Rear bumper water tank.

[morerunner]

I stumbled across this video on youtube. I tried searching and don't think this is a re-post so I thought it would be worth sharing. Pretty great idea in theory. I'm not sure if the the bumper would hold the water in rough terrain very well with this amount of water? Also, I probably wouldn't drink the water but it seems like a good use of that bulbous rear bumper...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5DBpzoKIMo&feature=player_embedded

 

[JDaPP]

http://www.jk-forum.com/jk-write-up...ng-water-jeep-using-stock-bumper-tank-270419/

I am trying the idea out this weekend and I will post pictures next week. I did not get a pump I just used two ball valves inserted into the holes in the bumper and will use gravity to empty into a container. I intend to use the water for showers, dishes, etc not drinking water.

 

[1stDeuce]

I wonder if that bumper is BPA free? I would bet that with a good rinse, the bumper would be fine for storing potable water, as it's just HDPE, which is the same as pretty much every water jug ever made.

I think the front bumper is a tank too, probably good for another 5 gallons or so.

Can't do that with my TJ bumpers.
Chris

 

[AFSOC]

Very cool incorperation of freshwater washdown. Thanks for posting.

 

[406to417]

Near idea. I wouldn't want all that crap on the side of the Jeep but that can be fixed.

 

[morerunner]

I wouldn't want the stuff on the side of the jeep either. Although functional, a faucet on the side looks kind of funny. I suppose it might be drinkable with a good wash? Thanks for the link JDaPP, please post some pics when your done. I am still interested to see if the bumper mounts would hold the weight of 7 gallons (about 60 lbs I do believe) while offroading.

 

[JDaPP]

As I mentioned I wanted to keep it cheap and I used gravity to get the water out. There are 4 holes in the bumper, I put two brass threaded fittings from Lowes plumbing section in the outside holes (1/4", and I can always cap them off if I change my mind and go to pressure). 1/4" stainless screws for the other two holes, but I recommend you go one size bigger as one hole the screw fit great the other one was a little too big so I had to caulk it up pretty good to make sure it would stay. I basically just put a little outdoor caulk on the fittings before I screwed them in. I then attached brass ball valves (1/4") to the fittings. For the entrance for the water I drilled a one inch hole on the top of the bumper and used a 1" plastic furniture cap I found at lowes in the hardware section. I put it on the driver side, but I recommend passenger side as I am constantly paranoid about gas leaking on it when I fill up (probably nothing to be worried about with the cap on). Other issue is obviously offroad it hangs a little low, I live in Florida so I am not too worried about it. I can always take the valves off and put caps on and hand pump out the bumper.


View from the back

valve

cap

 

[JDaPP]

I wonder if that bumper is BPA free? I would bet that with a good rinse, the bumper would be fine for storing potable water, as it's just HDPE, which is the same as pretty much every water jug ever made.

I think the front bumper is a tank too, probably good for another 5 gallons or so.

Can't do that with my TJ bumpers.
Chris

Front bumper has two large holes where the crash cans are so I am not sure if it would work

 

[JDaPP]

I wouldn't want the stuff on the side of the jeep either. Although functional, a faucet on the side looks kind of funny. I suppose it might be drinkable with a good wash? Thanks for the link JDaPP, please post some pics when your done. I am still interested to see if the bumper mounts would hold the weight of 7 gallons (about 60 lbs I do believe) while offroading.

Drove it from Tampa to North Carolina with it full. Didn't go offroad but going through the mountains with a lot of steep turns and a lot of gravel bumpy roads with no issues.

 

[Espo78]

Hmm I wonder if the AEV pump could be adapted to the factory bumper? It seems like it's doable after looking at the install instructions. I like the sprayer and pump idea better though.

http://www.aev-conversions.com/shop...erior/jk-pump-kit-rear-bumper-water-tank.html

 

[morerunner]

Thanks for the pics. I bet the AEV pump could be adapted. I agree though, the sprayer and pump is a pretty great set up.

 

[JDaPP]

I like the sprayer better myself, but technically the jeep is the wife's so the cost of the pump and hacking on the jeep was going to put me in the dog house, so for less than $15 I at least got some water storage.

 

[Espo78]

I started my conversion today. the hardest part so far was tracking down a suitable cap for the fill hole. I finally found one for a whopping $0.29 and got that installed. It was in the PVC section and it's called a "knock out cap" I went with the 2" size and mounted it on the passenger side behind the fender flare.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Oatey-3-in-Knockout-Test-Cap-39102/100122751#.UZRHDkpz7gI

I couldn't find anything at Home Depot it was just too big to navigate when I didn't really know what I was looking for so I went to a smaller locally owned hardware store and found it.

I definitely would not drink the water. The inside of my bumper was pretty filthy, and after filling it with water there was an oily substance floating on the surface. I flushed it out pretty good now I just need to plug those holes on the bottom side and get a pump and all the lines. Awesome mod and really gives a purpose to the big plastic stock bumper.

 

[morerunner]

If I didn't plan on any offroading, I would go the route that you did JDaPP. I'm still undecided at this point and would like to see how it holds up offroad. I'm still wondering if the bumper would fall off!?....I saw a picture somewhere that showed the mounting threads appear to be pressed or maybe molded into the plastic. 7 gallons is a lot a weight for bouncing around constantly. It seams to be a great mod though if you don't plan on any serious wheeling with it full...

 

[Espo78]

I say go for it. I see factory bumpers on craigslist every day for less than 100 bucks. They are frequently given away for free on Jeep forums also. Nothing to lose.