F-Superduty IDI water hauler build

[Ford F834]

This is not really an update on the water truck, but I do not know exactly where else to put this…

Today I finished the work on the trailer, 1,050 gallon tank, and transfer pump. I pressure washed, bleached and purged the tank and hauled my first load of water for the house.

This configuration is HEAVY. It is better than spending hours driving in circles with the little basket tank, but it is clearly the wrong equipment for the job. I will continue to use it… carefully… but now I REALLY want the F-Superduty. I am reconsidering the transmission. I think I may want to drill the bellhousing on the wide ratio ZF for the IDI. I am using the transfer case low range on the ‘81 to get it rolling, and I don’t want to mess around when it comes to the permanent water hauler. I need stout gears 💪

[Gary Lewis]

Wow!  That is a DARK sky!  Did you have a storm?

Anyway, glad you got the trailer and tank going.  1050 gallons has to be almost 9,000 lbs by itself.  And the trailer, tank, and pump and you are at maybe 12,000?  That's way outside the rating for your truck.  Big Blue is just barely rated for that.

So yes, you need the F-Superduty.  

But how long does that much water last you?

[Ford F834]

Yes, we have some monsoon patterns… no rain for us today the mountains are getting some. Also a lightning strike and a fire not long after I took that photo.

I had pegged the gross weight of the full tank and trailer at around 11,000 lbs, but I don’t have an accurate dry weight on the Big Tex. It might be more like 12,000 as you suggested. I'm way over the rating on everything! I also didn’t go any higher than second gear (20-25mph). Next time I might just leave it in 4 Lo as 4th in low range might be fast enough. Switching from low to high range on the fly isn’t real nice to do to the transfer case. I won’t be driving very fast with the FSD either, but it will be faster and safer than this line up.

In the summer we can go through 500 gallons a day or more. Winter is less than half of that. The main difference is the swamp coolers.

[BigBrother-84]

Wow, that is HEAVY!!


And don't laugh about my ignorance, but thanks to your post, I'm now knowing what's a "swamp cooler".
 

[ArdWrknTrk]

I imagine that the trailer brakes aren't up to the task either.
Glad you've decided to keep it low & slow Jonathan!  👍

It's no joke when the trailer is easily double the weight of the tow vehicle, and you don't have enough brake in the trailer to stop it!

[Ford F834]

Jim, you are exactly right. The trailer brakes do almost nothing. And not only are the F150 brakes not enough, the traction on the truck wheels limits it further. This arrangement is TEMPORARY.

Jeff, swamp coolers work quite well out here in the Mojave desert for most of the year. The humidity is LOW… 8-12% a lot of the time. They do use a lot of water though… 50-75 gallons per day for each cooler and have at least 4 running on our property most of the time. That’s a lot of water.

[ArdWrknTrk]

I pointed out to Rusty that although Iit takes ONE calorie to raise one cc/g of water one degree C, the enthalpy of vaporization is 540, which is then carried away with the vapor.
Swamp coolers seem ridiculous to someone in an actual swamp, where dew point and temperature are often butting heads, but in a dry climate they are very effective!  👍