Date:         Sat, 21 Apr 2007 19:07:02 -0700
Reply-To:     Michael Elliott <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Michael Elliott <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Re: Ideas for lifting water into the Westy water tank?
In-Reply-To:  <cqnd23dl3mig8p6sd5corrdn7v1buq4091@4ax.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

BA typed:
> On Wed, 18 Apr 2007 10:43:49 -0700, you wrote:
>
>> I think you guys are nuts. At home before a trip I drain and then FILL
>> the tank at a store with one of those purified water machines outside.
>
>
> And (with all due respect) we think y'er nutz.  :-)
>
> Serously, the thing is that we're (in SoCal) generally moving water
> from approximately 500' elev. possibly down to approx. 200' below sea
> level and then as high as 7000' feet.  That's our geography.  And
> water is heavy.  So it's worthworthile to optimize water haulage.
>
> If we were still in the (relatively flat) midwest we probably would
> pre-fill the water tank and not worry about where to get water.

Yeah.

Now using the reducto ad absurdum method, I think we -- flatlanders as
well as those of us who have to deal with big elevation gains -- might
all agree that plunking a two-ton weight in the van prior to climbing
5,000 feet in hot weather would likely result in some kind of failure in
a 1.9L's engine or cooling system (setting aside handling, suspension
and tire issues). And most might agree that a well-maintained,
low-mileage 1.9L Vanagon with no additional weight would have a really
good chance of making that climb. In betweently, it seems to me that
there is some point where 51% -- a majority -- of Really Smart Vanagon
Owners ("RSVO" -- someone like you, dear reader) might hesitate before
adding an additional 100 lbs (45kg) of dead weight. No sense pushing the
odds, after all.

I don't claim to be an RSVO. My background is in electrical engineering.
I got plunged into the exciting world of engines and transmissions and
the like several years ago when Mrs Squirrel drove up to the house with
a 71 VW bus and said, "Do you want it?" Unbeknownst to us, the engine
was an overbored rebuilt piece of cr^p which had bolts and nuts in the
crankcase and which blew up a few months after I bought it. I tore that
engine apart, read every book I could about those things, and even had
Bob Hoover loan me bits, pieces, and tools to get things sorted out.
(You want a tough teacher? Try Bob -- he'll kick your ^ss.)

Eventually it was clear that the engine was beyond rescuing, so I bought
a brand-new Puebla-built engine in Tijuana and installed it and got it
running. The bus is fine, it's my daily driver, and I'll never forget
that experience, but it's one I hope not to repeat, no disrespect to
those of you who love to tear engines apart and tinker with them. Not my
cup of tea.

So here's the thing: When it comes to deciding when enough's enough
w/r/t pitching another 100lbs of weight onboard -- in the form of water
in the tank -- I might be in the minority here. That's probably because
my experience with Vanagons, the 1.9L engine and their cooling systems,
and automobile technology in general is really limited. But we all have
to make decisions about what to bring or leave behind. My habit is to
consider the weight of everything, whether I am looking at screen rooms
for 'skeeter country, chairs, camp stoves, awnings, camera equipment,
cookware, or sleeping bags. Though I would never head out on a camping
trip without knowing that I could get water -- either along the way or
when I'm there -- I try not to lug along more weight than I need to. At
times that means leaving home with an empty water tank. If I know I'll
be able to fill it after I've surmounted the passes, then it doesn't
bother me the least, and even makes sense. YMMV.

--
Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana")
74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San Juan Capistrano
KG6RCR