Pipe Bumper Air Tank

[CMacKenzie]

I've got a Tough Country 4" pipe replacement bumper on my truck.

Front Bumper

Side of bumper



It's sch. 40 and i want to use it as a air tank.

Where is a good place to put the quick connectors?

How much air (pressure) will it hold?



I eventually want to add a compressor w/ a pressure switch but right now I just want to get the bumper set up with the connections ( Got a Grover "Fire Truck"1512 to hook up). I figure I can weld bungs in so I can just screw the connecters in and put some extra bungs in with plugs in case I want to add extra lines (i. e. line to back bumper).



Those of you who have done this, what would you do differently or what worked for you?



Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.



Thanks,

Charlie

 

[illflem]

Totally illegal. If you ever get in an accident and your bumper splits open you'll be up that well known creek even if it isn't your fault.

 

[CMacKenzie]

If it's illegal, then how can most manufacturers of these types of bumpers offer to put the connecters on and pressure test them for you usually for an extra $100. Here's an example from the internet.



Patriot Bumper





Charlie

 

[Whitmore]

I would'nt do it, 120psi with that kind of volume would be fatal if breached, think of the potential shrapnel and the velocity here.



Having 16 years of extrication service I can tell you that a 40schedule pipe under alot of circumstances has little integrity.



Dont get me wrong here I am not flaming you but instead and trying to discourage the bumper as a volume tank, as an option I recommend a tank inside the frame rails, easy to do ans alot safer.



Cheers, Kevin

 

[CMacKenzie]

I would'nt do it, 120psi with that kind of volume would be fatal if breached, think of the potential shrapnel and the velocity here.



Cheers, Kevin

You're probably right. I guess I'll spend the money and buy a 5 gal. tank. It'll be worth the peace of mind to keep the public safe in case of an accident.



Charlie

 

[y-knot]

Grow-up... . just because someone sells something doesn't make it legal... You can go downtown and find people selling crack, but that doesn't make it legal does it???

This issue of PIPE BOMB BUMPERS started back in the late 70's when trucks first caught on, and 4 wheel drive was the newest craze. There were accidents and these things went off like a bomb, shooting metal everywhere. Use your brain, does it sound like a good ideal to pressurize a front bumper, made out of pipe??? Hell, if it holds air so good, maybe you could just fill it with propane, and it might come in handy at the next tailgate party?? Not only does it look ugly, yes it is ILLEGAL.

 

[Doubleclutch]

Charlie- try a google search for Surplus Center. I just bought a 12 gallon tank that's going to fit where my spare tire used to. There are other suppliers and sizes out there, I just know of these folks.

Greg

 

[CMacKenzie]

Not only does it look ugly, yes it is ILLEGAL.



y-knot

Seems like you have issues with pipe bumpers. Didn't mean to strike a nerve. I guess the forums are cheaper than therapy.

Is your Quick-Air II a hard mount or the portable? Would you recommend it?



Thanks for the tip Doubleclutch , I'm going to look for a tank that will fit inside the rails.



Charlie

 

[kboettcher]

y-knot... . why do you have to be like that? . Seems like half the posts I read, you have to be a jerk and flame someone for a simple question. The guy admits it was maybe a bad idea and you still have to insist on him growing up. And further more I don't think it would go off like a bomb. The most a guy would be putting in something like that would maybe be 120#. If it was to puncture, that little volume of air would be gone in an instant and it wouldn't be sending shrapnel flying everywhere, we aren't talking about an oxygen tank or something with 2500# plus in it. The wall thicknes on sch40 pipe is probably twice the thickness as most of the prefab tanks out there. If I had a pipe bumper I would probably do it, but I would make sure to put any fittings or extrusions on the back side of the bumper facing the engine compartment so they wouldn't be vulnerable. I don't think it would be half as dangerous as most of the damn propane converted pickups out there with the tanks mounted under the rear bumper... ... . now THAT is a dumb idea.

