Dual tanks

[rockin86ranger]

I'm sure this is the wrong section but has anyone ever put dual gas tanks in a short bed ranger. the body work will be simple for me be i need to know what i need to run the dual tanks safely and "what tank i can use" for the secondary tank and what kind of switch-over valve i can use
thanks

 

[flyingbrick]

This has been talked about on here somewhere, IIRC it can be done with a long bed, B2 tank, home made straps, and just any DPDT switch.

Here's some info http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19828&highlight=dual+tanks
http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18514&highlight=dual+tanks
http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10797&highlight=dual+tanks

BTW that was a 5 min half @$$ed search

 

[rockin86ranger]

yes and thoose are all for longbeds now i need to know if their is a tank out their for a shortbed that is easily available at a junkyard.

 

[feellnfroggy]

yes and thoose are all for longbeds now i need to know if their is a tank out their for a shortbed that is easily available at a junkyard.

why cant a shortbed tank be mounted backwards on the other side opposite teh current tank,? run the fuel pump from one into the other tank? it would be a series hookup and unswitchable but an idea. but for mounting purposes, using two shortbed tanks and fabbing the straps. theres also a company online that makes metal tanks with corners not rounded sides for pickups, they have larger capacity but can prolly weld you a full frame tank instead of them little things that sit on one side.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

why cant a shortbed tank be mounted backwards on the other side opposite teh current tank,?

The exhaust usually goes there.


I would think the BII tank would fit with the same issues as with a long bed, as tight as a shortbed is there is still more room between the axle and bumper than there is on a BII. That is just pure speculation, I have not done any fuel tank swapping.

AllanD would be the go to guy for what will fit where it wasn't originally meant to fit.

 

[koda6966]

I've never needed more gas.. I have an abnormally large tank I guess.
If I remember correctly.. mines 20 gallons or so. I get 20 miles to the gallon.
Thats..
20 miles per every gallon which is 20
which would be 20x(mpg)..
which would be 20x20..
which is 400.
So apparently I can go 400 miles, of highway of course, on a full tank.

 

[AllanD]

a Bronco2 tank will NOT fit in a shortbed Ranger.

the front fuel tank crossmember will not go in due to a conflict with the left side upper shock mount.

Putting a bronco2 tank into a longbed is childishly simple.

what I did to put an aux tank behind the axle in my supercab was to use the Rear fuel tank out of a Dualie F350/450
This tank is PLASTIC, thus it won't crumble back into iron ore
like a ranger Aux tank or a factory bronco2 tank.

I was forced to make the lines from the rear tank to the selector valve by cutting down the F-450 lines.

the wiring? factory dual tank Ranger wiring.
The selector valve? Factory Ranger, but Econoline Box vans (NON-EFI)
used the same valve.

Selector switch? Factory switch, ALL Gen1 rangers already have
the selector switch wiring in the dash.

I fabricated both crossmembers that the tank is suspended from
There are upper straps that hold the tank to it's skid plate
The skid plate is in-turn mounted to the frame.

It's identical to the mounting scheme used on the full size Bronco.

AD

 

[feellnfroggy]

I was sitting here reading this post again, and an off the wall idea hit me. I have htought about it a total of 35 seconds so maybe its not all that viable, but since everyone boxes their ranger framerails anyways... why cant the same be done as the buell?/harley? chassis in the drag racing circuit. Use the sealed/boxed framerails to hold fuel. Im pretty sure it was buell who pulled this off using the frame to their bikes as the fuel tanks, they managed to skirt the rules. There is a tank size limit in the circuit, but there was no limit to frame diameter. so they got away with holding more fuel, the reason i thought of this was the guy who mentioned the 20 gallon tank. alot of guy have oversize tanks like that installed in the bed of diesels and gassers. but why sacrifice the bed space? Extreme rigs would have a harder time due to the amount of cracked frames seemingly running rampant with off roaders, but street trucks or mild offroad duty trucks, would really benefit.


