Travel with full Water tank

[Elknut]

I have 2017 Roo 223. We mostly dry camp so we need to fill the water tank before we leave. After the first two trips I noticed one of the main beams for the tank was bent. Forest River fixed it and the next time I filled the tank it snapped the two cross braces that hold the tank up. It's now been at Camping World for two weeks while they talk with Forest River on how to fix better.

Has anyone ever had a issue like this?

thanks,
Fred

[wharfrat48]

Yup, plenty of folks. Do a search and you should find hours of reading on the subject. I ended up doubling up my siderails with an additional piece of angle iron. We almost always tow with a full tank.... all good since 2015.

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by Elknut

I have 2017 Roo 223. We mostly dry camp so we need to fill the water tank before we leave. After the first two trips I noticed one of the main beams for the tank was bent. Forest River fixed it and the next time I filled the tank it snapped the two cross braces that hold the tank up. It's now been at Camping World for two weeks while they talk with Forest River on how to fix better.

Has anyone ever had a issue like this?

thanks,
Fred

Wild guess: about half of us! My fresh water tanked squeezed itself down between the side rails which held it up. I only filled it to sanitize it. Long story to short - FR Wildcat service techs did the “final” fix at their service center immediately following the Goshen rally.

[modaholic]

I read about all of these fw tanks falling out. What make / model are these? Is my Salem Hemisphere 282rk one of them ?

[5picker]

Originally Posted by modaholic

I read about all of these fw tanks falling out. What make / model are these? Is my Salem Hemisphere 282rk one of them ?

Most I've read about are micro-lite, mini-light models and Roo.

I tow with mine full always.
8529IKBS 5th wheel.

[NMWildcat]

Originally Posted by 5picker

Most I've read about are micro-lite, mini-light models and Roo.

I tow with mine full always.
8529IKBS 5th wheel.

X2. Exactly. We have always traveled with full fresh water tanks in all of our many RVs. Of course, none of them were lite models.
There are many threads in several forums of how people have solved the strengthening of the support brackets for your problem.

[SeaDog]

this has been an ongoing problem I don't understand why the Mfgs don't correct it. My tank did not fall out but bent the supports (I did not know this until I pulled the coroplast) I made a new cross support between frame rails and tank supports now i don't worry about traveling with a full tank of water

[BillyBass]

I never tow with water in the tank.one thing that's a lot of extra weight .Water weighs about 8 lb a gal.If anything I'll carry a couple of gal of water in case you have to use the bathroom

[rockfordroo]

FR's apparently official response is to not travel with water in the tank.

[B and B]

So no propane on or water when travelling. Next they will say don't put clothes on the closet rod as it might fold under the sheer weight of a couple t shirts..

I do both! Full water and used to run propane fridge on when travelling.

[timfromma]

If sized properly, your tow vehicle should be able to handle the weight easily. In my experience, it's actually easier to tow with a full FW tank. It adds tongue weight make the trailer more stable.

[5picker]

Originally Posted by B and B

So no propane on or water when travelling. Next they will say don't put clothes on the closet rod as it might fold under the sheer weight of a couple t shirts..

I do both! Full water and used to run propane fridge on when travelling.

Yep, a full water tank is about the same as two extra passengers. No one seems concerned then. I suppose they tow with an empty fuel tank too... wouldn't want to carry that extra weight you know. [emoji6]

[crookedread]

I always travel with full water tanks. I can avoid drinking really bad water if I want to and it is awesome to have when traveling in windy conditions. That extra 480 pounds down low changes the center of gravity making it much more stable. I know it saved my bacon once in South Dakota and once in Nevada!!

[gbaldwin]

Its a reoccuring issue. Not the weight for me; not the MPG... but just more the tanks and supports are known to be weak link. Potential to damage/drop the tank due to hyro surges from sloshing while driving ...... we avoid filling tanks on the road whenever possible. Boondock a lot but all of our regular GO TO spots have a common area water source. We normally drive empty and fill up when we arrive.

Just a choice we all have to make but no doubt there are 1000's of stories about damage tanks from hauling water (weak tanks).

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by 5picker

Yep, a full water tank is about the same as two extra passengers. No one seems concerned then. I suppose they tow with an empty fuel tank too... wouldn't want to carry that extra weight you know. [emoji6]

🤣
Frontal air resistance affects mpg WAY more than extra water weight.
We almost always travel with full tank, since we dry camp a lot.

[rlh1957]

If you don't mind burning extra fuel carrying the extra weight, and the water weight doesn't put you over your weight or balance envelope then I would invest in having the brackets, beams, straps or whatever beefed up or a design add on. Whoever designed and engineered these straps went to the LAR school of engineering for structural support... LAR being Looks About Right! I haven't seen a rig yet that a full tank traveling didn't bow out, stress out the support brackets and straps. Saw a 42 foot fifth wheel drop a FW tank and drag it because one of the three straps was still partially holding it. The assembly line fix is easy for manf if they'd change. But they insist on repairing it with what they put on in the first place. So fix it yourself.
If I confirm I can source reliable water closer to my jump off point I wait till there to top off the FW tank instead of pulling a full tank of water that I won't need for 300, 500 or so miles. To me warranty work and fixes aren't much good if it's the same materials used as went bad the first time. I do my own work and get someone who's had actual experience with my model to keep me up to speed.

[5picker]

Getting water near your stopping point is ok IF everything goes right.

I've been saved twice by carrying a full tank.

Once when we got to a park, the water system was down and wasn't repaired until the third day there. It was nice to have water.

Second time we were traveling with my Uncle and about 300 miles into a 400 mile day when he had transmission problems. We wound up having him towed and we spent the night in a repair facility parking lot. I had water, he didn't. We were able to pump 15 gallons into his rig for them to use and we still had plenty.

Do what you want. I'm carrying water.

[adarklake]

On the other side there's me apparently. I've towed a Micro Lite with an overflowing full tank for many miles down an extremely rough dirt road without being very gentle. No issues. 2018 19FD it was.

[rlh1957]

5Picker makes a great point from actual experiences.

[gbaldwin]

YEP! Just do what works for ya.