Rds excursion 40g veg.tank problem

[usherac21]

I was driving along in my 01 Ex yesterday with the family when I heard a loud "bang" and a scraping noise. I got out to check and noticed that the RDS Excursion tank that came with my Vegistroke V3 was held on by the two outer bolts on the frame rail. Somehow the two inner bolt had broken...I didn't have time to check since I was leaking a good amount of coolant from the lines and veggie oil from a seam that had opened up when the tank was dragging the ground. It was almost full and was too heavy to move alone. Well, since I was with the family and the tank had an inch of clearance and was leaking anyway, I drove to a friend's house rather than wait in a crappy part of New Haven, CT until I had to shoot my way out. When I got to his house we got to see what 40 gallons of veggie oil looks like on a driveway. Not fun. Anyway, after the tank leaked out and I was able to strap the tank up with ratchet belts, I checked the tank out. The tabs holding the tank to the chassis near the driveshaft had broken off. The bolts were still present in the chassis with the tabs connected to them. Needless to say, I had this system installed by a certified installer and DFA is taking care of it. I just wanted to post this to tell anyone else with the Excursion tank to check the tabs for signs of cracking or fatigue. I haven't had a chance to look closely at the tabs or tank where they connect to determine what caused the failure. Also, I would make it a point to carry a couple of ratchet belts along just in case. Thanks to DFA and Pieter of PTP Vegistroke for the great response!

[Wilson]

sorry for the trouble man. glad you shared your experience for others.

I dont care what those tabs are rated at. They were welded incorrectly for the location they are used in. If they are bent to horizontal (inside tabs) then there is no strength in the downward direction and welds will 'tear'. I would love to see how yours failed because I sat there with my brother and said no way am I using them like that.

So i crawled under his F250 and made a set of straps just like OEM.

see my install thread for pics. I just drilled a couple holes and bolts with loc washers did the job.

Glad everyone was safe and that you were taken care of. If you save one person then it (your post) is worth it

[Fordnut74]

We are addressing this immediately, obviously. Wehave tested this design of tank and have no issues. Each tab was tested to over 300lbs static load before even deflecting, let alone shear or breaking weight. At 7.6lbs/gn for Veg oil, the most a tank can weigh when full is 304lbs, plus the weight of the tank of about 45lbs. That gives us about a 4x safety factor. Plus the initial testing of installing and virtually jumping the truck to test downward force, and off road washboard testing that did not result in any obvious bending or stressing of the tabs. I guarantee that there is a defective part at play here. Even with straps, if a strap was to fail, you still have the same problem. All of that being said, a tank "falling out" I know is not acceptable under any situation and we have already come up with a few changes that will greatly enhance the strength and increase the safety factor by several times, basically ensuring that the tank can be supported by any 1 tab should three others fail, somehow. Again this is a parts failure, not a defective design that all the tanks will fall out. Unlike a lot of company's in our field, when we sell our systems and DFA made parts, this stuff is actually used and tested in real life to some pretty serious extremes before actually being sold. The one thing we are still trying to figure out how to do as a small business is ensure QC on products that are contracted out and we never see.

[Wilson]

We are addressing this immediately, obviously. Wehave tested this design of tank and have no issues. Each tab was tested to over 300lbs static load before even deflecting, let alone shear or breaking weight. At 7.6lbs/gn for Veg oil, the most a tank can weigh when full is 304lbs, plus the weight of the tank of about 45lbs. That gives us about a 4x safety factor. Plus the initial testing of installing and virtually jumping the truck to test downward force, and off road washboard testing that did not result in any obvious bending or stressing of the tabs. I guarantee that there is a defective part at play here. Even with straps, if a strap was to fail, you still have the same problem. All of that being said, a tank "falling out" I know is not acceptable under any situation and we have already come up with a few changes that will greatly enhance the strength and increase the safety factor by several times, basically ensuring that the tank can be supported by any 1 tab should three others fail, somehow. Again this is a parts failure, not a defective design that all the tanks will fall out. Unlike a lot of company's in our field, when we sell our systems and DFA made parts, this stuff is actually used and tested in real life to some pretty serious extremes before actually being sold. The one thing we are still trying to figure out how to do as a small business is ensure QC on products that are contracted out and we never see.

:thumbsup:

[Jack_Toepfer]

I don't doubt the fact that the tanks will probably be ok, but I too, highly recommend straps. Even if it is just for the sake of redundancy.

I'm glad the tank is going through som changes, I was hoping to pick one up for mine after winter.

[Geodad]

Straps -- how to make?

So, assuming I want to add straps, what material, material source do I use? Where do I attach the straps, etc.?

I don't know anything about OEM straps - what are they made of? (please pardon my ignorance...)

thanks,

[Jack_Toepfer]

So, assuming I want to add straps, what material, material source do I use? Where do I attach the straps, etc.?

I don't know anything about OEM straps - what are they made of? (please pardon my ignorance...)

thanks,

I believe NAPA has gastank straps. You can cut to the desired length and drill the holes where need be. Reference your stock tank. They have that down to a science. As long as the straps are secured tightly to something solid... you'll be fine.

[usherac21]

The Vegistroke guys are definitely on top of this. No issues there. Pieter looked at it today and has been in touch with DFA. Thanks to DFA for their prompt attention to this. I only posted to help anyone else with the tank avoid an unexpected problem like I had...Like I said, I was in a pretty rough area of New Haven with the family. Again, I've been happy with this product every step of the way. Hopefully this was a one-time issue because we know everything DFA does is quality. It's unfortunate that DFA has to be on the hook for an RDS product. I'm just fortunate the DFA guys are so accessible and concerned. Imagine trying to deal with a large company on this. I'm sure we can count on DFA to resolve any outstanding issues.

[fiveohpatrol]

We are addressing this immediately, obviously. ... All of that being said, a tank "falling out" I know is not acceptable under any situation and we have already come up with a few changes that will greatly enhance the strength and increase the safety factor by several times, basically ensuring that the tank can be supported by any 1 tab should three others fail, somehow.

Jason, will the re-design only effect the new tanks, or will there be a suggested "fix" for the ones already out there? I realize that your design was tested, but I've heard of a few tanks out there (mine included) that the inner tabs were made vertical instead of horizontal. I was able to bend one down, and on the other one I fabricated a horizontal bracket that I bolted to the vertical one. They seemed pretty strong, but obviously different than the intended design.
That said, I'll probably be fabbing up some straps pretty soon. When I'm pulling my racecar trailer 1000miles from home, I want to be sure my tank isn't going to fall off.

[Fordnut74]

Just make sure to take a good look at the tabs and welds. I am using one of these very tanks in my Wifes Excursion. Just inspected it and it is perfectly fine. I will probably source a strap as an extra safety measure for the existing tanks in addition to the mounting tabs. No need for panic yet and stay tuned.

[muns53]

Rds Excursion 40g veg tank problem

Hello,

Can you please clarify? Is DFA now recommending installing a retaining strap (or multiple straps) for the tank? Are the kits now shipping with straps?

Thank you,
muns53

[fiveohpatrol]

The exact same tabs just broke on mine, but luckily it didn't do as much damage as yours. I was lazy (aka stupid) and never got around to making the straps.

Jason, did you get a chance to design some straps?