Hi guys, I’m looking for suggestions to mount my liberty garden hose reel to my IBC tote. It’s too big to fit on the platform I’ve built for my reels and I would rather not have it at the far end of the trailer.
Would it be practical to somehow just mount it directly onto the IBC tote? I thought of just using a bunch of heavy duty zip ties, but I’m sure that can not be safe.
Zip ties? …hmmm…hmmmm…
Disclaimer: Proceed at your own risk. I am not responsible for any accidents, injuries, or damage resulting from the use of this setup.
Secure a piece of slotted flat stock to the tote cage using a couple of U-bolts. Once the flat stock is firmly in place, bolt the hose reel to the flat stock.
I know… it was just a passing thought… lol.
Genius! Thank you.
Or just leave it how you had it on the wood and drill holes on the reel to fasten it to the wood
That rig is a disaster. Everything about it.
Tell us how you really feel! 
I just noticed you have a 4gpm pressurewasher. Why do you need that big tote in there?
I don’t, I bought it because I wanted to set up the trailer to be easily upgradable. Now if I want to move to a bigger machine, everything is already in place for me to do that, I can just switch out the machine and I’m good to go.
I’m already planning on building a 5.7gpm machine in the near future, so this will help then.
Can you please send me your address and phone number? My lawyers want to contact you to sign some papers… lol
Here is what I landed up doing, thank you for your suggestion.
It would have been less work to make a base the size of your reel, attach the base to the existing “ledge” and then attach the reel to the base that you made.
When the wood splits along this line and the reel comes flying through a windshield you’ll need those lawyers…
Cut the extra off those U-bolts before you rip the skin off your hands winding up the hose
Will do, thank you!
Any suggestions on how to prevent that from happening?
Good point… should have mentioned it earlier though, before I actually spent the better part of a day doing this…
Appreciate the concern—definitely not taking safety lightly.
The board is 1.5” thick pressure-treated lumber, and the bolts go deep into the middle third of the grain, not hugging the edge. That said, I’m keeping an eye on any signs of cracking or stress. The load from the hose reel is well below the working limits of both the U-bolts and the board (we’re talking <90 lb total with water).
To address your point:
• Yes, splitting is something I’m monitoring. The bolt location looks close to the edge in the pic, but it’s actually centered enough to distribute force into solid wood.
• Each bolt is reinforced with washers and locknuts, and I’ve driven with this rig over rough roads—no shift, no flex.
• That said, I might add an angle bracket or backing plate to further spread the load just for peace of mind and long-term durability.
Appreciate the heads-up—it’s always good to have more eyes on potential weak spots. Better to overbuild than underthink.
I will, but only from the money I make pressure washing.
