How to add bleach to the fresh water tank

[bruceisla]

Someone recently posted a picture of a mod to the fresh water tank. They added a fresh water gravity fill between the tank and air admittance valve ... fill pipe went thru pegboard to basement storage. I'm thinking of adding one.


I think the thread was actually about fixing the siphon problem.

[TechWriter]

I use my spare water pump & a 5-gallon bucket. Much, much easier.

[raineman]

Originally Posted by Spk64

You can just add to your hose and connect it and fill the tank. Or if you have a whole house filter just remove filter and add there.
You want around 50 ppm chlorine to properly sanitize.
If you have 100 gallon tank it is about 1/2 cup of concentrated bleach (8.25%)
Or 1-1/2 cups if not concentrated (5.25%)
Fill tank run till you can smell at each faucet. Let sit for 6-12 hours.
Drain, fill with fresh flush out lines. Repeat till chlorine smell gone.

yup!

[znt1186]

I use the bleach in the hose method to fill my tank. Bleach in the filter canister does not sanitize the tank as well, at least not on mine. Water comes from the holding tank through the filter, then into the plumbing system of the coach.

[sdennislee]

Originally Posted by znt1186

I use the bleach in the hose method to fill my tank. Bleach in the filter canister does not sanitize the tank as well, at least not on mine. Water comes from the holding tank through the filter, then into the plumbing system of the coach.

Good point for those of us with filter housing after the tank. I put the bleach in my hose as well not because of the location of the filter but I want to sanitize the hose as well.

[Bob_C]

Be pretty easy to install a gravity fill ports......

[tizzyfit]

I've been using Hydrogen Peroxide instead of normal, garden-variety bleach. Pour it into the hose, connect the hose to the park water bib, turn it on and let it rip. Doesn't smell as bad as regular bleach to me at least.

https://survivalrecovery.wordpress.c...-purify-water/

[ghaynes754]

Well this is consistent . Multiple amounts of bleach concentrate, tablets, powder and hydrogen peroxide. The only thing missing is using a couple of gallons of Jim Beam. That outta do it.... and you don't need to flush...just sit back and be happy.

[TechWriter]

Originally Posted by tizzyfit

I've been using Hydrogen Peroxide instead of normal, garden-variety bleach. Pour it into the hose, connect the hose to the park water bib, turn it on and let it rip. Doesn't smell as bad as regular bleach to me at least.

https://survivalrecovery.wordpress.c...-purify-water/

You're confusing sanitizing an RV's water system with treating water itself. Big diff.

[tizzyfit]

Originally Posted by TechWriter

You're confusing sanitizing an RV's water system with treating water itself. Big diff.

Not confused at all. I only drink the water and have no desire to lick the container. Oh, I'm also guilty of drinking directly from the GREEN garden hose and have done so since I was a child some 70+ years ago.
As a "full-timer" I rely on and use the water in the fresh water holding tank regularly. Considering the fact most RV parks use local city water supply, which is already treated, I only use the Hydrogen Peroxide method when the campsite is supplied with well-water.

[Deek]

Originally Posted by chuckbear

We have used the following technique to clean our boat freshwater tanks for decades and now our RV tanks. This was written by Peggy Hall, an expert in all things marine sanitation. The recommendations for adding bleach to fresh water is 1/4 teaspoon or 8 drops of regular, unscented chlorine bleach per gallon. Let sit for at least an hour before using. Hope this helps...

Chuck

Excellent advice, Chuckbear. I agree that many folks forget that the fresh water lines are more often than not the real but hidden culprit in the presence of bad smell from the coach faucets.

For some time previously, I had a puzzling problem with smell coming only from the kitchen faucet and I learned by sanitizing the entire system that the most important thing is to be sure to get the bleach sanitizing solution into the water lines leading to all faucets and letting it stand in the lines for a while. When I was able to do that I eliminated my problem. When I made sure that the lines were infused with the bleach solution and allowed to remain pressurized before re-running them with fresh water, I saw that the problem for me was actually in the lines, not the faucet or the fresh water tank.

Now, I sanitize my fresh water tank and all fresh water lines at least every two or three months of coach usage. I use the approach recommended by others on this thread -- put the bleach solution into the whole coach filter canister and run the bleach infused fresh water through all faucets in the coach until bleach can easily be smelled coming out of the faucet in the running water -- then let it sit for a while -- at least 6-8 hours or overnight. This has the double benefit of sanitizing the entire fresh water tank at the same time as the fresh water lines and faucets are being sanitized.

After the sanitizing solution has entered and been run through the entire fresh water system and then been allowed to stand for 6-8 hours or overnight in the faucets, lines and tank, I dump the entire fresh water holding tank, fill it again with fresh water, run all faucets again and empty the tank a second time. Finally, I do this process -- filling the fresh water tank, running fresh water through all faucets and then emptying the tank -- one more time, then fill the fresh water tank for ongoing usage.

With my routine, I have had no further odor problems.

This might well be a bit of overkill on my part, but I have learned my lesson on bad smelling water from the faucet when looking forward to my morning coffee and getting an unexpected and unwelcome surprise -- I'd rather be safe and happy with fresh smelling and tasting water rather than be sorry and disappointed with otherwise good coffee that has to be wasted.


Deek

[Old Scout]

....for those of us who grew up in the rural areas [vs urban], this whole thread seems a bit over board. 95% of the time, the average RVer is connected to treated city water, including while at home. Understand that if stored over long periods, water can become stale or if you filled up at a remote CG, I could see the need to sanitize. But even then, filling the tank with 100 gals water, doped with bleach, seems like a waste of both water and bleach. So once or maybe twice a year, I use 10-15 gals of water in the tank with the appropriate about of bleach--what ever that is, then drive the coach a bit to slosh it around. Circulate thru lines and call it good enough. 15 yrs and 175k miles and wife still hasn't cashed in on my life insurance--just lucky I guess. "That which doesn't kill you, will make you stronger."
PS--I ate dirt as a kid too......

[dennis45]

Originally Posted by Old Scout

....for those of us who grew up in the rural areas [vs urban], this whole thread seems a bit over board. 95% of the time, the average RVer is connected to treated city water, including while at home. Understand that if stored over long periods, water can become stale or if you filled up at a remote CG, I could see the need to sanitize. But even then, filling the tank with 100 gals water, doped with bleach, seems like a waste of both water and bleach. So once or maybe twice a year, I use 10-15 gals of water in the tank with the appropriate about of bleach--what ever that is, then drive the coach a bit to slosh it around. Circulate thru lines and call it good enough. 15 yrs and 175k miles and wife still hasn't cashed in on my life insurance--just lucky I guess. "That which doesn't kill you, will make you stronger."
PS--I ate dirt as a kid too......

I ate carrots with dirt on them. Does that count?

[Canuck53]

Originally Posted by dennis45

I ate carrots with dirt on them. Does that count?

Only if you swallowed!!!