6 Best Horse Trailer Water Tanks
Discover the top 6 horse trailer water caddies. These durable tanks are designed for rough trails, ensuring stable water transport in remote locations.
There’s nothing quite like the feeling of reaching a remote trailhead, miles from anywhere, with your horse ready for an adventure. But that peace can turn to worry fast if you haven’t planned for one critical resource: water. Relying on finding a creek or stream is a gamble, and many natural sources can be unsafe for horses to drink from. Hauling your own water is the only way to guarantee your animals stay healthy and hydrated, turning a potential problem into a simple part of your preparation.
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Hauling Water Safely on Backcountry Trails
Hauling water isn’t as simple as throwing a few jugs in the back. Water is incredibly heavy—over eight pounds per gallon—and that weight shifts and sloshes. On a bumpy, winding trail, an unsecured or poorly designed water tank can unbalance your trailer, spook your horses, or even break loose entirely.
The key is choosing a container built for the job. You need something made from durable, food-grade polyethylene that won’t crack under stress or degrade in the sun. More importantly, its shape matters. A low, wide tank has a much lower center of gravity than a tall, skinny one, making your rig significantly more stable on uneven ground. How you secure it is just as critical as the tank itself.
High Country Plastics 39 Gallon Half Moon Caddy
This caddy is a classic for a reason. Its half-moon shape is designed to fit perfectly in the corner of a slant-load trailer or snug against the wall in a gooseneck’s nose. By sitting flat on the floor, it keeps all 325 pounds of water weight as low as possible, which is exactly what you want for stability on rough forest service roads.
The design is brilliantly simple and effective. It uses space that is often wasted, tucking out of the way of tack and feed bags. While it doesn’t have internal baffles to stop sloshing, its curved shape naturally reduces the momentum of the water. This is an excellent all-around choice for weekend trips with one or two horses, providing enough water without completely dominating your trailer space.
Dura-Tech 35-Gallon Slim Water Caddy System
Not everyone has the floor space for a lay-down tank. The Dura-Tech 35-Gallon Slim Caddy is designed for trailers with well-organized dressing rooms where vertical space is more available than floor space. Its narrow profile allows it to be strapped against a wall, leaving the floor clear for saddles, coolers, and other gear.
This model often comes as a "system," complete with a hose and a spigot near the base. This is a game-changer for convenience. You can fill buckets directly without any heavy lifting or messy siphoning. The major tradeoff is its high center of gravity. This tank must be secured with heavy-duty ratchet straps to the trailer’s frame. If it were to tip, nearly 300 pounds of shifting weight could be a serious problem.
High Country Plastics 48 Gallon Upright Tank
When a weekend trip turns into a week-long adventure, or you’re hauling three or four horses, you need more capacity. The 48-gallon upright tank from High Country Plastics provides that extra volume. This tank is a serious piece of equipment, holding nearly 400 pounds of water. It’s a commitment, and it demands a dedicated, secure spot in a large dressing room.
Like other upright tanks, its biggest challenge is stability. You absolutely must have a solid plan for strapping it down so it becomes an integral part of the trailer, not a loose cannon. This tank is for the serious trail rider who regularly camps for multiple days far from any spigot. It’s the difference between rationing water on day three and having plenty to spare.
Tuff Stuff 110-Gallon Oval Stock Tank Option
Sometimes the best tool for the job isn’t the one designed for it. A heavy-duty oval stock tank, like those from Tuff Stuff, can be an incredible solution for hauling a massive amount of water. The strategy here is to place it in the bed of your pickup truck, not in the horse trailer. This keeps the water’s weight and any potential spills completely separate from your horses.
This approach has huge advantages. You get an enormous 110-gallon capacity—over 900 pounds of water—and the tank is practically indestructible. Once at camp, it doubles as a ready-made water trough. The downsides are significant, however. It consumes your entire truck bed, the water will slosh considerably, and you’ll need a small pump or a lot of bucket work to get the water out. This is a base-camp solution for long stays in very remote locations.
The Scepter 5-Gallon Military Water Canister
For maximum flexibility and durability, it’s hard to beat the modular approach. Using multiple 5-gallon military-grade water canisters, often called Scepter cans, gives you incredible versatility. These things are built to be abused. You can drop them, stack them, and strap them into any nook or cranny in your truck or trailer.
Instead of one large, heavy tank, you have several manageable 40-pound containers. You can distribute the weight precisely where you want it for optimal balance. This is perfect for short trips where you only need 10 or 15 gallons, or for packing into tight spaces. The main tradeoff is convenience; you’ll be unscrewing caps and lifting jugs rather than just turning a spigot. But for pure, bombproof reliability on the roughest of trails, they are unmatched.
High Country Plastics 25 Gallon Lay Down Tank
If you love the stability of the half-moon design but don’t need 39 gallons, this smaller 25-gallon version is the perfect fit. It’s ideal for day-long rides or a simple overnight with a single horse. Holding just over 200 pounds of water, it has a much smaller impact on your trailer’s handling and is far easier to move when empty.
This is the ultimate grab-and-go option. It can be easily tucked into a corner of the dressing room or even placed in the bed of the truck without taking over. For riders who mostly stick to shorter excursions but want the security of bringing their own clean water, this tank provides peace of mind without the commitment of a larger, semi-permanent installation.
Securing Your Water Caddy for a Safe Haul
No matter which caddy you choose, it’s useless—and dangerous—if it isn’t properly secured. Remember, a "small" 25-gallon tank still weighs over 200 pounds. That’s enough force to break through a partition or cause a serious accident if it comes loose in a sudden stop or on a sharp curve.
Use at least two heavy-duty ratchet straps, not flimsy bungee cords. Bungees stretch and allow for movement, which is exactly what you want to avoid. Whenever possible, anchor the straps to the welded frame of the trailer, not to weaker components like tack hooks or saddle racks. Place the tank low and centered over the axles to minimize its effect on your rig’s balance. After you’ve driven a few miles down the road, pull over and check your straps. Things always settle, and a quick tighten can prevent a disaster.
Ultimately, the best water caddy is the one that fits your trailer, your hauling style, and the length of your adventures. Whether it’s a compact lay-down tank for quick overnights or a set of military cans for exploring deep backcountry, the goal is the same. Planning your water strategy before you leave is a fundamental part of responsible horsemanship, ensuring your horse stays safe, healthy, and ready for the trail ahead.
