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Old 06-20-2018, 05:05 PM   #1
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Post Saving water in your Class A

My fellow Newmarians here know I've changed my water pumps around first on the grounds of the Flojet that comes with the Newmar isn't that great. Quite frankly in hindsight I would have left the original pump on and never switched but carried a spare just in case as some have experienced pump failures and water pump controller failures, I carry a spare of each. I changed my water pump early on to a 5 gal per minute (gpm) pump that actually exceeded the electrical limit of my 10A water pump controller but since it's variable speed and only delivers the water pressure demanded I felt I was safe and would never max the pump's capability therefore exceeding the water pump controller 10A limit, and I left the 10A fuse in play to also provide a safety catch.

I wasn't too thrilled with that pump as it's quite a hefty pump so it was a bit noisier than I cared for, ultimately I never want to hear my water pump! But that's not going to happen. This bigger pump is for the bigger higher end rigs with bigger shower systems that need higher water pressure. I came across a recent thread and the Remco pump was suggested, the suggestion was for a 5 gpm pump which is not a good fit for my rig, I need to be in the 3 gpm realm so I found this pump by Remco. Long story short, I absolutely love this pump, it's quiet, you don't even hear it priming, and quite frankly delivers better water pressure at it's 3.4 gpm capability then the prior bigger pump. This one is definitely higher quality and much less cost then the one from Camping World (no wonder, it was a curse just by getting it from them). The Remco pump is also the better fix both in gpm and in electrical requirements for the 10A water pump controller.

So now I have a higher quality quieter water pump but a problem comes up, it's pushing even more water flow through the shower head, wow, what a great shower! So I emailed Remco "is there a way to dial down the water pressure" for boondocking scenarios or cases where you don't have city water. Remco replied promptly (great on them) that the pump will delivery what is demanded so the fix is not a dial a pressure pump but to control the flow by your shower head, aerator in a sink, etc.

My scenario is rarely ever water supply, I really don't worry about 100+ gallons being used. My problem is gray tank capacity. With a high flow shower and even with turning the water on and off it can impact gray tank filling fast and needing to dump more frequently. I bought one of these Valterra twist on waste valves so you can transfer gray to black if needed which I have yet to use but probably will soon with more state parks in the month ahead. Yes, I have a 42 gal barker tank in the toad but hope to never have to use it.

So per the advice of Remco I researched low flow shower heads. Come to find out the typically flow rate is 2.5 gpm and sure enough, that's what is in my coach. Waterpik seems to be the only one that makes a water saving shower head. I searched trusty Amazon and didn't find anything, oh well. Today I was doing what most campers do living out in the wilderness - go to Walmart! Walmart has a great assortment of 1.8 gpm shower heads, I got this one. Installation is a breeze, the only thing you're changing out is the shower head. Throw everything else away! Unscrew the old, screw on the new, you're now saving water flow! I did a tinker test with it, seems fine, seems like a lower flow but perfect for a shower, I'll know more in the morning with the weekly shower (kidding)

So wrapping up this thesis, if boondocking, saving water, saving gray tank is of any interest to you, regardless of your water pump, consider the end points and how they conserve water (shower heads, sink faucets, etc.). With my rigging up solar and desire to maximize use of state parks, amenities are less and conservation is more important.

Food (water) for thought.

(in attached picture new shower head is right, old one is in my hand)
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Old 06-20-2018, 06:21 PM   #2
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Oxygenics makes an RV showerhead that at maximum uses 1.5 gallons per minute. We have one and love the 'feeling' of more volume because air is mixed into the spray.
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Old 06-20-2018, 06:44 PM   #3
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Oxygenics makes an RV showerhead that at maximum uses 1.5 gallons per minute. We have one and love the 'feeling' of more volume because air is mixed into the spray.
Thanks for the tip. I'll give one of the Oxygenics a try too I just ordered this one from Amazon.
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Old 06-20-2018, 09:49 PM   #4
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We have had very good results with the Ecocamel Jetstorm. About 2 gym.

