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Old 03-07-2016, 06:12 AM   #1
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Bleach vs Vinegar for Fresh Water Decon

I want to do a thorough decontamination of my fresh water system. It's more of a prevention thing and not a result of anything bad.
What are the thoughts on using bleach vs Vinegar? I've seen both recommended at various times.
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Old 03-07-2016, 06:16 AM   #2
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What does your owner's manual say? Mine says use a bleach solution ... so that's what I go with.
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Old 03-07-2016, 06:31 AM   #3
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Bleach is the standard everywhere for killing germs.

Vinegar is used to remove mineral deposits. I haven't had to do that to my fresh water system. I've used vinegar in the toilet to dissolve deposits so that water would stay in the bowl.
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Old 03-07-2016, 06:33 AM   #4
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Vinegar is the "green" OMG bleach is a chemical response. It is not even close in effectiveness at equivalent concentrations. We use bleach. By the second tank of water what comes out tastes like what went in.
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Old 03-07-2016, 06:37 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by nothermark View Post
Vinegar is the "green" OMG bleach is a chemical response. It is not even close in effectiveness at equivalent concentrations. We use bleach. By the second tank of water what comes out tastes like what went in.
Um, vinegar is also a chemical response. Vinegar is actually an acid and it used to be used to sterilize equipment in hospitals. Vinegar is more effective than bleach in killing mold, BTW. Bleach lightens the black stain, but vinegar actually kills it. "Equivalent concentrations" is the operative phrase here...
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Old 03-07-2016, 06:39 AM   #6
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Bleach is the standard. Health codes for restaurants require bleach, not heard of using vinegar.
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Old 03-07-2016, 06:42 AM   #7
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Old 03-07-2016, 06:56 AM   #8
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Um, vinegar is also a chemical response. Vinegar is actually an acid and it used to be used to sterilize equipment in hospitals. Vinegar is more effective than bleach in killing mold, BTW. Bleach lightens the black stain, but vinegar actually kills it. "Equivalent concentrations" is the operative phrase here...
Agreed. There is a huge amount of material posted many places about it. Mostly by people who are afraid of bleach or who do not understand that everything is a "chemical". ;-))
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Old 03-07-2016, 07:01 AM   #9
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The substitute for bleach is hydrogen peroxide, though that requires a stronger concentration than the bleach.

Vinegar is not approved for disinfecting in hospitals, according to the EPA and CDC. However, at full strength it is effective for something.

Here is what the CDC has to say:

Quote:
Some environmental groups advocate "environmentally safe" products as alternatives to commercial germicides in the home-care setting. These alternatives (e.g., ammonia, baking soda, vinegar, Borax, liquid detergent) are not registered with EPA and should not be used for disinfecting because they are ineffective against S. aureus. Borax, baking soda, and detergents also are ineffective against Salmonella Typhi and E.coli; however, undiluted vinegar and ammonia are effective against S. Typhi and E.coli 53, 332, 333. Common commercial disinfectants designed for home use also are effective against selected antibiotic-resistant bacteria 53.
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Old 03-07-2016, 07:20 AM   #10
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Originally Posted by JohnH12 View Post
I want to do a thorough decontamination of my fresh water system. It's more of a prevention thing and not a result of anything bad.
What are the thoughts on using bleach vs Vinegar? I've seen both recommended at various times.
JohnH12
I've sanitized my fresh water system twice (once in '01 and agiain in 2014).
Both times I used a solution of Clorox un-scented bleach, (1/4 cup of bleach for each 15 gallons of tank capacity in a gallon of water), as recommended in my owner's manual, (and here): http://rvbasics.com/techtips/sanitiz...er-system.html
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Old 03-07-2016, 09:26 AM   #11
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FWIW anyone who winterizes should consider sanitizing with bleach when opening up the system in the spring. Aside from any potential microbial problems it also cleans out residual pink stuff and/or blowby oil from the compressor used to blow the water out of the lines.
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Old 03-07-2016, 09:41 AM   #12
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FWIW anyone who winterizes should consider sanitizing with bleach when opening up the system in the spring. Aside from any potential microbial problems it also cleans out residual pink stuff and/or blowby oil from the compressor used to blow the water out of the lines.
nothermark
I have never used pink stuff in my fresh water system... (nor have I blown it out with compressed air)... but I did sanitize it in '01 when my coach was new to me...(and again in 2014).
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Old 03-07-2016, 10:11 AM   #13
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Use the pink RV antifreeze for winterizing. Then go through a 4 step process in preparing to roll again.
1. Fill and rinse with plain water to move the pink stuff out.
2. Treatment with bleach. Fill. Let stand 4 hours. Drain.
3. Add baking soda, fill, and rinse. Freshens and removes any lingering bad taste from anything.
4. Fill with plain water, drain, and refill.

Luckily I also have an exterior intake direct into the tank.

When hooked up for customary water intake, all water into the coach is filtered.

This was recommended process in several articles and seems to work well. Water in the moho is always clean and good tasting - unless we pick up some bad water or hard water along the way. Then sometimes I will drain and refill when good water is located.
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Old 03-07-2016, 10:17 AM   #14
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Nothing survives chlorine, not even mold spores. That's why bleach is the standard... and not vinegar.
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