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Had to pick up a 100 gallon water tank and knew there was no one but left the secretaries at the pluming company when I would be getting there. Tank was over 700 pounds and there was no way I would be getting it in the van myself.

I did have some room to work with and was in a lot covered in rock so the first thing was to tip it over and roll it behind the van. Then I used a 4 x 4 post ran thru the open windows up front for a hitching point for a come-a-long. Used the car ramps for it to inch it's way up the back, and after about 15 minutes I was on my way to the yard.



You may want to use a beefier strap then I used depending on the weight and a towel draped over the cable/strap is a good idea in case it breaks it will slow down the whiplash.

You might also want to be careful of bending your window channels.

Originally Posted by scrapping4ever

Would you have any suggestions on how to remove a 500 lb. boiler

If you don't have to worry about stairs try a heavy duty flat dolly, if there are stairs then try and separate it into several pieces.

Originally Posted by Mick

You might also want to be careful of bending your window channels.

I was concerned about the window frame but they are pretty solid on my van and after checking them once the load was coming on they seemed fine and not so much as a mark when finished...Built Ford Tough.

A "D" ring mounted to the floor with bolts run thru would be a good idea.

Originally Posted by 99problems

if i was looking for a "come a long" what would it be listed as , and is it at part store or tool store? do they have it at harbor freight?

I do use stuff from Harbor Freight but do not like their come-a-longs. I've had mine for years and want to say they came from Home Depot.

I once used the doors of a van to tie a rope on each post, then another rope down to the tranny, and used a screwdriver to twist the ropes until the tranny was in position to stab it onto the engine.
I'd just swapped engines, and the newer engine was out a standard tranny(had a pilot bushing in the crank) and the automatic wouldn't bolt up. I musta dropped that tranny and tried again over a dozen times, before I figured out it was the pilot bushing stopping it from fitting in there. By then I had it down to where I could completely drop the tranny and then lift and bolt it back up in about ten minutes haha, without even breaking a sweat ; )

I thought I was the king of "making do" and finding unorthodox solutions. Til I read this post that is, I'm truly impressed!

Simple. Ingenious.

Kudos.

It is a very good post ,and the pics are clear and well taken.

It make the forum look very good.

Thanks for sharing.

ginofrater

Turning out to be Hot Water Heater Week...#10 scheduled for this morning.