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Old 06-21-2018, 04:24 AM   #5
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Another good option - infinitely variable flow control:

https://www.amazon.com/K1140B-Shower...70_&dpSrc=srch
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Old 06-21-2018, 06:26 AM   #6
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First shower with the Waterpik. Outstanding!! Wasn’t the power jet flow of the 2.5 gpm yet perfect flow for the shower. Definitely water saving yet ideal for the task. Also wasn’t standing in a lake as the drain couldn’t keep up with the prior shower. This one I had no puddle and I even left it running.

Oxygenics is a 1.75 gpm (same as a 1.8!!!) and that comes Friday so I’ll test that this weekend.

So far I’m impressed with the quality and performance of the Waterpik.
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Old 06-21-2018, 06:52 AM   #7
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Okay Neal, let me see if I understand all of this. You just didn't feel comfortable with the OEM water pump when you got your coach so you got a great big one. It was way too big and loud so you got another one that was more in line with the original OEM. But then you started thinking....OMG....my tanks are too small to handle all this extra water so you went to Walmart and replaced your OEM shower head with a cheap one. But now you have a Oxygenics shower head on order?

Wouldn't you have accomplished the same end result if you would have simply purchased an Oxygenics shower head in the first place and waited to see if the original OEM water pump ever failed?
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Old 06-21-2018, 01:08 PM   #8
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Okay Neal, let me see if I understand all of this. You just didn't feel comfortable with the OEM water pump when you got your coach so you got a great big one. It was way too big and loud so you got another one that was more in line with the original OEM. But then you started thinking....OMG....my tanks are too small to handle all this extra water so you went to Walmart and replaced your OEM shower head with a cheap one. But now you have a Oxygenics shower head on order?

Wouldn't you have accomplished the same end result if you would have simply purchased an Oxygenics shower head in the first place and waited to see if the original OEM water pump ever failed?
As stated in my post, I recommend keeping your existing factory installed pump but carry a spare and spare water pump controller as well. If you're in a CG without city water and your water pump or water pump controller dies you're done!

I changed my pump soon after getting my coach because 1) I was in big time tinker blank check mode, 2) It was recommended that the factory installed pump was not good and a different one was recommended by a reputable fellow tinkerer. It was also a valuable lesson in how to change it which I can do quite easily now, the gymnastics and frustration of getting behind the wet bay panel can be very difficult at first.

I didn't know of or care about boondocking or water savings when I first started. Later I got solar, later I learned about water use, mostly gray/black tank management. With that knowledge and future boondocking such as mid-July waster use and conservation is part of the game. Study of the water restriction has been educational hence the shower head. Right now 5 starts on the Waterpik econo shower head (1.8 gpm) and I'm waiting to try the other one this weekend just for the fun of testing and exploring the water savings shower. Even Newmar has gotten on the water savings bandwagon in 2018 with that water circulating system for hot water, however, the shower heads not so much as quite frankly 99% of the Newmar yuppies are plugged in and enjoy the comforts of home. Even those that complain about the Microwave, I later realized the reason for what Newmar chooses is battery consumption, it was smart to put just a 1000W microwave in my coach for example as I can use it on inverter and solar has no sweat powering it either.

Lot's learned so far in 1.1 years, lot's to learn ahead which I share in my posts here including not so delightful experiences.
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Old 06-21-2018, 03:26 PM   #9
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Neal:

Thanks for being an experimenter, tinkerer and traveler of paths not frequently taken. We all benefit from your experiences, pro and con, when you post this kind of information.

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Old 06-21-2018, 04:01 PM   #10
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Thanks for posting all this information.

Since we've had so many problems using city water and just got on city water for the first time on our last camping trip 3 weeks ago (after 7 months of ownership), how does one change the water pump and/or controller?

