Close Call

[crane422]

I am assuming that I am not the first person to be as dumb as I was yesterday. Decided to drop freshwater pan and tank to inspect since PO had said water poured out when he tried to fill. Friend and I removed all but 2 bolts....he was towards back of trailer me at front removing a bolt...BOOM down comes a A FULL Fresh water tank and pan. If not for having 3 extensions on socket which caught the tank about an inch off of ground I would be at best with a broken arm and missing fingers at worst a smashed head! Lesson learned..always assume tank is FULL. Here is the culprit after removal.

[Airslide]

Yikes!
Im glad it only caused a scare for you guys. Could have been much worse. I think there is a small access panel under there allowing access to the drain plug. Next time
huh.

Cheers Vinnie

[zlee]

Brrrrrrrr.

[DKB_SATX]

Well, now you know why the water poured out when the PO tried to "fill" it!

[crane422]

There actually is a small crack in the tank at the very top corner which had a very poorly done patch.

[Nuvite-F]

Originally Posted by crane422

There actually is a small crack in the tank at the very top corner which had a very poorly done patch.

So it had to come out anyway. If there's no further damage (to you or the tank!) from the drop, an inexpensive addition to your store of experience.
.

[Stefrobrts]

Holy cow! Glad it missed you! It's easy to get wrapped up in a project and not think about safety - but try to think safety first in everything you do. I've done a lot of car restoration, and had a lot of dumb close calls, and the one lesson I've learned - these projects aren't worth getting hurt over!

And now you've got to fix it and put it back...

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Hi, I removed mine once [fresh water tank] while it was empty and it's still pretty heavy and awkward.

[Mexray]

The Red Neck Rocket guys always say:

"Safety Third"... and raise a hand with the three-finger salute...

You know, the kind a salute old tool & die fellows flash after many years 'lubricating' those hydraulic presses with their digits...

[62overlander]

Now... I never assume they are empty. I am working on a 57 caravaner right now. I asked the owner four or five times about the black tank. He was 100%sure it was empty. It wasn't. Thank God I had a bucket close by.

[Sneakinup]

I just dropped (eased to the ground) my tank as well on a 77 Sovereign not knowing if it had water in it or not. I believe it is around 50-55 gallons, so I wasn't going to take any chances at 8 lbs. per gallon. I set up 4 cinder blocks with 2 2x4's stretched across about an inch below the attached pan. I cranked out all the bolts and it just set down on the 2x4's. Then I had leverage to lift with and lower two of the blocks and slide down the tank and pan on the wood to the ground. And YES, it was 3/4 full and was quite heavy. I later hooked up a pump to it and drained it. I work alone on my trailer and couldn't take the chance of being pinned under there. I knew my cell phone would be out of reach and no one would hear me screaming! Would that be "AirScreaming?"

[Riverrat6270]

I have the same water tank in my excella and tank couldn't be repaired from all that I had read. After receiving the new tank from Andy at Inland in a couple of days and figuring out how to put all the wires back in and stay out of the Vulkem, it was too bad of a job.

[Mexray]

Pulled out water tank today... posted some pics, etc., here: http://www.airforums.com/forums/f173...way-41888.html

Go down to post #48

Process was straight forward, as I was sure to remove the drain plug FIRST!

I was kind of disappointed with all the 'trash' that AS had left in the bottom of the pan - then laid the tank right on top of that junk!

Also, the Styrofoam on the forward side was installed by AS without notching an area to allow the warm air to circulate into the water tank channels and prevent freezing...sloppy work back in 1978 - has it improved these days? Sure hope so!

Working on our old AS's is an enlightening experience, to say the least...

[VeggieBullet]

Originally Posted by crane422

There actually is a small crack in the tank at the very top corner which had a very poorly done patch.

Just wondering how are you planning to fix the crack?