the wild blue yonder

[chev49]

they got 2" bung holes... not rocket science - pipe just screws into them.. if ya want something like a small hole in the top if it is laying on its side, just drill a hole the appropriate size, and epoxy a fitting in it.

[atcc77]

Manifold system?[/quote]

I am thinking of turning two of these tanks on their sides and connecting them with a couple of 3" bulkhead flanges through the bottom of both tanks. I want a 3" hole from tank to tank because they are going to be the black water tank and I don't want to have to unclog the passthru. The problem is finding the flanges, been considering using 3" or 4" toilet flange on one side and the flange repair ring on the other, with some sort of rubber gasket material sandwiched in between. Also,since the passthru hole will be about 1 1/2" up from the bottom, I've been thinking of putting some sort of filler in the combined tank(s) to raise the bottom so that no poo gets stuck in the first tank when emptying. The design seems sound as I see it in my mind, but if anyone has tried this and had problems, PLEASE SHARE YOUR CONCERNS WITH ME!!!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to Lorna and anyone else who is a mom!!

[atcc77]

Originally Posted by chev49

they got 2" bung holes... not rocket science - pipe just screws into them.. if ya want something like a small hole in the top if it is laying on its side, just drill a hole the appropriate size, and epoxy a fitting in it.

HEe hee hee.. you said bung hole...hee heee hee

[jkindt]

Originally Posted by chev49

they got 2" bung holes... not rocket science - pipe just screws into them.. if ya want something like a small hole in the top if it is laying on its side, just drill a hole the appropriate size, and epoxy a fitting in it.

Pretty sure those tanks are polyethylene, epoxy won't stick to it. You can however get compression fittings for polyethylene tanks. You drill a precise hole, push the fitting in, then tighten a nut to expand the rubber seal to hold the fitting into place.

...and you said Bung Hole!!!

[atcc77]

heres a drawing

[chev49]

that should work.

epoxy will work if you do things exactly right.

[atcc77]

he he he my husband said bung hole!!!!

[lornaschinske]

Polyethelyne glue

The TAP Poly Weld is the only polyethylene glue I know of. I have not used it. But it looks like that may change in the near future. I would not trust epoxy or the other glues epoxies on the market. I've used many of them and have not found a product that will maintain a seal on the poly material. We have two poly tanks (40 gal & 30 gal) that will become our grey water tanks. They were fresh water tanks. One was bought at an auction and we do not know what was in it. The other was the waste tank off the food cart. I know what was in it. So, given the tanks' history, they will become waste tanks.

After using the stuff, I will post a review on it. First I have to get the food cart flipped over into an ice cream cart (buy generator, freezer, new counter and all new paint). So that is where our $$ go next. Bus has to wait.

[atcc77]

Originally Posted by lornaschinske

Polyethelyne glue

The TAP Poly Weld is the only polyethylene glue I know of. I have not used it. But it looks like that may change in the near future.

Thanks Lorna!, with this stuff I could possibly do away with a rubber gasket. Think I'll give them a call tomorrow
I haven't trusted many glue joints with plastic (other than pvc, cpvc stuff), especially butt joints, and especially on something like a poo tank hanging under a big truck. I think if the glue joint weren't under stresses of the road and temp swings as well as stuff sloshing around inside, it would hold up just fine.
Those guys at TAP need to offer up some data on bond strength before I use it on the stinky tank, hopefully, its the new super glue. Sure would make my plan easier.


Allen

[bus-bro]

Yep, Lorna, that's a really good find.

[ol trunt]

No to epoxy--it won't allow for flexing. Are your tanks front to back parallel to the frame rails or do they mount side to side across the rails? I once connected two gas tanks in the same manner as you show in your drawing and because they were parallel to the frame front to back everytime I went up hill all the gas ran to the back tank and I would run out of gas Running out of gas is one thing--having poo comming up the throne is quite another. Just a thought.

When asked "what do you think?" I usually answer "not very much and not very often" Ha.

[atcc77]

I'm thinking the tanks will be mounted front to back. I haven't got my toilet yet so I'm not sure how well the flapper will work as a check valve. Since the thrones I've been looking at are the," fill with water before the dirty work" type, I'm counting on the toilet to stop any backsplash. One thing is certain though, nothing gets installed until all the peices are here and I understand how they work (or don't).

