Any reasons why I shouldn't ...

[rharper]

... drill some drain holes in the bed of my utility pickup?

Here's the issue:

I've got a '92 F-150 with a bed liner, and it holds water every time it rains (and we've been getting some drenchings here in Virginia of late). It's a little bit swaybacked, so it runs down toward the cab and stays there, no matter what angle I park it. Thus, I can't just park the other way 'round in the usual spot, and there's no angle steep enough anywhere near the house to keep it from collecting.

It's pretty bad ... it gets 4-5 inches deep, and more, because the tailgate holds it in. And it means that every time I need to haul something, I'm pretty much guaranteed a wet truck bed, which is a pain when everything seems to either start, or end up, in cardboard boxes.

So I'm thinking of drilling three or four 1/4-1/2 inch holes along the low spot of the bed, up at the edge by the cab. I can work from below, to make sure I don't hit anything important, of course, so I'm not seeing a problem here.

What am I missing?

[JoePa]

I have a 91 F150 with a similar liner - and it gets filled up with water when it rains - but I have a way of parking it so that the back end is lower and the water drains out - as far as drilling holes through the liner and truck bed - the holes in the liner may allow water to get between the liner and truck bed and cause the truck bed to rust - you don't want water between the liner and the truck bed - what I would do is put some 2 X 6 s on the ground and park the truck front wheels on them - therefore keeping the front of the truck higher than the back -

[MO_cows]

Is it the bed liner that is an applied coating, or is it the rigid material that is shaped like the bed? If it's the latter, I'm thinking the drain holes will let water get in between the liner and the bed. Besides exposing raw metal to start rusting as WIHH brought up.

If the truck is likely to be parted out/scrapped when you are done with it, then drill, baby drill. If you want to try and preserve value, find another solution.

I've never seen a tailgate that fit tight enough to form a water tight seal like you described. Our truck bed gets water in it every time it rains, too, but not that deep. And the next time we drive it, the water drains out upon acceleration.

[rharper]

Originally Posted by MO_cows

I've never seen a tailgate that fit tight enough to form a water tight seal like you described. Our truck bed gets water in it every time it rains, too, but not that deep. And the next time we drive it, the water drains out upon acceleration.

I've never seen it before either, with the tailgate--it's pretty strange how tight it is. It isn't totally watertight when closed, but it's a slower drip than I expected, and it does hold quite a bit for quite a while, as I learned one clear day when I opened the tailgate without looking and got a rush of water out of it. It had been several hours since the previous night's downpour, but I still got wet.

And yes, it's a bed-shaped liner. How tough are those to remove, anyway? The truck isn't junk, but I'm not worried about the paint, and there's no "grippy" to the liner to make it worth keeping ...

[TrainChaser]

My Ford Ranger with the slip-in bed liner does the same thing -- it's a real nuisance.

Mine is a second-hand '92, so I'm getting ready to pull out that stupid liner (what is the reason for getting those things, anyway?) and drill, too. But first, I'm going to remove the liner and then run the hose in the bed and see if the water still stays as keep as it did with the liner. I suspect that it won't, and I won't have to drill. We shall see.

[Travis in Louisiana]

I have seen where those HARD PLASTIC bed liners will vibrate enough that they sand all the paint off of the truck bed they are suppose to protect. I would remove it completely. Then, I would either spray in a bed liner or as I have done, I just have a rubber bed mate. If you keep it in, I would drill some drain holes where the water is holding. You may not need to drill through the truck bed, since the truck bed itself should have a couple of drain holes in the corners next to the cab.

[FarmboyBill]

Ive got a 92 F-150 Ford also. Tailgates plenty loose enough to let any rain out.

[rharper]

Out comes the bedliner, then ...

We'll see if that fixes it.

[rharper]

Originally Posted by FarmboyBill

Ive got a 92 F-150 Ford also. Tailgates plenty loose enough to let any rain out.

Mine has liner on the tailgate as well. That's where the "seal" comes in--the plastic piece in the bed meets tight against the plastic piece on the tailgate.