[movinonup]

Hi all,
i'm not in the postion to purchase a new van as yet , i currently have a  vauxhall combo,

The issue i have a 400ltr upright wont fit ,should i get a 400 ltr flat or a 350 ltr upright with extra barrel's ?
TIA

[Stoots]

I ahve a 350l upright in my connect and take 6 extra barrels

The issue with flat tanks is you end up with a load of water in the bottom you cant use and more prone to air locks once the level drops. Get and upright if you can.

[movinonup]

Cheer's ,
I read  about the problem with flat tanks , with was thinking of the capacity ,
may sound dim, but how do i transfer the water to tank from barrel when out and about ?

[Ched]

Hi all,
i'm not in the postion to purchase a new van as yet , i currently have a  vauxhall combo,

The issue i have a 400ltr upright wont fit ,should i get a 400 ltr flat or a 350 ltr upright with extra barrel's ?
TIA

Which dimension are you having difficulty with as there are some 410lts  that are different shapes or even 500lts that are different again.

[JandS]

With a flat tank 500 litre you probably end with 25 litres unusable.

[High-Tower]

Cheer's ,
I read  about the problem with flat tanks , with was thinking of the capacity ,
may sound dim, but how do i transfer the water to tank from barrel when out and about ?

Open the lid and pour it in 😂 if there’s not enough space stand it on the roof and siphon it in with a length of hose.

[Spruce]

With a flat tank 500 litre you probably end with 25 litres unusable.

In those early days one of the local lads had 2 old Vauxhall Combo's with the bubble back.
In one he had a 400 liter upright tank and in the other he had a 400 litre flat tank.
We live in a hilly area and he sworn he would never fit a flat tank again.

He said that he always had to park in a way that water damed up at the outlet of the tank to stop the pump sucking air. Once his tank got to 25% he started to have real issues.  In his case 2 wheels on the pavement with the van facing downhill.

[Ched]

Does no one use tank 'clunks'. I only know of them from model radio control stuff but basically they have a very flexible piece of silicone pipe in with a heavy 'clunk' pickup at one end. So it effectively falls (clunks) to the lowest point of the tank to pickup the water?
No idea if anyone makes then for van tanks or if silicone of the right diameter would be flexible enough but might be worth looking at?

[movinonup]

Hi Ched

It's the height of the tank that the issue, length and width is fine
Cheers

[Ched]

Hi Ched

It's the height of the tank that the issue, length and width is fine
Cheers

Have a look at some of the bigger tanks as some are less high but front to back is bigger.

[movinonup]

Thanks for your input found a 400ltr , longer in length lower in height , measures up

[Susan Dean (1stclean)]

we have a 600 in one of ours and it just about lasts a day one man its a lay flat  however watch the weight limit on them ours is a old shape one and were bang on full weight with driver in it 

[NWH]

You shouldn’t have any issues with a flat tank bulkhead or drivers end stick a wedge each end of the tank so the water flows back towards the outlet on the tank,they haven’t got to be high wedges just enough for the water to flow back,I did this on a tank for someone I know.

[JandS]

Wouldn't want to be carrying any more than 75% of any vans payload on a regular basis in fact maybe less.

[NWH]

I’ve always said to a certain extent ignore the payload some vans drive awful when bordering with maximum weight,i would never think about a 500 in something like a small van I’ve done it and it felt and was dangerous.

[james peters]

Cheer's ,
I read  about the problem with flat tanks , with was thinking of the capacity ,
may sound dim, but how do i transfer the water to tank from barrel when out and about ?

I have a transfer pump in mine, it fills a barrel in about a minute.  the one I use is a diesel pump about £15  on ebay.
I also use this to fill my back packs as this is how I prefer to work.
the battery I use to operate the pump is an old back pack batery. filling my back pack just taked seconds.

I also have a connect {new shape } and I have a 400 flat tank.  I am fortunate in that I live in a soft water area so if need be I can top quickly if I have to.

[Ortsa]

800 litre flat tank in my ford transit 310 - I have a flow rate of like 3 litres / minute its a dream

[Susan Dean (1stclean)]

Wouldn't want to be carrying any more than 75% of any vans payload on a regular basis in fact maybe less.

whys that ? this old combo of ours as been on weight from day one its the very last being a 62 reg and as just turn 200k its never had a spanner on it apart from one clutch and with it being 1.7 16v its pulls well evern when loaded , stops fine 

we have a truck mounted carpet cleaner that 100% on weight everytime it moves that just seen 300k  never let just down yet good old lwb sprinter thats a 66 plate

[AuRavelling79]

I used to have a layflat 400 in my old doblo. I carried a 25litre barrel too. Kerbs were my friends.

I also had a 4" x 4" piece of fence post so that I could stick it under any wheel to get the tank to angle better to get water to the outlet! 

[Spruce]

I used to have a layflat 400 in my old doblo. I carried a 25litre barrel too. Kerbs were my friends.

I also had a 4" x 4" piece of fence post so that I could stick it under any wheel to get the tank to angle better to get water to the outlet! 

Something in the old saying that "necessity is the mother of invention." 

[movinonup]

Thanks for all your input guys
much appreciated