[atcc77]

The plumbing is just gonna have to wait. She who must be obeyed has spoken," If its going to stay here, get it painted."
We went to pick colors at one of the big boxes and and as agreed, Suzy and Ian picked the color scheme..... blue and purple with a white top. Didn't see that coming. I decided to start with the wheels because they are double ugly now. Also maybe I can find the mystery brake fluid leak as well as repack the wheel bearings and check brake pads. I've not worked on these type wheels before so removing it proved to be tricky, the lug nuts and bolts just spun around, something that doesn't happen on most anything else, wound up taking the spindle nut off and removing the wheel and brake drum off as one unit.

Sandblasting was another 1st for me today, got some playsand to use with the blaster nozzle, but took a while to realize that it needed to be screened to remove the bigger pieces that clog the tool. Once the sand was sifted through a window screen, the stripping process went fairly quick.
Got the wheel painted for the most part, but couldn't get it back on the bus today.

The job that been taking all my time for the past 2 months will be over tomorrow, so I'm looking forward to getting the sheet metal for the windows put up this week, thus closer to painting the outside..... blue and purple. This thing is going to look like a big bruise.

Anyway heres some pictures of the work today

[ol trunt]

The Kid sure was right about the blue--it looks great. I like the white detail as well. Maybe (if you are anything like the rest of us) the purple will be displayed about your being rather than on the bus Oh well, if a little purple paint is the only toll being extracted you've got nothing to worry about. Have fun with the paint job and keep the pics comming.

[atcc77]

Finally have a few days off so it time to get some bus stuff done!! Going tomorrow to get some sheet metal and some rivets so I can get my windows skinned, maybe some paint and solarflex as well. Also have my eye on some other things on craigslist, like a glass tabletop. I'll try to post a pic of it.

[atcc77]

So this is what I'm thinking about this table;
Since it already has mounts attached for securing to a base, I will weld up a metal frame with a single support pole under the center of the table. Because the table will only be supported by the center pole, the table should not be subject to breaking due to body flex. I'm still working out how to absorb other jarring shocks, such as potholes and the like, maybe some sort of fluid dampener between the pole and square table base. I know this seems alittle complicated for a school bus, but a glass table would be extremely cool don't tha think?

[atcc77]

Today, Ian and I spent the day together gathering materials for the Yonder, some sheet metal ( 2 pcs 20ga- 4x10, 1 pc 18ga- 4x10), a rivet tool, some sealant tape, and some gasket material(so I can put the wheel back on) . We also priced a few other things at a couple of camper stores where we could actually see them up close. I had just about made my mind up to buy a new toilet and water pump along with a few other plumbing parts just not to have that "ick" factor of using used plumbing until I saw how much this stuff cost. . We are now planning to visit the used RV parts guy way across town to look for a used throne.
Hopefully tomorrow we can get the windows skinned and get the painted wheel back on. I think I've been pushing my luck with the neighbors having a three wheeled bus at the front of the neighborhood; now, if we just take out a few windows for a couple of days, I'll bet the county code enforcement guy will be by for a visit.
We are planning to get some paint on her over the weekend, will post pics as soon as there's something to see.

[chev49]

i have never seen a 3-wheeler bus before...

[ol trunt]

Take a batch of home baked cookies to each of the neighbors who have had to live with your tripod bus and try to get them to agree to some type of time frame in which you promise to do thus and so--once the CODE guy gets there your life will never be the same and they don't eat cookies

[atcc77]

We didn't make any cookies for anybody yet, was alittle busy today. I wanted to get the sheet metal over the selected windows. After seeing the way Rainbow Boxer did his, I thought I would try the same method with one change, I got a metal fab shop to cut my pieces and brake a one inch lip on the bottom edge that sits on the window opening. Trying to spread the crack between the roof and top wall rail has proved slightly difficult but not impossible.
The funny thing is, today is the first day of doing anything on the side visible from the street and I had 4 people pull in to ask what I was doing to the bus, and at least half a dozen honk as they drove by. I guess we"ll be ok.