 

[snowracer69]

#ad

 

[Whitmore]

Originally posted by kboettcher

And further more I don't think it would go off like a bomb. The most a guy would be putting in something like that would maybe be 120#. If it was to puncture, that little volume of air would be gone in an instant and it wouldn't be sending shrapnel flying everywhere,





Trust me this is very dangerous, YES it will send shrapnel flying, I deal with pressurized pipe every day and I will gaurentee you this idea is a bad one and it has reason to be illegal, I witnessed one time a 2" pipe rupture with 150" on it and it wasnt pretty, had anyone been in the area it would have been fatel, we found pieces of metal embedded in a block wall that had penetrated an inch. SERIOUS



Kevin

 

[krs]

From the cited website: "Patriot Manufacturing offer the best engineered, best built, off-road products on the market today".

(bolding mine)

 

[jponder]

Originally posted by Whitmore

Originally posted by kboettcher

And further more I don't think it would go off like a bomb. The most a guy would be putting in something like that would maybe be 120#. If it was to puncture, that little volume of air would be gone in an instant and it wouldn't be sending shrapnel flying everywhere,





Trust me this is very dangerous, YES it will send shrapnel flying, I deal with pressurized pipe every day and I will gaurentee you this idea is a bad one and it has reason to be illegal, I witnessed one time a 2" pipe rupture with 150" on it and it wasnt pretty, had anyone been in the area it would have been fatel, we found pieces of metal embedded in a block wall that had penetrated an inch. SERIOUS



Kevin

I agree with kboettcher. It wouldnt go off like a bomb. Steel will fissure and let the pressure out 120 psi aint I TRIED TO BY-PASS THE CUSSING FILTER for pressure anyway. Look at how thin an air tank is and they will hold 120 psi. A good Pipe bumber could hold way more than 120 psi and using it at 120 psi wouldn't be that Dangerous. American Pressed steel corporation made a scuba tank rated at 2400 psi with the 10 percent overfill it was rated at 2640. theses tanks were tested and would fail at about 9500 psi and they wouldnt even explode instead they would throw their valves out the top. I know that a bumper is not goign to have the same construction as a scuba cylinder but my point is STEEL is very strong and 120 psi aint I TRIED TO BY-PASS THE CUSSING FILTER. You could make a good steel bumper that could take that easy heck at 120 you could do it in aluminum. The thing I want to do is what can you do with a measley 120 psi?????????

 

[y-knot]

Maybe I got a little worked out???? But the issue of a pipe bumper, which also is used as an air storage tank bothered me. The pipe bumper will hold much more the 120# of air that is not the issue, and I think most would agree. The problem is when this bumper is involved in an accident. I have not herd much on this issue for years, but remember late 70's when there were several accidents that involved just such a bumper. The bumper can rupture in an impact, and does send debre fling. If the rig was a strictly OFF-ROAD vehicle that would be a different story, and I don't know but maybe the company that you mentioned, sells there bumper as a off-road only bumper? Anyhow, the separate air tank would be your best option. I do like the quick-air II, and yes it is mounted to the side of the frame, along with it's tank and control, in a steel "box" for lack of a better word. They now have a quick-air III, which is would assume is better. It has worked fine for the last three years, it's main function is to supply air for the air bags. I have a quick connect air fittings mounted in the rear and by the tank, they get used for everything from inflating pool floats, to tires.

 

[MCummings]

Personally,, I think the idea of having 120PSI in a bumper, and being completely safe is Absurd, Unfounded, and Insane.



If you hit another person, with that much volume of air, at that pressure, you could kill them.



Imagine you are doing 45MPH, and some bone head pulls out in front of you, and you have no time to do anything, Just hold on. You T-Bone this guy, He will have 120PSI right in his face, or side.



I have seen what 10PSI of water will do through a 1/64" hole. It can Cut skin, and bone. A girl out where we were working removed a gauge (From a 10,000 pound well head), and the gauge read 10PSI, well, she removed it, and got a stream of water right down her cheek, and about 1/2" from her eye. It cut through her safety glasses, skin, and put a deep gouge in her cheek bone.



