Carrying A Water Tank In A Trailer Or Pick Up

[goodguy]

I think those big square white plastic tanks hold 100 Litres. How much would that weigh. Would it be too heavy for 7'x4' 750KG trailer? Could the pick up handle it? Driving off road and skidding around I wouldn't want it to tip over.

[neverdie]

A litre of water is roughly a kilogram. I gather the tank weighs a few kilograms, so your probably just a tad over 100kg when the tank is full.

You should strap that down so it doesnt slide around. Years ago I saw a nasty accident where a fellow driving a utility had a head on collision with another vehicle. He was carrying water bottles & they were not secured. At the time of the impact they caused significant intrusion of the rear of the cab, compounding the drivers problem who was trapped inside.

Try and keep the load as low as possible.

[fred2007]

ND is right 1 litre of water is about 1 KG so you could carry about 7 of them but why is a 7''x4'' only made for 750 kg? I guess it is imported from overseas.

[Maizefarmer]

I think those big square white plastic tanks hold 100 Litres. How much would that weigh. Would it be too heavy for 7'x4' 750KG trailer? Could the pick up handle it? Driving off road and skidding around I wouldn't want it to tip over.

Those big square plastic tanks - you sure you are talking about a 100litre container? - I mean, just looking at a 100litre container (about one half to one thrid the size of a typical bath tub) its pretty clear there'll be no prob's carrying it on a pickup or 750kg trailer - 2 guys could carry 100litres/100kgs (plus weight of container of course ).

Me thinks you may be talking about a volume substantily larger. The big white square conatiners which are so common in Thailand tend to hold around 750 - 1200litres. Just checking.......

[lannarebirth]

The white plastic square tanks which sit on a pallet with a wire cage around them hold 1,000 liters. I carry one in the back of my short bed Isuzu P/U sometimes. It's pretty heavy (MT) and you wouldn't want to do it all the time. You also need to brace it so it doesn't slide around.

[Maizefarmer]

The white plastic square tanks which sit on a pallet with a wire cage around them hold 1,000 liters. I carry one in the back of my short bed Isuzu P/U sometimes. It's pretty heavy (MT) and you wouldn't want to do it all the time. You also need to brace it so it doesn't slide around.

... just what I was talking about - I have an idea this is what the OP has - just that his missing the wire/tube cage they often come with.

If that is what you have goodguy - checkout what it had inside previously if you can - they often have a sticker on them somewhere and/or a date stamp and ID number of sorts (moulded into the plastic) - all sorts of chemicals come in them, anything from glacial acestic to cynide, to sulphuric or some other horrible industry chemical.

[hansnl]

I think those big square white plastic tanks hold 100 Litres. How much would that weigh. Would it be too heavy for 7'x4' 750KG trailer? Could the pick up handle it? Driving off road and skidding around I wouldn't want it to tip over.

Where did you buy your trailer???????

[farmerjo]

1000 litre tank on thai trailer,from experience,only half fill it even if the trailer is rated at 750kg.

Thai trailers are fitted with standard ball bearings,not like the rest of the western world with tapered bearings to take the sideways thrust.

If you fill it up make sure no one sits on it,a disaster waiting to happen, my bil nearly lost a leg years ago when the bearings collapesed and the wheel fell off going down the road.

Also check if the trailer has proper wheel studs not, bolts and nuts.

You can buy tapered bearings to suit if your uncomfortable with the standard arrangement.

[Harcourt]

Weight issues aside, I suggest you fill it to capacity or else you need to put baffles inside to stop sloshing. A half or 3 quarters filled tank can have a huge weight redistribution very suddenly if cornering, with a resultant unequilibrium that will accentuate your list as you go around the corner.

[slapout]

If you have a welder you can use 1/4 inch sheet and build a 100+- gallon tank, oblong that fits in the back of a standard pickup. The measurement is about 4 foot wide, 2 1/2 foot high X 3 foot. While assembling install 2 baffles in tank, 1 foot from each end (baffle size 3 foot X 2 foot, leave 6 inch gap top/bottom) You can put what ever size fill and drain desired, depending on use. This was our fuel transport (electric pump to truck electrical system) and set against the back of cab, good weight distribution front and back axle, baffles prevent fluid sloshing on corners etc.

