Got lucky with my water tank this weekend

[schlep1967]

Camping without water hook-ups this weekend. When we do this we fill the 85 gallon tank at home before we leave the house. We've been doing this since we got the trailer in 2010. We get to the campground and after about 3 gallons of use we are out of water. Pump is pulling air. Now when I travel with the tank full we do lose some out of the over flow tubes but I've never lost a whole tank full. I thought just maybe something strange happened and it managed to get a siphon going and drained it all.

I got some new 5 gallon buckets and used the winterizing tube to pump water back into the tank. When I got to 40 gallons the water started coming out of the over flow tubes. Something's not right. So I start troubleshooting in my head. Overflow tubes in to deep? Cracked pick-up line if it is mounted in from the top of the tank?

So we get home and I decided to fill the tank and measure how much the pump would empty out of it. 40 gallons and it started pulling air again. So now my plan was to drain and measure from the tanks drain. I crawl under the trailer and see the problem. The side of the tank away from the pickup for the pump is laying on the axles. Out of 4 flat steel "straps" that were holding the tank the only one with both screws holding it was the one nearest the pumps pickup.

From the factory they used 8 self drilling/self taping screws to hold up 680 lbs of water. Luckily nothing got broken or went sliding down the highway. The funny thing is right next to where they ran the screws through the supports, they had used a torch to blow holes big enough to put bolts through. I'm guessing bolts are what was specked for the installation but the installer had the same screws they used to hold up the coroplast handy so that is what he used.

It is now held up with 8 bolts with washers and lock nuts. Cost of repair is right around $25. Might go up another $10 if I go buy new self drilling screws to put the coroplast back up because the locations where the old screws were got torn out from the tank dropping.

[schlep1967]

cougar28 wrote:
Ok I want to apologize to the OP and anyone else who it may have been offended by my post. Just struck me as funny when I read it.

You didn't offend me one little bit. And I hope I didn't offend you by joking back with you.

[Stranger]

cougar28 wrote:
Ok I want to apologize to the OP and anyone else who it may have been offended by my post. Just struck me as funny when I read it.

Apparently some here are "Sensitive". Personally, I thought it was funny as Hell.

But then, I'm old and don't give a **** about feelings.

[cougar28]

Ok I want to apologize to the OP and anyone else who it may have been offended by my post. Just struck me as funny when I read it.

[bucky]

schlep1967 wrote:

cougar28 wrote:
Am I the only one that got a laugh out of the OP's subject line? LOL

Only people from Arkansas think like that.....LOL..Are you still laughing?

Says the person from Pennsyltucky who also caught it haha.

[cougar28]

schlep1967 wrote:

cougar28 wrote:
Am I the only one that got a laugh out of the OP's subject line? LOL

Only people from Arkansas think like that.....LOL..Are you still laughing?

LOL

[schlep1967]

cougar28 wrote:
Am I the only one that got a laugh out of the OP's subject line? LOL

Only people from Arkansas think like that.....LOL..Are you still laughing?

[cougar28]

Am I the only one that got a laugh out of the OP's subject line? LOL

[schlep1967]

I was years ago. I'm sure I would never come up with the correct password at this point. It was an easy fix. With the bolts in place it isn't going anywhere.

[Stranger]

Are you a member of Open Range Owners Forum?

There are many discussion of your exact issue and fixes for it.

[Lwiddis]

"From the factory they used 8 self drilling/self taping screws to hold up 680 lbs of water."

That was plenty of screws for eleven years! But don't blame the factory workers...that was a designer's doing.

[Old-Biscuit]

Floor jockeys are NOT certified techs by am stretch of the imagination

They are piece-mill workers...paid by number of items installed per shift

QC checks to see if graphics are on, no open holes (roof a/c, windows, door) and that it rolls out the door.

[rlw999]

It's amazing that it lasted 10 years before failing!

With the rush to build units and fill orders during the boom, I'm be seriously worried about buying a late-2020 or 2021 model, I bet this kind of shortcut is common.