Water Tank Overflow

You'd think that something as simple as a water tank overflow/vent would be hard to mess up. But since our builder seems to make a special effort of finding a way to screw things up, it's no surprise that we had a problem here as well. With ours, they ran the overflow tube out the bottom of the cabin floor, right above one of the rear tires. They then left a two inch long stub of tube poking out. So the first time the axle underwent articulation in the right way, the tire bent the tube over.

Adding insult to injury, they also leave this same tube, one that offers direct access to the trucks drinking water, wide open. No thought was given at all to the ingress of insects, something that's quite likely to be encountered in some quantity when exploring undeveloped areas. 

Like most creatures, insects seek out moisture. So crawling up a tube, and into the water tank is no great feat for them. Other insects like small round holes for building nests and laying their eggs in. When this happens, they plug the tube with an almost cement like substance. So air can't go in when the tank is being emptied, the results of which are a collapsed water tank. Of course the reverse is also the case. When the tank is filled, if air can't escape, the tank swells, and can burst causing physical damage to the surrounding area.

To correct this, we had to bend the tube back straight and persuade it back to a round shape. We also cut it shorter so only about 1/2" was protruding. We then manufactured a protective cover for the tube, and included a carbide mesh that's impervious to insect attack. Now if the tire comes in contact with the tube, the tube will have a Delrin rub block to protect it.