Fresh water tank use

[2010augusta]

I'll thrown my 2 cents in to this discussion.

We full-time so there is no storage/winterizing for us. We use "city water" almost all of the time. The only filter we have is a small unit on the ice-maker/water-dispenser line. We cook, wash and flush with the water as it comes out of the spigot. In all the places we have traveled, we have not had a problem with "bad" tasting water.

When we travel we carry just enough water to wash hands, rinse lunch plates, and flush the toilet. If we had to boondock a night then we have to carry a bit more water. I don't want to tow any more weight then absolutely necessary. we are already at nearly 16,500#, so why add an extra 600-700#'s?

Our current camp ground is on a private well and has very good water, BUT being a well, if there is a power outage, the is a water outage too. It took one power outage for us to learn to keep the tank FULL while at the camp ground.

This holds true for winter camping too. We have heater hose and I even heated the riser and spigot, but not everyone in the camp ground does, so if one spigot freezes and breaks during a cold snap, the camp ground has to turn off the well for everyone, and that means that unless your tank is full , you will be with out water until the break is fixed and all the lines (that are now froze too, since no water ran through them for hours) have thawed.

We actually had a power outage last night and sure enough we had no water for 3 hours, during the outage Sandy came home from a 12 hour shift, we turn on the pump and Voilà, she has water to clean up, the generator was purring away and kept the TV and DVR running, and that made "Momma" happy and we all know how important it is to keep Momma happy.

 

[lwmcguir]

Our tanks both sag when full as many others do. We don't want the extra weight as we are already near the legal maximum as well so about 20% full of water and then we fill at the camp ground. We do add bleach with the first fill of the spring and always have for many years. After that the water is used for everything.

 

[beasleyrl]

I don't believe the manufacturer would design the trailer with 100 gallons of storage if the trailer was not capable of storing that 100 gallons.

I do realize that there are trailers out there that have had tanks fall out.

I'll be traveling with my tanks full when I leave the house

Have to agree with this. However, next time you have the underbelly off your rig, I'd suggest taking a look at how the tanks are secured. Last summer when we had the hydraulic lines repaired, the folks doing the repair called me over to take a look at the tanks. The tanks were sitting on what appeared to be pressed board with the wood strapped up to the frame. Over time, this pressed wood had obviously got wet and was deteriorating badly. The tanks were fine -- just the wood was a problem. They removed the wood and added some new supports (some form of metal). Had they not seen this, I have a feeling ours might have been one of those falling out. That said, to some of the other off road comments about toy boxes, we don't do that so I'm not sure that really matters. We typically keep them about 1/3 full during the season unless we are planning to use them then fill up completely at home.

 

[Niles]

First off, Hey Dick and Reta good to hear you're still enjoying, looking forward to being neighbors in June again. Been gone over the weekend so just found you post.We put some of that Cheap water purifier stuff in the tank in the spring just to make sure over the winter months we didn't get any mold in the tank, we use well water because that's what we have. I don't think it hurts anything to just use bleach to do the same thing, just clean it out once in awhile. We live in a farming area so I've drank from water hoses and water hydrants on farms where I suppose no one from the city would and I ain't dead yet. Maybe we need a little unpure stuff once in awhile so every little bug comes along we don't catch it.

 

[hillsonwheels]

Many thanks to all who have responded to one of those "hmmmmm" questions. Keep your responses coming. They are of interest to me and may be a big help to foks who are just starting out.

Niles.....we lost you over the winter. Hope all is well there. Happy to hear we'll be neighbors again. Didn't know if you made the cut or not. Seeya!

 

[newbie]

Because of the amount of unusable water on the potable tank (15%?), I worry about that much stagnant water in the tank for extended periods of time. City water has enough chlorine to provide protection for a while. I put well water in mine so I flush with bleach every spring. Call me paranoid but we always bring separate water for drinking and cooking.

My Aunt got very sick because of some bad water in her 5th wheel water tank. Since flushing with chlorine is so cheap, it seems like good practice to me.

John

 

[ChopperBill]

Sagging. Our "06" sagged so much I put a steel channel under it. Have filled up the "11" at least a dozen times last summer clear to the top and looking under the trailer you cant even see where the tank is suppose to be. And I get most of the water out of it too. Pretty dog gone happy! Oh sometimes I have to blow out the vent and stick the filler hose way down it to keep it filling. A very minor inconvenience.

