RDS 51 Gallon Tank/Toolbox Installed!

[LightmanE300]

Thanks Tex, yes, as it would appear in the pics, my box was originally the same aluminum diamondplate that you see in the northern tool ad, however it's then sent off by RDS to get powdercoated. I wanted the box to be as inconspicuous as possible, and considering everything else on my truck is black, it made sense.



Thepipe - I too had been thinking I would be in for $1000+, because I'd been looking at all the fancy Transferflow setups. While they have cool 'gadgets', all I wanted was a simple and effective aux tank setup, with a minimum of possibilities for failure. I like the fact my setup has no electric pumps, switches, etc. A DTR member that lives here locally was nice enough to show me his setup. Until then I hadn't really fully visualized how the plumbing would work, and that intimidated me(not the most mechanically experienced guy). Anyway once I realized how simple it all was, I went for it. Sure was cool filling some 60+ gallons the other day at Hess!

 

[LightmanE300]

Racor 2 Micron Filter Installed

Just wanted to say for the guys that haven't tried it, this worked perfectly. . Anyway, today I mounted and plumbed a racor 2 micron filter in line between the aux tank and main tank, and it works beautifully. It still flows quickly, and I have some peace of mind finally! I'll include a pic of the filter and one of the plumbing. Basically I just came out of the tank with a ball valve, then 90 degrees straight down with a hose down thru the bed to the filter. Then out of the filter a hose gets t'ed into the fuel return line.

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[Moterhead]

I'm thinking of setting up an auxiliary tank in my '04 SB as you have Lightman. I'd use the RDS tank that, according to their website, takes up only 9 inches of bed length. I'm having a hard time finding the height of that tank. The picture and chart on their website is unclear. I want one that will fit under my tonneau cover and fills on the driver's side. I can just unsnap the left front corner, fill and go. A concern is the auxiliary tank's venting. I read that it's a vented cap. As the tank will be under my tonneau, I will need to run a vent hose outside. Is there any other holes, etc in the tank's top that could be used for external venting?



You mentioned using a ball valve to control the flow of fuel from the aux tank. An electricaly operated on/off valve would be really convenient. Anyone know of a source for something like that?



I've seen on other posts about RDS products that they offer an electrical kit. Anyone know what's in that?

 

[LightmanE300]

Moterhead - I suggest you contact RDS.



Secondly, the cap is not vented, there is a separate vent, at least on my tank. You are going to have to cut/punch some sort of hole through the bed to run the fuel hose to your connection. Therefore , you can run a hose off the vent, down under the bed. I plan on doing this and installing a dessicating breather at the end of the hose.



As far as electrically operated valves - sure , there are tons of them available. Look at transferflow's setup and rds also sells one. It depends how lazy you are. For the extra $200+ for the kit, I'd just assume walk back and flip the ball valve. I also don't have to worry about any parts failing, freezing, etc. I just like the simplicity of the setup. As far as venting goes, I dont leave the valve open at this point... nor the vent. That way, my tank is sealed from outside moisture and contaminants. When I do fill, I will take off the vent cap and open the valve - usually in my garage or when I'm parked somewhere.

 

[LightmanE300]

Also moterhead, check out my reader's rigs gallery - I have pics of a 2 micron Racor filter I recently added to the aux tank setup. I highly highly recommend additional filtration.

 

[thepipe1]

Pump Kit

Hello, Moterhead et al:

Although I'm not sure, I think the transfer tank pump kit that Northern Tool sells is the same as RDS (their tanks are, too). Check Nortern's website for item 3490900 @ $279. 99 in my catalog.

The kit includes wiring harness, hoses, 6-port switching valve, hardware, circuit breaker, switch, hose clamps, sending unit, and instructions. HTH

 

[Cummins Pilot]

I have the 90 gal RDS tank/toolbox. I love it. But my setup isn't gravity fed. I installed a 5 gpm pump and goldenrod water seperator filter. I can fill the main tank in about 8 minutes (it can't push the full 5 gpm with the restrictions).



Flip the switch in the cab and your good to go. Very handy, makes road trips a lot easier. No fuel to buy so I can bypass every fuel station and I don't even have to get out of the cab to make it work.