump outlet ports being formed with the housing, the housing being operatively attached to the removable top about the first opening, the housing being located generally above the first opening such that the position of the first opening is generally centered below the housing; an inlet adapter assembly having at least one check valve and an o-ring; and, a motor-driven vacuum pump mounted to the housing and operatively attached to the first opening with the inlet adapter assembly via the pump inlet port, wherein the pump inlet port extends a distance into the dip tube and has a generally tubular geometry with a central axis extending along its longitudinal length that is coaxial with a central axis of the first opening, wherein the pump inlet port is operatively and sealingly connected to the dip tube by the o-ring of the inlet adapter assembly; and wherein the pump outlet port extends in a direction substantially perpendicular to the pump inlet port.