With the pressure in the tank at 40 to 50 psi, the water flows as powerfully as it does from my outside faucets at home. The back end of the tank has a cap that is drilled for a hose bib and a Shrader inflation valve.
Photos and video by the author
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Intriguing! I can see having one of these aboard our motorboat’s cabin top to replace the (limited) SunShower I’ve been using.
On an older boat I had, used a 2-gallon garden sprayer, retrofitted with a thumb-switch shower head. If sun wasn’t enough, l would boil up a little water to take the edge off.
How does having that much water so high above your vehicle’s normal center of gravity affect its handling?
There’s no discernible effect on the car’s handling. The empty tank weighs 10 lbs; 5 gallons of water brings that up to a bit over 50 lbs. The lapstrake canoe I often carry on the racks weighs about 80 lbs and it’s not a problem. The heaviest loads I’ve put on the roof racks are drywall for working on my house. A half dozen 1/2″ sheets come to over 300 lbs and that’s not a problem on the 10-minute drive home. With any heavy roof-top load I avoid sudden stops and turns to avoid having the load shift, but I have no concerns carrying the water tank.
Brilliant application of the KISS* principle
*Keep It Simple Stupid