BX24 pull 500 gallons of water?

[Hotwheels]

We have had a couple of fires close to use this year. I need some fire protection options and one of them is to get a 300-500 gallon water tank and mount it on a trailer that my BX24 could pull around my 7 acres. I do have some hills to deal with, but I am wondering if this is too much load for a BX24. I think water is about 8.33 pounds per gallon so with a 500 gallon tank, trailer, and pump, it is pushing 5000 pounds and that seems too much?
Thanks
JR

 

[wushaw]

Hills yes especially going down....flat no.

 

[Gunny]

If you do decide to go with it, keep it on flat ground and be sure you watch your tongue weight

 

[David_G]

You are much better off using a vehicle with a cabin for fire fighting.
Sitting in the open can be deadly if the fire comes quicker than you expect.

500 gals exceeds the safe towing weight of a BX24.

 

[RobJ]

Tandom axle trailer? That would help some and balance the load to get rid of some of the tongue weight. But no hills, it'll push you along!!

 

[radioman]

while I'll agree with the other two comments our fellows has said- one yes it can move that much water but it doesn't feel safe. i have moved my 22 ft camper that is 3,500 pounds on the draw bar on a slight hill only when its dry and it doesn't feel all that safe. it works since i took it slow and didn't need to move it that far, probably about 50 ft. Second- If you really need to move that much water at a given notice in a fire situation, why not get a truck that cannot be used on the road anymore but still runs ? you would have a vehicle that can be doubled as a getaway vehicle. Who wants to expose their beautiful BX's to the heat from fire ? A old and rusty truck can always be replaced cheap, not the kubota's!

 

[Hotwheels]

The reality check helps ... I am not going that route it would not be safe given the hills.

I would not plan to fight any fire with whatever setup I eventually get. My plan is to spray some of the critical areas with a retardent or water depending on how much time I have. But, no firefighting. If it gets that close, I am outa here.
I may get a smaller setup to use with an ATV or something like that. The old pickup truck idea is not out of the question. There are some water mounted tanks in the 300-500 gallon range for a pickup bed.

Thanks
JR

 

[RedDirt]

My bx23 is rated at 1765# trailer weight and 550# hitch weight. Sure, I'd stretch that some for slow and short and flat, but not to the extent you're talking about. Fire situations are adrenalin pumpers. Not a good idea to be operating an inherently unsafe rig in that situation. I like the off-highway pick-up idea.

We live in a forest area. I'm going to post our fire precautions on "Rural Living" forum. I started here but realized it deserved a spot of its own.

 

[Harry c]

I wouldn't be terribly uncomfortable pulling a 300 gallon tank on a good, low trailer with surge brakes. 500 gallons and no brakes... a completely different story.

 

[bx24]

I would also go with a 300 gallon IBC (plastic square tank .... do a Google search). You can find them locally for around $100 and would be much closer to safe I think for you.