Securing Truck Tank Advice

[SeanD]

I have a 275-gallon cage tote that I'm going to use as a truck tank. I'm looking for input on how to secure it.

The bed liner is pretty slick, so I'm putting the cage tank on a pallet. It will give me a few extra inches for dumping and the wood grabs the liner and cage better than the cage on the liner alone.

I also need to tip the tote up about an inch and a half toward the gate with a piece of 2x6 laying flat. My driveway slopes away from where I'm dumping the sap and the 2x6 will level it out. I feel like tipping the pallet supports the tank better than just tipping the tank alone and having it only touch the bed at two points.

I'm planning on using four ratchet straps attached to the tie downs on the top of the bed. Two straps at the end of the bed will grab the cab side of the tank and pull backward and two straps at the cab side of the bed will grab the end side of the tank and pull forward.

Any other ways people secure their tanks?

Sean

[markct]

When i used a poly tank i put it on a rubber mat so it wouldnt slide and then strapped over it. Worked well but now i have a stainless tank that i have tabs on so it gets bolted down with 4 bolts and cant move a bit

[Amber Gold]

You should use straps rated for the weight of the tank. Full weight of the tank will be say 2400 lbs. Also keep in mind, the tie down hooks in most pickup truck beds are only rated for maybe 500 lbs (someone can correct me if I'm wrong). I'm sure everyone uses them, but I'm sure if you get in a serious accident, the tank's going for a ride. I used them on a 500 gal tank...I really doubt they would've kept the tank attached to the truck. This year, I've got a flat bed dump, so it's not going anywhere.

[WESTMAPLES]

ive used a tote tank in my 1 ton with 1 large load strap around it with both ends hooked to the truck frame with little to no movement. I even put the truck with a full tank thru a ditch ( by accident after missing a oncoming sliding car ) and it held up pretty good if you ask me . and yes the loaded weight on the 275 tote is 2400 lbs plus everything else in the truck bed. if it had bolting tabs like the ss truck tank markct has, I would bolt it or using a strap

[SeanD]

Thanks for the replies. I'll check the rating of the straps and see if I can access the frame. Do the knockouts at the bottom of the liner open up to tie downs on the frame?. Maybe I will remove the tie downs and just hook onto the openings in the body.

I also like the idea of using some kind of mat. This year I will only have it half full on a good day, but I want to have a plan for the someday that I can fill it in one trip.

Sean

[markct]

Half full is actualy worst as it will slosh and try and shift more. I agree with what other said that pickup beds are a poor excuse for a truck bed, but gota work with what you have and tie it as secure as you can. That's why when I got my dodge the first thing I did was remover the bed and install a steel flatbed. Its too often that I need to tie things down or take the sideboard off to load something with a forklift. With the flatbed I even chained down a 22ft I beam once, securely chained it on the front and back of the bed and flagged the 14ft that hung out the back, worked fine just had to be careful on the turns but I woulda never been able to secure the front down enough if I had a pickup bed.

[Dennis H.]

Can you put tie down rings where the main bed bolts are that bolt the bed to the frame? They may give you a good strong tie down point with out having to cut or find other means to get to the frame.

Another thing I would do and I have done this for my truck tank is I built a frame that goes between the tank and the sides of the bed at the tail gate. This keeps the tank from moving forward and backward. With a cage tank you may have to build one for the front and back.

One thing to remember with a cage tank is they tend to shift the center of gravity upward and can cause a safety issue with rolling over if the load gets moving sideways.
I used a cage tank on a trailer and worked great had no issues with it at all. I actually screwed it to the deck of the trailer then bolted boards the trailer deck on the front end and also on the rear end of the cage tank. This I felt gave me assurance that the cage would not slide around. Then I tied the cage tank to the trailer with 4 ratchet straps.

10687

[lpakiz]

In addition to tying the tank down securely, you could add blocks all around the base, wedged between the tank pallet and the box sides. This will keep the base from shifting, and the tie-downs keep it tight to the floor.

[tessiersfarm]

I don't know if they are all like that but mine has a 12" square recess in the center of the steel cage where the forks go around, I made a wood block tight in that hole with a round hole to fit over my gooseneck ball, keeps it from sliding then the straps only have to hold it down. They are right 1/2 full is the worst it gets, full isn't too bad if you got enough truck.