~ Green WATER WAGON ~

Now that you have built your version of the world's greenest water pump, from the plans in my last instructable,

http://www.instructables.com/id/Worlds_greenest_water_pump/

you will have so much extra water you will need to build a water wagon to transport it around your farm for spot watering those plants and trees that are too far from your water delivery site.

You want a "Green" water wagon, so let's build one out of scrap bits we have on hand and make use of the 3 r's... Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Let's make it strong enough to tow behind your garden tractor and simple enough to make it a nice weekend project.

Enjoy this instructable and don't forget to rate it and let me know if I can make it better.

Step 1: What you Need

The picture below shows the parts you need and serves as an assembly guide.

This project requires some welding and metal cutting, so if you are not up for that, you can just take the picture and measurements to a welding shop and they will have it slapped out for you in no time.

The most difficult parts to acquire are the wheels. They have to be strong because you will be towing around over 600lbs including a full water barrel so bicycle wheels and hand cart wheels etc. are too flimsy for this one. I would not even opt for wheel barrow wheels due to the heavy weights the bearings will see when you bounce the rig over a few potholes.

I scored some scrap motorcycle wheels and they are perfect as we shall see later, except that they have odd size bearings, but if you are handy and have a metal lathe you can make your own axles or just go to the local steel shop to buy what you need.

The water tank is an old plastic barrel with a screw in bung, surplus barrels are available for 5 bucks in my area.

The only new item I bought for this project is the trailer ball coupler. I could have used a draw pin hole on the trailer tongue, but it's much easier to hook up a full water barrel using a commercial trailer ball coupler and my garden tractor has a ball on it so that is the way to go if you can.

One word of caution. This rig is heavy when loaded, so build it strong and make sure your garden tractor is up to the task because you can easily die, or at least have a very bad day, when a 600 lb. wagon runs over you or your family or your pets or neighbours' Lamborghini...

This design has worked well for me for quite a while, but I accept no liability or responsibility for any damage if your version fails on you somehow. Remember water is heavy, so chock your wheels and drive carefully, never exceed Mach 3.2 on your garden tractor...

Comments

[fifipoodlebum]

You made your own water bowser....I would like to marry you please!

[Kiteman]

_{^{...resists...resists...fails...}}

Green water wagon? It looks blue to me!

_{^{Sorry, sorry, I know...}}

[admiral001]

agreed! lol

[eltigre]

Dude...

[nedfunnell]

Could you explain in a little more detail about the wheels? Are they both front wheels? How did the axle work out?

[eltigre]

The wheels are either front or rear in any combination. Just remove the sprocket from the rear wheel and you are good to go. You can see in step 2 that the wheels on this wagon are both a front and a rear and are from different motorcycles as well, it really doesn't matter at all. I even have one wagon that has a 26 inch wheel on one side and a 24 on the other, I just mounted the larger wheel axle on top of the frame to compensate and it works fine. The axles I made to fit the existing bearings by turning down a piece of 1" steel bar on my lathe. They are pretty short and supported on both sides and are therefore quite strong. No tendency to bend at all. I have had no mechanical problems with any part of these rigs yet. Everything works as advertised and I have just put them back into service this week for another season. I am building another one exactly the same because I have enough parts and the need for more capacity.

[jackson42]

I LIKE your style & ingenuity! keep up the good work. and also, there's three more R's you could add to the basic RRR... restore, refurbish & re-purpose. I like them all. best regards, ...jm.

[lemonie]

There's no suspension on this - how fast / slow do you recommend moving it?

As PKM it's a shame about the brakes - do I understand that the hubs came without the brakes (not too easy to see)

L

[eltigre]

Yes, no brakes came with these wheels. My wife usually drives it around and she generally runs gas full on or brakes full on with our garden tractor ;p No problems running at best speed with my equipment, BUT, your garden tractor may not be as strong as mine which is a 14hp Ford diesel with hydrostatic drive so the brakes are hydraulic and very very effective. I.e. when you step on the brakes, the back wheels stop dead. I also have real, if small, tractor tires on mine so they have very much more traction than standard garden tractor smooth turf tires that come as standard equipment. Start slow, and test out the limits and skid characteristics on flat ground! Be careful, you don't want 600lbs of water to push you into the ditch or down a steep hill. And try not to tow it across any slopes, only up or down as it may roll you over if your tractor is too light. Also, if you are worried, you don't have to fill the barrel to the top, make 2 trips. I actually have 3 of these wagons built now and we cycle them all over the ranch and park them as needed. This also permits filling one while another empties.

[Derin]

Oh no.You need ABS on that thing.

[eltigre]

I don't mean to worry you, all these wagons work very well for me. If the wheels are about 36" or better apart, they are very stable and show no undesireable roll tendencies, but please be careful until you know the limits of your own rig.

[RAPPLEBY2000]

I tried to use a barrel like that one, to make a waterproof(ish) box as a trailer container but couldn't figure out how to attach it without bolting through it. well done!

[stephenniall]

Hmm i suppose with one of these if you live in the city You could Cut the Barrels top off 3/4s of the way up add two hinges and a Padlock and make a bicycle trailer

[PKM]

Could you cannibalise a car handbrake lever or similar and hitch it up to the bike brake drums? Seems a shame to not use them if you are using complete motorbike wheels... but then I guess it's a lot more mechanical complexity and you don't want to be relying on that much of a bodge. Wheel chocks probably the way forward then.

[eltigre]

It certainly would be possible. Sadly, my wheels did not come with any brake shoes or actuators so I was not about to reconstruct something there as the alternative is pretty cehap and simple. Fortunately, my garden tractor is heavy enough to stop the rig with no trouble and a couple of short 4x4 blocks keep this wagon firmly in place when parked. Good thought though.