Good afternoon guys,
I am in the process of building a 5x9 open trailer rig. (I was actually going to be making a post soon about the build itself and looking for help with all of the plumbing). This Saturday i am bringing my trailer to have ladder racks welded on and i was going to have them also weld on some sort of a plate or extra cross beam so i could mount my hose reels from the top. Does anybody have any good pictures i can use to show my welder so he gets a good idea of what I’m trying to do? Essentially, how are your reels mounted to the ladder rack frame either by an extra cross bream or metal sheet, etc?
I was thinking of having him just weld the frame itself as normal and then welding maybe a 15" x 8’ metal sheet from front to back. This way i can drill holes as needed and mount the reels where i need.
Also, i was thinking of having him add something on the front above the tongue so i can attach both of my surface cleaners.
Hey, bud. You should definitely check out @Racer’s trailer build video on YouTube if you haven’t already. Just search for ProClean Exteriors and you should be able to find him. You’ll know it’s his video by his distinct southern drawl that my Texas accent can’t even begin to duplicate. You’ll know what I mean when you see it.
There are also a ton of builds on this forum though I don’t know how many show reels mounted up high. As far as mounting them I’d say just use whatever you plan to have the rack made out of and add a piece wherever you need it to be able to bolt your reels on. I probably wouldn’t do sheet metal because it’s flimsy and will only create more air drag.
Definitely get a trailer build post going so we can all oogle at it. I want to have a ladder rack built but have not pulled the trigger yet.
Yea I’ve seen a few of his videos and his trailer is beautiful. I have an idea in my head of how i want it to be but most times i can imagine it perfectly in my but once it reaches my mouth to explain, its pure dog sh*t coming out lol. So thats why i was looking for pictures just to show my welder and say, “here… this” lol
As for the build, yes i will be soon. Ive been working out of my pickup for a while but finally making the jump. I just picked up the 5x9 trailer last week and had it custom painted to match my colors and capable of 3500lbs. (I wanted bigger but i live in an HOA area and have to put it in my single car garage. Its tight even with the 5x9. Oh well, gotta start somewhere) Anyway once it get it back from the welder, im mounting my hose reels, both my 7gpm gx670 and 4gpm gx390, mounting my 225gl water tank and then my chem tank. I’m just a little iffy on the plumbing and i want to do it right the first time.
I’m the same way sometimes. I’m just going to do angle iron for my rack and I’m sure it will stand up to all of the abuse I can throw at it.
For plumbing, definitely use good quality stuff so you don’t have to do it again in six months. Some guys says no PVC and some (like myself) have had no issues. 5x9 is pretty tight so you’ll have to be very creative. If you’re using a leg tank then you shouldn’t need to use any PVC in my opinion.
Here’s pic from rear of mine. Just have your welder drop in another piece of angle iron with flat side down of course longitudinal the length of the trailer the width of your reel bases. Bolt them right up. Make sure to measure your garage door so that top of ladder rack will clear. Because mine is 14’ I put a horizontal in and then the 2 lengthwise pieces.
Thanks for the picture. I was thinking of doing something like a 15" x 9’ sheet going front to back because i have an A frame Hannay reel for high pressure, a U frame Titan reel for chems and a Summit Reel for supply. The titan and Summit were given to me so ill have somewhat of a Frankenstein hose reel collaboration going on but hey it’ll work. Anyway, thats why i was thinking of doing a metal sheet all the way so i can drill holes where i need to
My only suggestion is to by a welder. Even if it’s a cheap northern tool 110. Tinker and experiment. It’s a lot easier to build what you want than tell someone.
That was definitely one of my main concerns was weight. Ill be changing out the Summit reel after a while i just figured ill use it while i have it now. What would you suggest though for the weight factor?