I know Air has alot less cutting capability, but, Have you ever heard a Big Rig have a blow out? That is 90-130PSI. Now, picture that going off when pressed up against somebody's body? Think of Split Rims. Remember those?



If you want to make your bumper an air tank, I won't stop you.



Just think about it, and consider what could happen, and the possibilities with the sue happy people we have now.



If somebody hurt my family with an air tank bumper, I would definatly go after you.



If you want an air tank bumper, and Use it off-road, well that's still risky, especially in an event where/when spectators are standing close by. With 120PSI, when a piece of metal is ripped with a foreign object, it tears in mysterious ways.



You could convert the bottom half of a tool box to be an air tank?



The idea about the air tanks being tested to 2,600 pounds, and busting at 9,600 pounds is agood argument, but, try hitting that metal with a 2 ton object at 2,600PSI, and see if it holds up.



To sum up how I feel. Sure, rig it up, and have it for occasional use, but please don't drive around everyday with 120PSI in your bumpers.



Merrick

 

[Scheibins]

Yes, a high pressure nitrigen bottle (3000 psi), if ruptured has enough pressure to go thru a cement wall and keep on truckin.

A bumper attached to a truck with 120 psi in it ruptures and it's going to go PHHHSSSTT. At most it would have enough pressure to split a seem but all the air is going to be exhausted before you know it. Keep in mind this is a very small volume.



I made a rear bumper air tank for a Scout II I once had. Maybe the rear would be a little safer. That way when you T boned someone you wouldn't kill women and children with shrapnel. Anyway, I made mine from 1/8" thick boxed tubing. The inlet line was run from the engine to the front side of the (rear) tank. I used a 1/4" npt to thread the tank. I also put a drain petcock on the bottom and protected it with a piece of angle iron that extended a little further down from the drain. The outlet from the tank went back up to the front of vehicle and I mounted a tee on the front bumper with two quick disconnects.



Talking about the drain petcock reminded me that after I used it I would then drain it, so all this talk about it blowing up is kind of senseless. I had a pressure switch that would turn off the compressor at 110psi. When I knew I was going to use it soon, I'd turn it on with a switch on the dash board. By the time I was ready it would be full and ready to go. When I was done I'd open the drain and drive on and close it when I got home.

 

[Wheaties]

I recall that guys on Nantucket would fab a bumper out of well pipe which is pretty heavy gauge. Seal off the ends, tap in a schraeder valve for filling and another valve to connect an air line to. They'd pump the bumper up at the gas station air hose about as high as they could get it, then use the air to re-inflate the tires after a drive on the beach.



I don't recall anyone saying it was illegal, or even dangerous. Isn't the gauge of the steel you use the determining factor? Sure, if I use a Pringles can for a bumper, the air pressure is going to be a significant factor, but if I use 1/4" well pipe, I'll probably crush the person/honda/telephone pole long before I rupture the pipe and let any air out at all. "Air doesn't kill people, bumpers kill people"



Is anyone speaking from actual experience? Who has T-boned the most people with an air filled pipe bumper?



This is something I'd like to see on 'Mythbusters'



Matt

 

[jponder]

I agree scheibins. Some one said something about it having alot of volume but volume is WHAT IT DOESNT have. Look at a standard scuba cylinder, at 120 psi it only has 3. 2 cubic feet of air in it vs 80 when full.



Not going to get much of a PHHSSST out of that.

 

[illflem]

Not quite the same but someone trespassing in my orchard a few years ago ran into a 4'' sch 40 steel pipe that came out of the ground to a valve and u-turned back into the ground. 100 psi, the pipe and valve over 100 lbs were 50 ft away. No idea how high it went, but bet it was a lot.

What I can see happening in a crash with a pressurized pipe bumper is the end plate on the pipe or any fittings becoming a missile.

 

[RustyJC]

There's a reason we pressure test gas compressor cylinder bodies, etc. with water instead of air.



Rusty