Truck Mount Set Up - Theorycrafting

[OxiFreshGuy]

We have a GMC 1 ton van , that we just sank $4,500 into due to neglect. The current set up in the van is a Hydramaster CDS, , water pond 120 gallon in the BACK of the van, and a 100 gallon saddle tank on the passenger side wheel well.

I personally feel this is too much water to carry - by removing the 100 gallon tank we would remove almost 900 lbs from the van.

First question: How much gas do you think this would save?

Second issue: The water pond being in the very back I believe is causing the suspension to wear out prematurely and makes it impossible to have decent alignment on the vehicle. By moving the water pond to the middle of the van such as seen here we would obviously create more space in the back of the van.

Second question: Would this give a positive impact on the overall suspension of the van and the wear of the tires?

I'm working on convincing the owner to change his set up. His primary concern is not having enough water with just the water pond to run a $700+ residential route. He absolutely does not ever want to be in a situation to use customer's water.

 

[Kevin Dumas]

I would say moving the 120 water pond to the middle would distribute the weight better but I have had (3) GMC one tons heavily rear loaded just like yours and have never had a suspension or alignment problem. My current GMC has 180,000 on it.

 

[AZHome&Carpet]

Question is do you really need to carry all that water? I know some say carry water others say don’t. We all have different markets and circumstances. But if you find yourself not using it all, carry less if you need to carry any at all.

 

[brian3180]

That's a lot of water. Be sure you can fit all your vacuum hose on your water pond with it full because when mine is full its a struggle to get the vacuum hose off the reel and on the reel. I have an electric reel.

 

[Bob Savage]

My question is why do they not want to ever use their customer's water?

Carrying 1700 pounds of fresh water does not make any sense to me.

I have 2 setups in 2 different vans. Each van has 100 gallons of fresh water. Both vans have water softeners. In 34 years of cleaning, I have never had any customer balk at me asking where their hose bib was located as they assume I am using water to be able to clean their carpet, tile, or upholstery. Carrying water is a convenience, not a necessity.

I do not connect to water unless we are running low from the days previous jobs.

 

[AZHome&Carpet]

I’m certainly no where near as experienced. But only once have I arrived and found there to be no water. My mistake I should of asked. From that point forward I have asked instead of assuming.

 

[OxiFreshGuy]

Well from a business perspective - we have 5 vans. ALL FIVE VANS have this same set up. My estimation is we would save $80 in gas per vehicle per month by only having 1 tank of water.

The math comes out to $80 x 5 x 12 = $4,800 a year in savings on gas.

I also agree having a fresh water hook up in 99% of cases isn't going to be an issue for the customer. On Commercial jobs we always run out of water, even with the 245 gallon carrying capacity, so what is the point of carrying 245 gallons if we hook up to the commercial customers water anyways?

 

[AZHome&Carpet]

Save the wear, tear, fuel, and such. Have customers who volunteer where the hose Bibb is without me ever asking

 

[Mama Fen]

Putting the pond toward the middle may save a little wear and tear on the suspension, but more importantly, having that weight distributed more toward the center is going to have a huge impact (pardon the pun) on what might happen if you're in an accident or have to jerk the wheel to avoid hitting someone/something.

If the tank isn't 100% full, that water is going to move. It's gonna move hard. And the direction it moves in, at that volume, can make a big difference in what your vehicle does - especially if the brakes lock up.

 

[TLC CARPET CLEANING]

While I can understand some not wanting to carry extra weight for water, I can attest to the fact when you run in the deep cold weather of Vermont having onboard water is almost a must for us.

I have ran steamway powermatics in the cold, (which need water supplied by hose) in the past and currently run a butler setup with through door access port. 110 gal. fresh on board soft water.

I have personally cleaned commercial and residential jobs in -25* temps. Not once have I frozen any lines when in operation with the butler. Although I will say that I have had issues with freshwater lines freezing with the steamway.

Your talking about an extra 960 lbs. of weight. For convenience of not freezing a line. For us that is a huge plus.

As far as saving gas and wear and tear, I think it really is not that big of deal. Generally most carpet vans get poor mileage anyway.

We just figure all of that into our operating cost and charge accordingly.
Mind you, this is just my opinion on the this topic.

 

[Anderson]

BEST NOT TO CARRY FRESH WATER...IMO

that much weight can wear out your brakes and suspension...
it is like have 2 TM in your van......

that much weight= 1 full grown horse
3 nfl lineman
2 sumu wrestlers
20 first graders
15 greyhound racing dogs
50 cases of coke(24 in a case)


take your pic and throw them in the back

 

[Kevin Dumas]

10+ below today
Not f'n with no water spigots

 

[PistolPete]

I do T&G only so I always hook up to customers water.
Never had an issue in 5 years.
Get the faucet to g/h adapter ring set and you can hook up to most sinks, shower heads etc.
Also washer machine connections are already g/h and they're usually in or near the garage.

 

[ACP]

we connect to customers water every single job. In 11 years I have had maybe 2-3 ask about it, once I tell them we will be using less than a bathtub worth they have zero concern.