Tongue- Tank Upgrade and Makeover

Steve and Karen

Steve and Karen

Ranger
Our 11lb squatty tank timed out at 10 years and couldn't be refilled. Sourcing a direct replacement was difficult and/or extremely expensive as it's a bit of an oddball. This, and the fact that an 11-pound tank will last us many, many trips, got me looking at the 5-pounders that are ubiquitous in the "overland" community. Combine this with the fact that the "business end" of the trailer has always been (though not exactly an absolute eyesore) very "utilitarian" to say the least, and it was time for a re-think of everything up front.

I found a well-made tank bracket on Etsy (of all places... not my usual on-line stomping grounds) and went from there. The smaller tank footprint allowed me to position Vevor's smallest aluminum tongue-tool box, made in an attractive black checker plate. The space in between the frame got filled with 1/8" aluminum checker, which also provided a stable base for the box. I mounted it using the OEM tank's 4 mounting holes on the frame cross-pieces:
View attachment IMG_4349.jpeg

The box mounts with just the two bolts, so I reinforced the box inside bottom with 3/8" plastic, which will hold it down. The opening lid hinge and handle require a bit of a set-back from the trailer's front compartment:

View attachment IMG_4354.jpeg

The locked front compartment was getting "busy". The box will hold the inexpensive things that we need immediately upon arrival at the site, like chocks, risers and stabilizer boards:

View attachment IMG_4353.jpeg

This tank bracket is one of the few I've seen with enough beef for a base mount, as many are designed strictly as a wall, or side mount. Nylon washers and spacers should slow down any galvanic issues between the disparate metals. There's stainless hardware, aluminum and carbon steel at play here:

View attachment IMG_4350.jpeg

View attachment IMG_4352.jpeg

Chain and cable management... traditionally a bit of a chaos that I've put up with till now. The OEM breakaway cable got switched to a coiled version. I took the top half of an A-frame jack and used it for one of GR Innovations' organizers: Amazon.ca : GR Innovations which comes with a cap end to keep water out of the 7-pin. The OEM 7-pin was also replaced with a more water-tight version, with a gasket around the cable port. The beefy wheel jack is from a much earlier upgrade/forum post. It got a new taller positioning on a welded angle bracket as I couldn't always lower it sufficiently on "back-sloped" sites, to get the trailer back to level, without digging a hole for the wheel. The tank regulator also is not new; the gauge is handy and lets me know it's at the 20 psi target. Or zero. The propane tank "Y" allows me to share my supply if others run out.

View attachment IMG_4355.jpeg

I have the hitch and coupler "highlighted" so it stands out better on the back-up camera, in high contrast, sunny conditions. Easier to line up. And fewer shin bumps. The rubber ball mount guard is also from a previous post.

View attachment IMG_4356.jpeg

View attachment IMG_4357.jpeg

View attachment IMG_4359.jpg

They make taller 11-pound tanks in the same smaller 8" dia footprint (as does my Etsy bracket manufacturer) so it's easy to free up some real estate on the tongue for this box, or another, and still maintain your original fuel capacity, if heading out with just 5 pounds is pushing it. The smaller tank, obviously, does weigh less, and I'm only transferring gear a few inches, so there is no risk of greatly changing my tongue weight with any of these add-ons.

Compact, and no wasted space. Sorta the CampInn mantra.

But I did lose the CampInn Battleship Grey tongue paint.
 
Is there sn award for best tongue? I think you’re a lock for it at the next CICO!

That is a seriously awesome project, well done in every way.

P.S. I think tanks can be recertified?
 
Steve and Karen said:
They can. The process, from what I understand, isn't that simple, convenient or cheap. Worthwhile for a big one, but anything 20 lbs and under becomes recycling.
Click to expand...
We had ours re-certified when we had it filled a few years ago. The cost was minimal and the guy filling it just looked it over and sure there was nothing unsafe and stuck a sticker on it. I think the re-cert is good for 5 years. I went to the company that fills our home propane tank so maybe they charge less because we our a regular customer. He did suggest I sand the rust spots and throw a little paint on it.
 
Steve Sanford said:
We had ours re-certified when we had it filled a few years ago. The cost was minimal and the guy filling it just looked it over and sure there was nothing unsafe and stuck a sticker on it. I think the re-cert is good for 5 years. I went to the company that fills our home propane tank so maybe they charge less because we our a regular customer. He did suggest I sand the rust spots and throw a little paint on it.
Click to expand...
Thanks. You are correct. I just discovered (after reading your response) that testing and recertifying a 20lb tank around here costs about half ($30) of buying new. So not nearly as bad as I had originally thought.

But a new 11-pounder, for some strange reason, was going to run me $160, no matter where or how far afield I looked. Which is what enticed me down the long and winding path to the end of this project. So, no complaints, really, about where I ended up. But good to know that my other household/bbq tanks aren't necessarily toast.
 
We move a lot, and depending on the details involved sometimes we can keep our propane tanks and sometimes we have to offload them and re-acquire new ones upon arrival to the new location. We also have a kegerator, which means we have a CO2 tank, which is another hassle to deal with.

From that experience exchanging and offloading and re-acquiring tanks, I’ve observed that the “standards” are not exactly consistent. Some places will re-certify with a quick visual inspection, some require more labor involved, some worry about the liability and decline to offer that service at all. Some inspections result in repair work that needs to be done; if a valve has to be replaced, the cost of re-certifying the tank goes way up.

One spot I visited required a hydro inspection to get a new certification sticker - I think this was their way of hedging risk on liability (normally, only high pressure tanks like CO2 and SCUBA tanks require regular hydro testing).
 
Also - the OP tongue mods for this post are pretty sweet. I especially like the addition of a new utility box for all that crap that gets wet/sandy/muddy. That’s a great gain when trading off the ~50% reduction of on board propane. We don’t have a propane furnace, so our only gas usage is cooking. I agree, the 11lb tank lasts us multiple seasons.
 
Just had our 11LB tank re-certified for $8 plus mandatory fill (wasn't empty, but didn't want to risk running out). certification process seemed to consist of spaying valve connections with soapy water and looking for leaks.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top