Managing On-board Fresh Water

[barmcd]

We didn't carry much water around with us in the travel trailer or fifth wheel as net cargo capacity was pretty tight. I'd drain and shock the tank if we were going to be off grid and we did not really use it if we were going to campsites with facilities.

Now that we have a MH with a bigger tank I'm wondering how other people handle their tank. Do you keep water in it continuously and shock it every 3-4 months like the manual says?

[96 Wideglide]

If it does'nt get used in 4-6 weeks, I just dump it and replace with fresh.

[Clay L]

I did pretty much the same as Ben above but I usually just used it by turning the pump on and the city water off for a while.

[barmcd]

So you don't shock it before filling it again as long as you keep using it up?

[96 Wideglide]

I'm ussually filling mine at home with chlorinated city water.

[Dutch Star Don]

"barmcd"......A lot depends on your water and if you're a germaphobe. Our water in California is heavily chlorinated. In 40 years of RVing, I've never drained our tanks. The longest our water may sit is about two months before we go on a trip. We also have a water shortage so dumping a 100 gallons is not good. If you fill with well water or water that you're not sure of, than dump it. We also HATE the taste of the water in most Arizona towns, so we don't fill tanks there.

Since our coach is parked at our house and we live in earthquake country, the tank is always kept full (100 gallons) both at home and when we travel. I doubt anyone can show any noticeable increase in mileage or loss of power by running with their tanks empty. Maybe a rougher ride.

[96 Wideglide]

Yeah, I live in the land of plenty of fresh, soft water!

Sometimes too much !!

[Cat320]

Since we don't dry camp, we don't use the water in the tank for drinking. When on the road in the summer, we carry bottled water to drink and a small amount of water in the tank for the toilets. In the winter, bottled to drink, a couple of gallons in jugs for the toilets...and none in the tank.

[Mr_D]

I keep our tank about half full of the city, chlorinated water and have never had any problems doing that. Should probably go drain and refill it though since it's been 6 months since we've been out.

[530ktm]

Originally Posted by Dutch Star Don

"barmcd"......A lot depends on your water and if you're a germaphobe. Our water in California is heavily chlorinated. In 40 years of RVing, I've never drained our tanks. The longest our water may sit is about two months before we go on a trip. We also have a water shortage so dumping a 100 gallons is not good. If you fill with well water or water that you're not sure of, than dump it. We also HATE the taste of the water in most Arizona towns, so we don't fill tanks there.

Since our coach is parked at our house and we live in earthquake country, the tank is always kept full (100 gallons) both at home and when we travel. I doubt anyone can show any noticeable increase in mileage or loss of power by running with their tanks empty. Maybe a rougher ride.

Originally Posted by Mr_D

I keep our tank about half full of the city, chlorinated water and have never had any problems doing that. Should probably go drain and refill it though since it's been 6 months since we've been out.

I am somewhere right in with these guys and like Don says, water is like gold around our parts.

[palehorse89]

I bleach our system once a year, change all the filter's, and keep the tank full all the time. It still has about 1/2 tank from our Florida trip in Nov. and the Coach is just sitting in the shop. I made dinner in the Coach last weekend and made coffee in the morning..........a little winter camp-out in the garage.........water is fine.
Think of a gallon of water from the store, how long would you think the shelf life of it is? Most fresh water tanks are sealed per say.........as long as the over flow trap holds water. We have left water in our tank for over 8 years now while sitting over the winter with no problems, we use it from time to time over that period, spring time comes, time for water system maintenance.

[jacwjames]

Since we live in a cold enough climate to freeze pipes etc I dump the tank when I get ready to winterize.

When I reactivate the system I put ~15-20 gallons in the tank and shock it with chlorine. I run it through the piping in the RV and let is sit a week or two. I then add fresh water to top everything off.

During the year we usually travel with full tanks. If we are parked somewhere and the water is good we will top off, if not we'll go onto the next spot. We do carry bottled water for drinking.

[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.

[MisterT]

nothing in over 18 months, but we fulltime and travel alot, 45k miles, so no need to do anything, at least as of yet