| Author | Message | ||
     Torquehd |
Oddball question. I'm wanting to use aluminum diamond plate to make a potable water tank, but I don't know if MIG welded Al is fine for potable or if it needs some type of food-grade coating. I searched on the google and couldn't find an answer, I know there are some very knowledgeable folks here on Badweb. | ||
| Jramsey |
It will be fine, most all RV tanks are MIG/ wire welded. I repair several every year that froze and split because they weren't drained for winter. | ||
| Aesquire |
aluminum forms a tough oxide layer pretty quickly that is more or less food safe. If the water is very acid or base you can pick up the metal, which might, maybe, have long term effects like alzheimer's, but that's not proven. If it's potable when you pour it in, it should be fine. I'm not sure what to suggest for a post weld rinse. | ||
| Torquehd |
Thanks for the replies. For post-weld cleaning, I was thinking fill it with vinegar and let it sit for a few days; that's how I dissolve rust out of old steel fuel tanks. I'm building an on-board air system for my truck, I stumbled across a youtube video of "onboard water". Seems to be a jeep thing, but I got to thinking it would be pretty handy to have 20 or 30 gallons of potable water on hand at all times. As I'll be mounting it under my truck, I'd feel better with Aluminum than plastic. THEN I had the idea to pick up a craigslist truck toolbox. They can be had for $75 or sometimes even $50. That price is equivalent to buying a similar sized rotomolded plastic tank. And it would be more heavy duty. Plus it would let me play with the spoolgun which I find enjoyable. | ||
| Hootowl |
I'd go with the plastic tank 11 times out of 10. You'll never have to worry about corrosion. | ||
| Ratbuell |
Most RV holding tanks are roto-molded plastic. Some water heater tanks are aluminum, some are glass-lined. I'd think the issue would be crap buildup in a porous weld surface. If you weld and then grind smooth so there are no pores to accumulate stuff you should be fine. | ||
| Ducbsa |
I would be concerned with the crevices on the inside that would harbor bacteria. In the dairy equipment industry, the welds would be ground to a smooth radius or tig-ed with argon backup with full penetration. | ||
| Greg_e |
What is the alloy of that plate? I'd go with stainless or plastic, since I can't weld stainless that would leave me with plastic. | ||
| Two_seasons |
I would not use any metal to store water. What I would do is store distilled water in one-gallon plastic jugs. Volume wise, would not be much more square footage than having a large plastic container. Of course you would have to build something to stack them. And, if one or more get contaminated, you'd still have the other one-gallon ones that are still safe to use. | ||
| Torquehd |
Do you think the alloy matters, for potability? I've heard you can MIG stainless... would love to play with it. Two seasons, you're talking worst case scenario there. I HAD about 15 gallon or 2.5-gallon jugs in the garage... but they've almost all got punctured. I always keep my Travel trailer freshwater tank full plus a few Scepter military grade water jugs. This isn't zombie horde prepper stuff, most of the jeep guys that I got this idea from use it for camp showers or washing mud off the windshield after they go wheeling. Mostly it sounds like a unique tinkerer project and an excuse to play with power tools  I could use plastic but it would need a metal carriage. Which might as well be full sheet metal on the bottom to protect it. | ||
| Hootowl |
Protect it from what? Are you rock crawling? If so, even a metal tank will need a skid plate. | ||
| Torquehd |
I guess fuel tanks are plastic and they work just fine... then again, rv holding tanks are made to be stored inside and i doubt they're as robust as fuel tanks. I'm not rock crawling. Maybe plastic would be fine. Maybe. | ||
| Aesquire |
Cast Iron. A little rust doesn't hurt. Gives you a chance to make a sand mold and fire up some iron melting heat. Titanium would be lighter. That you can mig. With pure Ti rod & argon. Don't use cadmium plated tools or hardware. Porous welds and slang are an issue. Plastic container on the roof makes showers easier. Black plastic will solar heat the water. Branches are then the enemy.  | ||
