Traveling w/water in tanks? - Montana Owners Club

t1mrtork · 08-24-2005, 03:31 AM

I should have posted this sooner, we are going to leave on friday for durango colorado. We will be going from Ill. on I-80 across to Colorado and i would like to have some water on board. We just installed a Trail-air pin box to lessen the jolts on the truck/camper. It seems like having water in the tank that can slosh around could possibly crack the tank. If the tank was full it would not be able to slosh as much, but the wouldnt the weight itself be just as bad? I would assume that these fresh water tanks do not have any baffeling in them. The other problem is on the 3400 the fresh tank is on the tail of the camper and I have a light pin weight as it is, I am sure that a full tank of water wouldnt help that and make the push/pull on the concrete roads worse. Any suggestions?

CountryGuy · 08-24-2005, 03:50 AM

Generally speaking, we travel with enough water to flush during the day and some for emergencies (like hoses breaking on the truck, need water to get to the closest gas station/repair facility)

No baffles that we know of, never thought of that tho, interesting.

We are a little gun shy of carrying much fluids around after hearing some of the stories this summer. We are gonna stay light whenever possible.

Not sure if full tank of water would affect the rubberbanding situation.

Have a GREAT TIME on your trip! Send photos!

padredw · 08-24-2005, 12:26 PM

Surprising how often I find myself in agreement with Carol, but so I do this time also. I have never traveled with more than 1/3 tank of fresh water. I usually watch the indicator (this is the ONE sensor light that always works) and when it blinks and is then steady on 1/3 I turn off the water supply. Have always found this adequate. Now, I must say that we do not boondock,b ut use the water for flushing on the road and sometimes for meal preparation.

Glenn and Lorraine · 08-24-2005, 03:07 PM

Up until the Northeast rally I never carried any water in any of the tanks. Before we left the campground in NY I filled the freshwater tank for the 3 hour trip on mostly interstate hiway back to PA. Seeing as how the return trip is on I-85, one of the worst hiways for tar strips and bridge expansion joints I thought this would be a great test.

#1-Being that the freshwater tank is behind the rear axle I wondered if this would have a cantilever effect and take weight off of the pin thus improving the ride. It made no noticable difference none, nada, zilch.

#2-What difference would there be in fuel mileage and hill climbing with 60 gallons or approx 500 pounds of water on board. Some loss on the hill climbing abilities and lost just a couple MPG on the fuel mileage.

Therefore seeing no reason for it I no longer carry any liquids none, nada, zilch in any of my tanks. As for flushing we always carry spring water. As far as water for the radiator, in the past 30 plus years of driving I have never had such a need but if the need should arise we still carry the spring water.

Bowie · 08-24-2005, 03:55 PM

Have performed pretty much the same tests as Glenn with similar results. Now opt for minimal tank filling when we are on an unknown route. If we have travelled the same route previously with no major need for water, we carry 5 1/2 gal milk jugs of water which fit quite nicely and safely on no skid next to the toilet where they are handy as needed. Carry spring water down in the for radiator--and like Glenn have never needed it.

Parrothead · 08-24-2005, 05:44 PM

We carry just enough to flush and always have some bottled water for drinking and coffee. We have also traveled with a jug of water in the bathroom for flushing and hand washing. We do not boondock. In an emergency if the truck needed water, you could drain the hot water tank.
Happy trails.....................

CountryGuy · 08-25-2005, 03:15 AM

Guess we are the lucky ones, cause we needed the water for the truck emergency one time, YEARS ago. It is a long story, and probably rather boring, so I won't go there. I used as an example in this thread. You are all so lucky to never have had that happen! I am praying it never does to us again, one time was enough! HAHA

adelmoll · 08-25-2005, 04:36 AM

We also fill ours 1/3 full just in case we get to our destination late and don't want to hook up in the dark or God forbid, can't find a campground and have to stay in a parking lot.

Helen

bob n pam · 08-25-2005, 03:25 PM

Like "adelmoll" we fill ours about 1/3 full for the same reasons.

jrgwdenner · 08-25-2005, 05:23 PM

We usually fill our fresh water tank about 1/3 full for those special stops along the road. I also keep a large spray bottle in the bathroom to refresh the bowl as needed. Sometimes that is all we need. We can testify that there are no baffles in the water tank. Remember our experience was up close and personal, like an hour under the trailer trying to secure the tank to the trailer. It is a plain, white heavy plastic rectangle with connections at one end.

t1mrtork · 08-25-2005, 05:34 PM

Thanks everybody. Looks like I will go with the 1/3 tank method and say alittle prayer to the gods of plastic tanks. We will be in the Durango area the next two weeks if anybody is around there. Hope to see some of you on the road. Terry

sreigle · 08-26-2005, 08:22 PM

We generally start out with 2/3 full freshwater tanks and whatever happens to be in the waste tanks. My Ford doesn't seem to notice that little additional weight. We want to have water onboard for those overnight stops where we may not connect to city water and for those potty stops and lunch stops. When it gets down to 1/3 or so I'll bring it back up to 2/3. we did have a crack in a fresh water tank but since we've put about 30,000 miles on the rig on all kinds of roads I really don't think carrying water in the tank caused it. We'll continue the same practice because it fits our needs.

vickir · 08-27-2005, 04:46 AM

Steve really shouldn't try to post so late at night ... he's getting to old for that stuff!

We didn't have a crack in our fresh water tank, we had a crack in the gray tank ... he's reading about KU basketball (GO 'HAWKS!) and asked me to post this correction for him.

sreigle · 08-28-2005, 08:44 AM

So, 30k miles carrying water in the tank most of the time and no problems with the fresh water tank.

Montana_2005 · 08-28-2005, 07:33 PM

I had ours 2/3 full for the trip over from western Ks to East.. Wondered if I shouldn't have offloaded some of it this AM before we left.... now I know...
really don't need that much, except, since it was after 10 when we pulled in here... nice to know we do have adequate water (and an obnoxious pump....) to get through the night... and only had to drag the power cord out...and the litter box.... and the king pin tripod... and the tomato.. and the asparagus fern.. and shift around all the stuff (#$%$%) that we are taking to sisters.. mom.. children.. etc..
Heck... we pared down so good... our house will have a nearly empty basement once we get to ohio..... I have two rubbermaid Christmas decoration containers, a step ladder, and the winter clothes down there.... Don't think ANYTHING else down there is ours.....
Hope we are still under weight... elevator closed Sat before we could weigh.

Merv · 08-31-2005, 08:52 AM

I Usually fill my fresh water full. We normally stay at campgrounds with no water (only hand pumps), so we have to carry what we want.
I have never had any trouble with the tank doing this. I normally go less than 100 miles at a time, but have towed with a full tank to Montana and back. (also with no problems)
Merv

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