Blue tote-along 2 wheels or 4 wheels

Hi, I am considering to get a 15 gal or 16 gal blue tote. The 15 gal has two wheels and the 16 gal has 4 wheels. Which tote is the easiest to handle.
Your feed back is welcome.

Thanks
John Zwart

Originally Posted by johngzwart

Hi, I am considering to get a 15 gal or 16 gal blue tote. The 15 gal has two wheels and the 16 gal has 4 wheels. Which tote is the easiest to handle.
Your feed back is welcome.

Thanks
John Zwart

John,
FYI:
I just ordered the 16 gal and should receive it tomorrow. This is the best price I could find...

4-Wheeler Tote-Alongs
Part # Capacity Size Price
28191 16 Gal. 11.5" H 17" W 37" L* $127.62
[email protected]
www.brcampers.com
Hope this helps if you decide on the 16 gal.
Jerry

[Bill]

John, Jerry -

Once one of you has bought and used this tank, please report back to the group about the pleasures (or pain) of maneuvering 135 pounds of liquid around a campground and dump facility. We have this "blue tote" discussion every couple months, but I don't think anyone has ever reported the practical utility of a tank this big.

Thanks

Bill

[grill-n-go]

I have a 10 gal (80 Lbs) blue tote on two wheels and that is the absolute maximum I can deal with. Don't want to imagine what it's with anything larger. It's like rocks in jiggle jello

We have a 4 wheel blue tote with a capacity of 32 gals - Wanted it to be big enough that we could empty the grey water into it. Weight full was about 260 lbs but it pulls like a wagon and was not difficult to handle. Of course I only had to go about 30 ft to hook the handle over the hitch ball and tow it to the dump station with the TV. This model has a slide valve hose like the connection on the side of the tm but it was still a bit of a hassle at the actual dump station. It definately is not easy to get all the water out and with the nooks and crannies I hope never to have to dump my black water to it. It will take alot to get it clean!
Bill

[B_and_D]

We bought a small one..I think it's 10 gallons. When we dry camp we end up using way too much water (teenage daughter with long hair used to taking 15 - 20 minute showers at home; as I type the water here at home is running) and the 10 gallon one is easy to lift into the truck bed. I wouldn't mind having two of them so we wouldn't have to make so many trips to the dump station. We have to dump the grey water tank about once a day, or if we skip a day, twice the next day. We have also used it for the black water, but when we dry camp for long periods, we try to use the TM toilet "lightly", usually only at night. If we do that, we dump the black water first, and then go back and dump the grey water for the second load. It helps clean it out.

The idea of towing one to the dump station kind of makes me kind of nervous, since we've had "accidents" with those types of things before. I'd just rather have it in the truck bed where I know it's secure. I guess you could have somebody walk behind the tote as you towed it to make sure it was OK. I can lift the 10 gal one myself into the truck bed, so this works best for us.

[tucsoncarol]

We just got back from a trip to Roper Lake State Park in southern Arizona. It was, by turns, rocky, sandy, and steep. We were using a two wheeled blue tote that was formerly my fathers. It was 15 gallons, and an absolute horror to deal with. It was sloshy and unwieldy to move and never failed to cover us in questionable water when we emptied and cleaned it.We have a large gray water tank and emptied some water from it every couple of days(only did a full empty and clean when leaving). The black water just once in the first week (we used the bathroom only at night or potty emergencies and showered at the park facilities). We got serious blue tote envy when we saw one of our Canadian neighbors easily maneuvering a 16 gallon 4-wheeler. This thing has a side opening! We knew this was the answer for us and found the only RV parts dealer in Safford, Arizona to see if he had one. No, he didn't. But, he could order one and get it to us in 24 hours. OK! We went with the 25 gallon model because of the size of our TM, and we, too, wondered if it would be hard to handle. Simple answer, no. It handles very easily full, and empties like a champ. I pulled it uphill to the tv and we towed it at about 5mph to the dump station. The side valve works like the TM valves and is amazingly secure. No leaks. None of these monsters are easy to clean (it seems they just have to put ridges and backwater eddies into them) but this one was so much easier than the 15 gallon two wheel as to be in a completely different class. The side valve and the top opening work in concert to allow much more effective cleaning. In general observation, the 16 gallon 4-wheeler looks better designed. The obvious low point at the side valve is not on the larger units. They do slope to the side valve, just not as much. Final answer, we love our new tote. It was way expensive, but so worth it.

For those interested a picture is attached...

"the 16 gallon 4-wheeler looks better designed. The obvious low point at the side valve is not on the larger units. They do slope to the side valve, just not as much."

Tucsoncarol: I am very interested in purchasing a "blue Tote" and will need to before June comes when we have an extended stay at a State Park without full hook-ups so I am educating myself in the meantime. Are you saying that the same 4-wheeled tote in the 16 gal versus the 25 gal are different? From looking at the Camping World pictures they look identical other than size.

[tucsoncarol]

Rockerga,

The totes I'm referring to are not the ones you see on the Campingworld site. They all look the same to me, too. I'm talking specifically about the 4-Wheeler tote-along by Barker. I don't know if they are available at Campingworld. These have big back wheels, thick and sturdy pull bar, maneuverable front wheel set, side emptying valve and all that jazz. Go to http://www.barkermfg.com/product_pages/tote_alongs.html and see. They are further down the page than the original tote-along, and available in 16, 25, and 32 gallon sizes.