 

[mesteve]

Please keep in mind that regular chlorine, which is what most cities use, is not naturally soluable in water and will separate back into gaseous in ~24 hours. Chloromine, on teh other hand is more stable and needs to be intentionally removed.

Used to keep saltwater fish, so this was something I was intimately aware of all the time.

 

[newbie]

But once the water has been in the potable tank for 24 hours, it should have done it's job.

John

 

[mesteve]

John,I think you are making a couple of assumptions that are potentially dangerous.

1-That the city is using enough chlorine on the day you fill up. The EPA sets basic national guidelines, may not be adequate for all water sources and certain critters are nearly immune to chlorine
2-That there is absolutely nothing living in your tank that can thrive after the chlorine has disipated
3-That anything in your tank does not react to the disinfectant (usually chlorine) added to create hazardous by products

This is a bit of a divergence from the topic, but I just wanted to share what most people don't realize about tap water. To be totally honest, I am not sure most drinking water companies are any better unless they distill and/or RO (the pessimist in me shining thru). Downside of distilled is it takes ALL of the trace minerals out too, many of which we need on a daily basis.

Now, this in not to say its not safe to use the water holding tanks, just take the necessary precautions outlined all over the web to ensure your tank is as clean as it can be. I use and will continue to use mine.

 

[porthole]

I think one of the best things you can do to your fresh water tanks is to keep it - well - fresh.

Fill it, use it, drain it, fill it, use it etc. Don't let it sit. There is stuff in the water the will go bad and make it less then palatable.

 

[hillsonwheels]

Tend to agree that constant use, especially if coach is moved to create some sloshing around, would be a better way to go. But, the way we camp all we need is a little for hand washing and flushing. So, even tho I add bleach to the tank at the first of the year, still a little leary. Matter of fact, I just drained mine, added 3 gallons of bleach and filled her to the brim. I let it set 24 hours and drained about half of it. As some have alluded to, it's better to be safe than sorry me thinks.

The lingering chlorine smell is a little off putting but seems to be a safer way to go for us. Bad thing is the bride has asthma and strong odors can really set her off on a not very good path.

 

[porthole]

Dick - that is way too much bleach!

I don't have my "formula" with me but this is pretty much a standard:

Turn the water heater off and let the water cool.
Dilute 1/4 cup of household bleach for each 15 gallons of tank capacity in to a gallon of water.
Add the chlorine/water solution to the water tank. (Never pour straight bleach into the RV fresh water tank. )
One faucet at a time, let the chlorinated water run through them for one or two minutes. You should be able to smell the chlorine. (Make sure you are using the water pump and not an external water supply.)
Top off the RV fresh water tank and let stand for at least three hours over night is better.
Completely drain the system by flushing the faucets for several minutes each. Open the fresh water tank drain valve to speed up emptying the tank.and Open the hot water tank drain plug and drain until it is empty.
Close all valves and faucets and drain plugs.
Fill water tank with fresh water.
Flush each faucet for several minutes each repeating until the tank is again empty. (Make sure you are using the water pump and not an external water supply.)
Fill the tank again. The water should now be safe to drink but if the chlorine odor is too strong you can repeat the fresh water flush.
Your RV fresh water system should now be safe for use.

 

[hillsonwheels]

Man you are quick!!!!!!!!!! Hadn't even gotten my finger off the send button!

Could very well be too much bleach. I posted once before asking newbie dumb questions and got answers all over the grid. Kinda/sorta forgot what was said and used WV windage.

As to your other advice re: using the pump to cleanse/blow everything out...I was at least smart enough to figure that out. Also, I've not, as yet, forgotten and run bleached water into the hot water side.

The down side of your post is that now I'm gonna have to crawl under the coach one more time and drain 'er down for a partial refill of city water. Thanks my friend?

 

[porthole]

Anytime brother. I think the formula is in the owners guide that comes with our trailers.

 

[hoefler]

You can get chlorine poisoning from to much chlorine either by contact or breathing it! You need to flush the system until all hint of chlorine is gone. You are supposed to add enough chlorine to obtain a minim concentration of 5 ppm, let set for 24 hours and flush until clear. I have a Mo. Health department book that gives specific instructions for sanitizing a fresh water system for human use and consumption. We had to chlorinate our well annually for our resort.