Removing fresh and waste waster tanks

Hi all,

In the next few weeks my Duetto will be going  for some TLC welding in an attempt to stop the pesky 'tin worms'.
I thought I would remove both the fresh and waste water tanks from underneath to give the best access, and allow a full inspection of the underneath of the van.
Does anyone know if this is a simple job, or are there nasty, awkward to get to connections that I need to worry about?
Thanks in advance,
Jollywalker

Fortunately I never had to take either tank off the Mk.5 Transit, but we took the freshwater tank off the Mk.2 and it was not as easy as it looked. Firstly the fixing rods were rusted to buggery, and then we found that you have to lift the van a surprising distance off the ground to be able to get the tank out past the side "skirt".

Can't offer specific advice on this job but I can imagine what your supporting 1999 screwed rods look like! Stainless-steel screwed rod is available on e-bay for surprisingly little money. The screwed rod can be easily bent by hand, don't clamp it in a vice and bash it, as this will weaken it.
Also on e-bay are stainless steel nuts, washers and "Jubilee" (worm-drive hose clips) clips, which will not rust or seize up.

One of the to-do jobs on our Dec 2014 van is to replace the (already!) salt-rusted screwed rods and Jubilee clips, rather than let it develop into a difficult job later. Bring on the warm weather and a free week-end!

I think that you are correct in tackling this tank-removal yourself- your time costs nothing, whereas a "professional" will charge for time spent skinning his knuckles and wielding a big hammer.

Pete, I have done this under the bonnet. I purchased a number of stainless steel set screws from a supplier at the Stafford classic motorbike show last October, to replace the rusting cross headed screws around the engine bay and underneath the bonnet. Nice and rust free now! Simples!

Pete

My freshwater tank had to be dropped to have a new tap put in as they fit from inside the tank. I gave the job to the Garage who do my MOT and service work as i'm well past crawling under vans. Good job i did too as the mechanic told me the bolts which hold the straps were so rusted on, they snapped straight off!

He replaced it using stainless steel threaded bar and lock nuts.

As I feared/suspected, it seems this is not a straightforward job. I will have a poke around to see if there is any obvious sign of bad corrosion around the tanks. There is some work to be done on outer sills, so the inner sill can be accessed for repair if needed with the outer removed, which may be easier for the body shop.

On another note, while travelling to Shropshire on Monday I noticed an unusual noises from underneath. A check revealed a broken exhaust rubber hanger. I bought a spare from a garage in town and proceeded to fit it, but stupidly put it on the fixed mount first, rather than the exhaust. Now there is no way I can get it to fit on the exhaust, and it refuses to come back off the fixed mount! Ended up with a temporary fix with wire until I get home. What fun!

jollywalker wrote:As I feared/suspected, it seems this is not a straightforward job. I will have a poke around to see if there is any obvious sign of bad corrosion around the tanks. There is some work to be done on outer sills, so the inner sill can be accessed for repair if needed with the outer removed, which may be easier for the body shop.

On another note, while travelling to Shropshire on Monday I noticed an unusual noises from underneath. A check revealed a broken exhaust rubber hanger. I bought a spare from a garage in town and proceeded to fit it, but stupidly put it on the fixed mount first, rather than the exhaust. Now there is no way I can get it to fit on the exhaust, and it refuses to come back off the fixed mount! Ended up with a temporary fix with wire until I get home. What fun!

To be honest you would save yourself one load of mither by having a small Garage take them off as for them it literally takes minutes via the aid of a 4 poster ramp, stand underneath, twist or break nuts off if well rusted, and out comes the tank! My Garage charged me just £30 to drop tank, fit new tap (supplied by me) and refit using stainless bar and nuts.

The same job at home you have to wait for a dry day, highest you can get the van up is on some axle stands, then you are still on your back crawling and mauling underneath.

Hi Bulletguy, yes I'm reaching the same conclusion