You all make it sound so simple...we have tools, we just don't have the know how. I don't even know where it's located. Any hints for us noobs? And, since we've had so many problems, should we get an extra water pump and controller just to be safe? We've only used the water pump on our trips for the first 6 months and didn't realize how quiet it is when you don't use it...albeit the pressure was a little lower when the water pump wasn't turned on.

Love the techno threads; we will be semi-prepared when we get our DP.
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Old 06-21-2018, 05:31 PM   #11
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Neal:

Thanks for being an experimenter, tinkerer and traveler of paths not frequently taken. We all benefit *from your experiences, pro and con, when you post this kind of information.

TJ
*the pump and showerhead manufacturers.
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Old 06-22-2018, 05:06 AM   #12
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Thanks for posting all this information.

Since we've had so many problems using city water and just got on city water for the first time on our last camping trip 3 weeks ago (after 7 months of ownership), how does one change the water pump and/or controller?

You all make it sound so simple...we have tools, we just don't have the know how. I don't even know where it's located. Any hints for us noobs? And, since we've had so many problems, should we get an extra water pump and controller just to be safe? We've only used the water pump on our trips for the first 6 months and didn't realize how quiet it is when you don't use it...albeit the pressure was a little lower when the water pump wasn't turned on.

Love the techno threads; we will be semi-prepared when we get our DP.
First thing is identify your water pump. It is most likely a white flojet in the vicinity of your wet bay, probably just behind the wet bay wall. You'll see two flex lines going into it, input/output flow. Those lines are held in by a gate that you just pull out then the water lines come out, very simple. The water pump is mounted with four screws, the only challenge is accessing the screws. Finally, the red and black electrical wires go to your water pump controller, just follow them. Typically the black will just be its own spade connector, the red is probably spliced in sharing a spade connector. That's all there is to it.

You can find your water pump and water pump controller on Newgle. Most of us have a standard water pump controller which can be replaced with this one on Amazon which is what I carry for a spare. You can carry the same water pump as a spare which is a flojet typically, details on Newgle, either carry another flojet or consider a remco brand.

Biggest thing for anyone is to just know where it is and if you choose to carry a spare that's up to you. It's not hard to replace and if you're in the field and can't get the old pump off it's not a problem. Your replacement pump can just lay in the wet bay temporarily, just connect the electrical wires and connect the water lines after removing easily from the old pump and plug into the new pump.
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Old 06-22-2018, 06:41 AM   #13
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First thing is identify your water pump. It is most likely a white flojet in the vicinity of your wet bay, probably just behind the wet bay wall. You'll see two flex lines going into it, input/output flow. Those lines are held in by a gate that you just pull out then the water lines come out, very simple. The water pump is mounted with four screws, the only challenge is accessing the screws. Finally, the red and black electrical wires go to your water pump controller, just follow them. Typically the black will just be its own spade connector, the red is probably spliced in sharing a spade connector. That's all there is to it.

You can find your water pump and water pump controller on Newgle. Most of us have a standard water pump controller which can be replaced with this one on Amazon which is what I carry for a spare. You can carry the same water pump as a spare which is a flojet typically, details on Newgle, either carry another flojet or consider a remco brand.

Biggest thing for anyone is to just know where it is and if you choose to carry a spare that's up to you. It's not hard to replace and if you're in the field and can't get the old pump off it's not a problem. Your replacement pump can just lay in the wet bay temporarily, just connect the electrical wires and connect the water lines after removing easily from the old pump and plug into the new pump.
Thanks Neal! I'll be getting the MH a day early for our trip and can start poking around. We've got a similar wetbay to the DP; it's a little more simple from all the photos I've seen of the DPs.

Based upon the issues we've had having a backup water pump and controller would be proactive.

Really appreciate all the technical details you all put into your posts!

You give hope to those of us hoping to FT...
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Old 06-22-2018, 06:52 AM   #14
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…..175k miles over 15 years....std pump with std showerhead...install/use on/off valve on showerhead/take RV showers....save water...sometimes simple is best....and certainly cheaper.….[smile]
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