Now that im done typing, momentum would seem to be an issue. I guess baffles would be required, to prevent fluid sloshing back and forth.


What are your thoughts.

 

[flyingbrick]

I was sitting here reading this post again, and an off the wall idea hit me. I have htought about it a total of 35 seconds so maybe its not all that viable, but since everyone boxes their ranger framerails anyways... why cant the same be done as the buell?/harley? chassis in the drag racing circuit. Use the sealed/boxed framerails to hold fuel. Im pretty sure it was buell who pulled this off using the frame to their bikes as the fuel tanks, they managed to skirt the rules. There is a tank size limit in the circuit, but there was no limit to frame diameter. so they got away with holding more fuel, the reason i thought of this was the guy who mentioned the 20 gallon tank. alot of guy have oversize tanks like that installed in the bed of diesels and gassers. but why sacrifice the bed space? Extreme rigs would have a harder time due to the amount of cracked frames seemingly running rampant with off roaders, but street trucks or mild offroad duty trucks, would really benefit.


Now that im done typing, momentum would seem to be an issue. I guess baffles would be required, to prevent fluid sloshing back and forth.


What are your thoughts.

Ford Pinto comes to mind.

 

[feellnfroggy]

Ford Pinto comes to mind.

did they put fuel in the framerails of the pinto?

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

did they put fuel in the framerails of the pinto?

No, but they had a habit (greatly exagerated however) of catching on fire if they were hit in the back. For all the buckling that a frame does in a wreck I think it would be a huge fire hazzard to fill them with gas. Plus for the way that gas rusts out metal you would have that safety concern as well.

 

[rockin86ranger]

i think i may just go get a racing fuel cell and find out how to mount it the just get an f350 cross over unit. and hope everything works


thanks

 

[AllanD]

The F350 crossover valve is a bulky diaphram driven valve
with NO electrical connections to it.
It is a bulky failure prone monstrosity.

there are detented push-pull valves and the pressure of the low pressure
pump output drives the diaphram to determine which return line path is opened.

On '92-up F-series trucks the return valve is actually inside the
fuel tank and again is driven by the operation of the in-tank high
pressure pump. So there technically is no "selector valve" in the
later system.

There is a complicated reservoir cannister inside the fuel tank that not only
includes a pressure driven return line valve, but also a return fuel driven
venturi that literally sucks fuel up out of the tank into the cannister

Remember that the critical thing with a multi-tank fuel system is not
switching the different pumps on or off or properly selecting the fuel
guage sender but rather control of the return line fuel flow.
Having the return fuel going to a tank that's already full is "bad".

 

[feellnfroggy]

The F350 crossover valve is a bulky diaphram driven valve
with NO electrical connections to it.
It is a bulky failure prone monstrosity.

there are detented push-pull valves and the pressure of the low pressure
pump output drives the diaphram to determine which return line path is opened.

On '92-up F-series trucks the return valve is actually inside the
fuel tank and again is driven by the operation of the in-tank high
pressure pump. So there technically is no "selector valve" in the
later system.

There is a complicated reservoir cannister inside the fuel tank that not only
includes a pressure driven return line valve, but also a return fuel driven
venturi that literally sucks fuel up out of the tank into the cannister

Remember that the critical thing with a multi-tank fuel system is not
switching the different pumps on or off or properly selecting the fuel
guage sender but rather control of the return line fuel flow.
Having the return fuel going to a tank that's already full is "bad".

Isnt the fuel return controlled by fuel pressure? Couldn't you run a pressure driven line that t's off into both tanks, once one tank is full it would feed the other line. Gravity and path of least resistance and all? I know Im thinkin relatively simple but didnt all great complicated thing(atom bomb) start with sumthin relatively simple? (firecrackers- gun poweder and duct tape)

 

[Dusty_Ranger]

my 88 ranger super cab had dual tanks