| Hootowl |
https://www.frontrunneroutfitters.com/en/us/water- solutions.html Just an example. You might be able to find one that'll tuck away nicely. | ||
| Torquehd |
I love cast iron. For cooking. I'd like to eventually put a tank on top of the travel trailer so I can gravity feed when there's no water hookup. Hootowl those are nice. But expensive. I like the simplicity of this. Just too small. | ||
| Hootowl |
I think by the time you MacGyver one up the way you want it, you'll probably have as much money in it as one of those rotomolded ones. | ||
| Two_seasons |
If the water's primary mission is camp showers, put out one-gallon jugs (one gallon per person) on the picnic table next to the tent for the sun's heat. | ||
| Nm5150 |
Just buy a ceramic water filter with the microscopic pre filter.If you can find water ,you can drink it. | ||
| Strokizator |
Municipal water tanks are mostly of the steel variety. Interior epoxy coated, either factory applied for the bolted steel tanks or field sprayed for welded ones. I've drank a lot of beer and soft drinks from aluminum containers (steel cans in the old days). Reusable water bottles are aluminum. Bottom line is keep it clean between uses and you'll be fine. | ||
| Ratbuell |
The majority of RV tanks are outside, in an exposed underbelly. No direct sunlight, but definitely tenperature changes. That's why winterizing is so important... | ||
| Greg_e |
Sports style water bottles are all stainless or plastic. Uncoated aluminum can be bad for you, the soda and beer cans have an interior coating. And if you want to keep the tank from growing stuff, make it out of copper. | ||
| Aesquire |
was just advised that I was wr... I was wr.... I was mistaken and you shouldn't use welded aluminum. :} | ||
| Crusty |
But if you don't weld it, it won't hold water! | ||
| Hootowl |
"I've drank a lot of beer and soft drinks from aluminum containers" "the soda and beer cans have an interior coating" Yup. CO2 makes those liquids acidic, so the liner is crucial. | ||
| Strokizator |
That's why I only wrap my food in lined aluminum foil. Come on guys. | ||
| Hootowl |
Wrap a tomato in it, and let us know how it goes. | ||
| Torquehd |
Aluminum cans are not safe. Look what this one did to this poor chicken.  Sounds like Al is out. | ||
| Greg_e |
The biggest problem is you have no idea what the alloy really is in that diamond plate, many are cast plate with who knows what added. If you were using a known alloy plate, you could at least look it up and decide what parts of the alloy might be the most harmful. But due to the link to Alzheimers, I just wouldn't use aluminum for drinking water without a liner. Maybe a thin poly water "bag" inside your diamond plate container? This place has a few plastic water containers https://www.westmarine.com/flexible-water-tanks | ||
| Brother_in_buells |
Long term drinking and eating from non coated alloy can also give eye sight problems. So better only use stainless steel or plastic water tanks! | ||
| Panhead_dan |
Is welded aluminum food-safe? No aluminum is safe. Aluminum is poison. | ||
| Torquehd |
I just had to go cracking jokes about aluminum being not safe. So no kidding there I was this afternoon, grinding some 1/8" aluminum plate that I'm using to build a foglight mounting bracket, when I stepped on a sharp piece of Aluminum. I felt it punch deep into my foot, I pulled it out and since the grinder was spooled up I went back to grinding. Glad i was looking down. Out of the corner of my eye I saw blood streaming across the driveway. Bright red blood was literally pissing out of the bottom of my foot. I felt like I was in a training exercise again, my fingers found the blood spurt and clamped down for a good 15 minutes waiting for it to stop. Good grief, God must have a sense of humor. Next time I'm not wearing crocs while playing with powertools. You'd think I'd know that by now. When I went back out 30 minutes later it looked like dark red wine.  Aluminum really IS dangerous! (Message edited by torquehd on August 06, 2017) | ||
| Ourdee |
Aluminum is not safe for use in the body or with food or drink. I have went so far as to get rid of pans and cups made out of aluminum. And teflon off gases. | ||
| Tootal |
And teflon off gases Me too!  | ||
| Ourdee |
I thought that was what "Toot"al meant. |
