cleaning water tanks

[cPaul]

Does anyone know the amount of clorox to put in the fresh water tanks to clean them per 110 gallon tank? Knew it once but as everything else forgot it! I just want to flush them out before we head out again.
Thanks, Paul

[cPaul]

Does anyone know the amount of clorox to put in the fresh water tanks to clean them per 110 gallon tank? Knew it once but as everything else forgot it! I just want to flush them out before we head out again.
Thanks, Paul

[JC2]

1/4 -1/2 cup per 15gal of water.

[jerry davis]

I work with the food manufacturing industry and the accepted no-rinse sanitizer solution of chlorine is 200ppm. To get this rate with clorox you need one ounce per every two gallons of water. This would work out to about 55 ounces in a full tank.

I would fill my tank about half full, add a quart of clorox (32ounces), drive around the block to slosh the solution around, run my inside faucets and then drain the tank. I would probably run fresh water into the system and then drain just to get the chlorine taste out.

[VAGABONDMAN]

You guys will have a tough time getting rid of the chlorine taste with that much chlorine. The amount of chlorine used depends on how long you let it sit in the tank. If you do the math, a 10 ppm dose in a full tank will take 2.6 ounces of 5% bleach.

If it were me, I would not use bleach at all because of the corrosive nature and the terrible taste. You might consider using hydrogen peroxide; it works just as well and doesn't leave the smell or taste.In this case, you don't have to worry about excessive use, so just put 3 or 4 ounces of 30% peroxide in the tank and slosh it around.

Needless to say, if you had a reverse osmosis system, you would not need to be sanitizing your tank. Starting with a clean tank + RO water means you have nothing to grow - therefore no bugs to kill.

[EngineerMike]

I have the Vagabond whole house RO system for 3 years, and have never needed to sanitize the tank or lines. I've pulled the pre-filters and gotten sulfur smell from the old media (anaerobic bacteria at work) but they don't make it past the RO membrane. Whether filling up in the Sierra Nevada foothills where the water is naturally excellent, or in AZ where the water is naturally disgusting, or in Mexico where the water may be good or bad but is always, shall we say biologically ambivalent?, we always have great pure water in the coach.

I didn't buy the RO for its added benefit of a spot free shower, but the wife sure loves that. When we traded coaches I added the RO feature immediately. Its the best option for a coach that I know.

[jerry davis]

10ppm is not strong enough to get an effective kill on the system surfaces. I agree the peroxide would be as effective as the bleach. However, I have used the method I described above at 200ppm with little residual odor or taste as long as you follow with a rinse.

[Old Rv'er]

Camper - one time did not santize tanks before trip - we both got sick. Never again - 1/4 cup per 15 gallons fresh water. I leave it in for 12 hours. Flush the next morning then drain out, fill system again with 1 cup baking soda mixed into a gallon of warm water and leave that in there, it minimizes the chlorine, and sweetens the water, makes the sensors work too. Have not gotten ill in 15 years doing it this way. Now we Have new 07 Apex, with RO, don't know anything about it, but will bypass RO and filters and sanitize system before trip to Montana, then won't have to worry. Good Traveling Old Rv'er.

[big jimbo]

My experience so far with the RO system, is that it take WAY too long to fill the water tank, especcially if you start with an empty tank.

Also, I wonder how ecologically responsible it is to put 2 gallons down the sewer for every gallon you keep. This seems to be a lot of waste of a precious resource.

[DrDaveCA]

Big Jimbo - One of the biggest reasons for slow filling is the pressure of the incoming water. If you use a pressure regulator, you will increase the time required to fill the tank. The amount of time is inversely proportional to the pressure, increase the pressure, reduce the time to fill. Do not use one and you will increase the production. Another thing you can do is contact Frank Rouse, VagabondMan (he is a frequent contributer here), he supplied the RO systems to WRV and can set you up with a second membrane, adding a second will dramatically increase production, however no matter what you do there will always be a certain amount of water that is rejected.

[Old Rv'er]

Hello All,
Someone commented that I might be wasting water. Hmmm, since I park it on the front lawn, the water being drained is going onto the lawn and not down the street to the sewer, plus I am hoping it will kill the moss. And my health is important to me, so if I do waste a little water, I am paying the bill, it's mine to waste. Normally I hook up a hose I have fashoned to the drain hole (on Alpinlite 5th Wheel) it worked. Since I dont' get the coach until Saturday, I won't know how it drains until I crawl under it and see where the drain is located. Then I can see if my long hose will attach and be of use to me. If not, then I can see what the fitting is, and fabricate something to fit, so I can use that water for all the plants around the place. Hope this helps.

[Ted III]

That is a wonderful idea about using your waste water for your lawn and plants at your home. Try doing that in a Georgia campground or many other states when you need to fill your tank with water. I assure you they will just tell you to leave.

[Old Rv'er]

My Friend, we are talking about sanitizing the fresh water tank, and after that flushing the fresh water tank. NOT the Gray or Black Tank. It's helpful to read the whole thread before making a post.

[jerry davis]

The beginning of this discussion was about sanitizing the water holding tanks. On of the biggest problems we rvers have is the faucets at the water source. The rig before you might have used the fresh water faucet to rinse out his sewer hose and then used the same hand to turn off the faucet. I ALWAYS spray the faucet neck and handle with a food grade quaternary disinfectant before attempting any fresh water hookup. This really helps keep bacteria from entering my coach system. I would do this even if I had an RO system installed.