Water tanks

[bman91]

Soooo yesterday we picked up our fresh water tanks and as I am planning where to put them.. it seems more logical to me to mount them underneath our rig not inside.. I have yet to see any water tank mounted inside. We ended up with two 42 gallon tanks I'm thinking in between the frame rails. Anyone else have advice..

[Ronnie]

I am putting mine inside for freeze protection.

[Twigg]

Originally Posted by bman91

Soooo yesterday we picked up our fresh water tanks and as I am planning where to put them.. it seems more logical to me to mount them underneath our rig not inside.. I have yet to see any water tank mounted inside. We ended up with two 42 gallon tanks I'm thinking in between the frame rails. Anyone else have advice..

Mounting freshwater tanks underneath is not common.

Mostly, in Skoolies and in RVs they are mounted inside, either under the bed or under a sofa.

You are free to mount them anywhere but they will need frost protection and a way to completely drain them.

[brokedown]

I'm mounting mine underneath, with the expectation that if we're going to freeze we drain them and go without for a while. I don't mind it being painful to deal with being that cold, that makes it all the better to drive farther south to avoid it.

[2martins]

Originally Posted by brokedown

I'm mounting mine underneath, with the expectation that if we're going to freeze we drain them and go without for a while. I don't mind it being painful to deal with being that cold, that makes it all the better to drive farther south to avoid it.

There's a lot of places you can't really ever visit with that constraint. It can snow in the Sierra Nevada any month of the year; and last year they closed Tioga Pass in Yosemite in July due to too much snow. But it's YOUR bus! I'll be headed the opposite direction from you on the road probably because I can't stand to be hot! My bedroom is 61 and I sometimes wake up hot. I think 80 is hot, and that's here where it's not humid at all. To each their own!

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

[Ronnie]

I got a real surprise on a cross country trip left Oregon 60 degrees or so. dropped down through Idaho and into Wyoming, black ice everywhere and 5 degrees. Thought we should get the heat on in the camper, but decided to wait till we stopped for the night. Big mistake all water lines froze and the tank had ice in it. The water lines are pex, so it did not hurt anything, but took a few days to thaw out. As we came east we seemed to stay in the same cold front all the way home to Virginia.

By the way this caused fuel problems because the Oregon fuel was not a winter blend. That goodness I do have a heated fuel system, turn one valve and engine coolant heats the tank and fuel filter.

[Tango]

Any outdoor water tanks should be well insulated AND have a heat strip. Just in case.

[bman91]

Any issue down the road will not leak into our rig if it's outside..

[Tango]

Leaking is one thing. Not having water, or a tank that will hold some, is quite another.

[Genghis]

So where did you get your tanks? And how much were they? I am about to do the same. Anyone have a good source?

Genghis sends.

z

[Alan N]

For what it's worth my fresh and grey water tanks along with the water pump and pressure tank are in the uninsulated under body storage bay of our bus. Never had a problem. The few times that I was worried about freezing I put a 1500 watt cube heater in the bay. If you don't plan on camping in cold weather hang the tanks under the bus and move on to the next stage of the project. Just remember to winterize everything before cold weather hits.

[bus-bro]

i bought a couple of these: https://www.northerntool.com/shop/to...2853_200642853

I am going to mount them one above each rear wheel well. They are 50 gal. square tanks. $300 something, including shipping.

[bman91]

Bontragers in white pigeon Michigan 42 gallon poly tanks 60 bucks a piece...

[Ronnie]

U.S. plastics has a good selection of tanks

[sojourner]

I hung a 55 gallon plastic drum between the frame rails just behind the differential as part of my water storage. A 45 gallon rectangular tank will be mounted inside under my bed. I'll plumb them in such a way I can draw from both from the bottom or isolate it and draw from the inside one if too cold.

[bman91]

I was only going to use one of the 42 gallon tanks for fresh the other for grey water but I may use both for.my fresh and get another for grey water not certain ..

[Marceps]

Originally Posted by Tango

Any outdoor water tanks should be well insulated AND have a heat strip. Just in case.

What methods do you recommend for insulating? I'm hoping to move some stainless drums outside this year and was planning on keeping them more or less naked.

[Tango]

An enclosed box (metal or treated wood) with your choice of insulation. But the tape on type heat strips can make a huge difference. Just keep up with your batteries. Still, the safest choice is to put them indoors.

[maine4freedom]

Originally Posted by bman91

Soooo yesterday we picked up our fresh water tanks and as I am planning where to put them.. it seems more logical to me to mount them underneath our rig not inside.. I have yet to see any water tank mounted inside. We ended up with two 42 gallon tanks I'm thinking in between the frame rails. Anyone else have advice..

I am planning to mount my water tanks inside under the beds. Also planning radiant heat so they will be nice and 40 plus degrees. No heat directly under the tanks. I plan to make several winter excursions south but I am starting from Maine so chilly from september to may.

[tobeamiss]

This is the post I've been looking for. I've been searching for weeks for the right fresh and gray tanks....
Please keep the replies coming.