Community Forums

BillL · 02-09-2016, 07:27 PM

Since I have to winterize, I drain the tank for that. In the Spring, I add some chlorine to flush the system, drain that and then add water to the tank. We usually travel with enough water to get us to our destination. The once a year routine seems to work for us. Since I put chlorinated water in the tank, I feel fine with it.

dieselclacker · 02-09-2016, 08:29 PM

I drain our tank to winterize, re-fill with city water in the spring. No problems after twelve years. I have never felt the need to add more chlorine to the already chlorinated water.

twogypsies · 02-09-2016, 10:03 PM

As full-timers for 16 years we always traveled with 1/2 - 3/4 full as we boondocked and dry camped a lot. We got our water from many varied sources and we drank and cooked for the tank water. No problems. We're still here. Never chlorinated.

malexander · 02-10-2016, 03:43 AM

I've never "sanitized" a water system in any of my RVs.
I fill my tank at my house (well water), have never dumped it, just refilled as needed. We use our motorhome for a week or so, 2-3 times a year.
About the only water I drink is what's in the tea or coffee.

ladagobago · 02-10-2016, 04:51 AM

If you use bleach to sanitize - it is recommend that the process should be for 8 but not exceed 24 hours. According to the Homeland Security, city tap water should be rotated every 6 months. As a former boater we carried 150 gallons in our tanks and if it was over three months old we dumped it for fresh.

IC2 · 02-10-2016, 07:06 AM

It surprises me that people carry a full tank of water when they travel, especially if they don't dry camp. At 8-1/3 pounds per gallon, that adds a bunch of weight and in turn knocks some off your fuel/gas mileage and possibly adds some wear and tear. In our 65 gallon tank, ~540 pounds if full, we may have 10+/- gallons or maybe 80 pounds for that on road 'experience' when the rest stop bathroom looks like the hog clan took a bath, but never more. We use CG water, well filtered by my accessory filters which are 10 pounds or less, weight wise for a pre and decontaminates setup. As far as sanitizing the tank - maybe once a year when I dewinterize if CRS doesn't take over and I forget

barmcd · 02-10-2016, 07:15 AM

Thanks for all the input. We'll probably carry about half a tank and wont' worry about shocking it as long as we use it refill it regularly.

oakcreekeric · 02-10-2016, 08:34 AM

Interesting comments.. they appear to be across the board..

I guess I'll throw my two cents in...

Living in WI, we must winterize.. so, I empty everything prior to winterizing and use the pink stuff...

In spring, part of my "start up" program is to flush all the pink stuff out with city pressure, then proceed to a spring sanitizing of the tank/lines.. I usually do like most, fill up the 80 gallon tank with the appropriate amount of bleach/water mix and let sit over night.. then flush thru the various sinks... I proceed to do a second flushing with just fresh water (no bleach) and I am ready for the year.. I have done this each and every year I've owned a motorhome.. it's served me well.. as I'm sure other programs have worked for others..

It boils down to what you're comfortable with doing.. Personally, for me.. I like the extra thought knowing I've "cleaned" my system for the year..

As for traveling.. I've come to the conclusion we buy these rigs for the conveniences and amenities they offer... I used to be MPG conscience, then I thought, if I wanted to concern myself with MPG, I should have bought a Prius.. why wouldn't I want to have all options available to my whim...

Additionally, I read a thread on IRV2 of someone getting stuck on the HWY in a massive traffic jam (for hours).. It was a heart warming story how they were able to help fellow travelers with food, water and yes, bathrooms... I know the likelihood of me ever being in that position are the same as me winning the lottery.. but, again, I thought.. I want to be prepared for any/all scenarios that could happen..

So, from that point on... I carry a full load of water wherever we go.. not to mention... we do a lot of State Park camping... I use one of those "bullet" Camco filters.. and it takes a LONG time to fill our tanks at the campground.. and since we're still working stiff's.. we usually arrive later at night.. I like being able to pull into my site immediately, rather than waiting for my tanks to fill..

scharfm · 02-10-2016, 09:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mojoracing

Same here, Im always full whether its from home or somewhere we stop. I have bleached it once in 3 years and its been fine. Have had water from our well, Florida , and everywhere in between.

Do you drink your on-board water? or carry bottled water for typical drinking and coffee?

We typically use the on-board water for showers and toilet only, and carry bottled water for consumption. Maybe that's overkill--extra cautious. Just wondering.

barmcd · 02-10-2016, 09:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scharfm

Do you drink your on-board water? or carry bottled water for typical drinking and coffee?

We typically use the on-board water for showers and toilet only, and carry bottled water for consumption. Maybe that's overkill--extra cautious. Just wondering.

I've gotten into the habit of drinking bottled water all the time--at home or on the road. We use the on-board water for the toilet, shower, cleaning etc.

Wayne M · 02-10-2016, 10:19 AM

I follow the manufacturer's recommendation. Every year I drain, refill adding 2 cups of chlorinated bleach, let sit for four hours, drain, fill, flush.

We carry 1/3 tank when we travel, do not boondock and use city water when we stop. For drinking we use a Britta counter top filter and it works very well for coffee and drinking water.

When in doubt use the manufacturer's recommendation.

nothermark · 02-10-2016, 10:32 AM

FWIW drain as part of winterizing, bleach to clean out the pink stuff residue, fill and run off the tank and some bottled water. When the water tank gets low it's time to refill and dump the tanks. Seldom leave a campground with low water or full dump tanks... ;-)

Mr. Dave · 02-10-2016, 01:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scharfm

Do you drink your on-board water? or carry bottled water for typical drinking and coffee?

We typically use the on-board water for showers and toilet only, and carry bottled water for consumption. Maybe that's overkill--extra cautious. Just wondering.

Good Question, Scharfm.

Like others, we do an annual sanitization of the water tank and lines. I do it as part of my de-winterizing process.

When traveling we carry a full load of water in case we decided to stop somewhere and dry camp for a couple of days. It happens frequently as we travel until we've had enough driving for the day and find a place to stop. Maybe hookups or maybe not.

We do use the onboard water for drinking. Granted, I took it a step further with filtration. All the water coming in from an outside source (home or wherever we fill up) is run through a 1 micron sediment filter followed by a .5 micron carbon filter. It's in line with the city water connection.

For the drinking water, we installed a Reverse Osmosis unit under the sink. It can produce 75 gallons per day. We installed it last year for our Alaska trip. We knew we could find water but wouldn't be certain as to the quality. RO took care of wondering about the water.

My bride was a bit hesitant on the RO water at first. She wanted to haul bottled water. I asked her to try the RO water. She did and was impressed with the quality of the water. So no more having to purchase water, haul the bottles around and then have to get rid of the bottles.

Take care!

twogypsies · 02-10-2016, 07:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by barmcd

I've gotten into the habit of drinking bottled water all the time--at home or on the road. We use the on-board water for the toilet, shower, cleaning etc.

Wow! If we bought water for drinking/cooking during our 16 years of full-timing we wouldn't have been able to afford full-time.

Like I stated earlier, we used our tank water for everything however we filtered it before entering the tank and also at the kitchen faucet. That's probably more filtering than some of the store-bought water gets.

Even some of the national parks are eliminating the sale of bottled water. You bring your own water bottle and refill it at the dispenser in the park. Those bottles bring a LOT of trash. We know. We've helped pick them up during our volunteering in parks gigs.