[billd766]

The white plastic square tanks which sit on a pallet with a wire cage around them hold 1,000 liters. I carry one in the back of my short bed Isuzu P/U sometimes. It's pretty heavy (MT) and you wouldn't want to do it all the time. You also need to brace it so it doesn't slide around.

I bought one a couple of years ago to top my storage tanks during the dry season.

It is 1,300 litres and weighs about 50kb empty in its frame.

Full it comes in around 1350 kg and it fits nicely on the bed of my Ford Ranger pickup.

The best I managedwas 6 trips in a day to the klong about 4 km away and around a 45 minute trip each time.

My wife bought a chinese copy of the Honda waterpump and I used to hump it on the Ford, drive it to the klong, offload it and connect it all up, fill the tank, shut down, reload every thing back on the truck, go home, do the same thing at home and then repeat the exercise.

It fair knackered me guv, but we had about 12 people living here at the time and that is a lot of showers, toilet flushing, laundry etc in a week.

Now we are down to 4 or 6 and that is much easier plus the water doesn't seem to go off as much now.

[Lancashirelad]

Weight issues aside, I suggest you fill it to capacity or else you need to put baffles inside to stop sloshing. A half or 3 quarters filled tank can have a huge weight redistribution very suddenly if cornering, with a resultant unequilibrium that will accentuate your list as you go around the corner.

Very good point Harcourt. Very important issue about braking here also when carrying liquids by road:

Whereas in normal driving we release the pressure from the foot brake just before stopping in order to get a nice smooth stop, when carrying liquids by tank (unless full to the brim) its very important that when you stop you KEEP YOUR FOOT PRESSURE ON THE BRAKE otherwise you'll find yourself, just when you don't expect, being launched forward again either over the line at lights, nose out into the main road at junctions, or worse, into the back of the vehicle infront.

I guess this is the type of tank the OP means:

Ebay tank

Fully laden tank (no way to baffle these!) + pallet & cage will be well over a tonne + unladen trailer weight = you need trailer brakes. Probably not by law, this is Thailand not England, but certainly by common sense.

Edited August 30, 2009 by Lancashirelad

[Thongkorn]

A bit of Nonsense but true .if you multiply your weight by your velocity, thats your terminal weight so if your pick up weighs say 1 ton with water and you were doing 50 mph thats 1 x 50= 50 ton when you hit anything.The faster you go the bigger the weight,

Edited August 30, 2009 by Thongkorn

[MudDoc]

Guys,

Just a little bit of normal science here. The tanks being spoken of are called IBC's (Intermediate Bulk Carriers) that normally hold 1,000 liters or 1 m3 (cubic meter) of a liquid. Depending on the specific gravity of the fluid being carried, that would change the weight of the full tank. FRESH water weighs 1.0 SG or 1 Metric Tonne per cubic meter. Normal Sea Water weighs 1.02 SG = 1.02 MT for a m3. If you're carry diesel or some other fuel their normal SG is around 0.78 or 780 kg per 1 m3 plus the weight of the tank. Most modern pick-ups would be OK to hold this weight but a trailer rated for 750 kg isn't going to make the grade if the tank is full. Your only option would be to half fill the tank and do double the trips.

Edited August 31, 2009 by MudDoc

[billd766]

Weight issues aside, I suggest you fill it to capacity or else you need to put baffles inside to stop sloshing. A half or 3 quarters filled tank can have a huge weight redistribution very suddenly if cornering, with a resultant unequilibrium that will accentuate your list as you go around the corner.

Very good point Harcourt. Very important issue about braking here also when carrying liquids by road:

Whereas in normal driving we release the pressure from the foot brake just before stopping in order to get a nice smooth stop, when carrying liquids by tank (unless full to the brim) its very important that when you stop you KEEP YOUR FOOT PRESSURE ON THE BRAKE otherwise you'll find yourself, just when you don't expect, being launched forward again either over the line at lights, nose out into the main road at junctions, or worse, into the back of the vehicle infront.

I guess this is the type of tank the OP means:

Ebay tank

Fully laden tank (no way to baffle these!) + pallet & cage will be well over a tonne + unladen trailer weight = you need trailer brakes. Probably not by law, this is Thailand not England, but certainly by common sense.

The tank on Ebay is similar to the one I bought a couple of years ago in Khampaeng Phet for about 4,000 baht. It fits snugly into the load bed of my Ford Ranger 4x4 pickup and yes you certainly realise that it is there when it is full.

Edited August 31, 2009 by billd766