Monitoring water level

[Sid]

In my camping adventures I have always been able to monitor my water usage by looking at the 5 gallon collapsable jug. If it was flat it was time to get more water! Now that we have the Park Liner how do we know if we are getting low before we run out?

[Darwin Maring]

When taking a shower, the water stops running.
For drinking, when you run out of bottled water.

[Evergreengirl]

Does your Parkliner not have a gauge that shows you water levels in your fresh, gray and black tanks? Depending on where your tank is located, you may be able to do a visual inspection. In our trailer the fresh water tank is under a bench and if I lift up the seat I can see the water level because the tank is somewhat translucent. Yours may be like this too? We also keep a 4 gal. jug of water for drinking and, like you said, that can be monitored the old fashioned way.

[Huck]

What I am doing is putting in 5 gallons at a time, assuming I have close by access to water.

[steve dunham]

Originally Posted by Evergreengirl

Does your Parkliner not have a gauge that shows you water levels in your fresh, gray and black tanks? Depending on where your tank is located, you may be able to do a visual inspection. In our trailer the fresh water tank is under a bench and if I lift up the seat I can see the water level because the tank is somewhat translucent. Yours may be like this too? We also keep a 4 gal. jug of water for drinking and, like you said, that can be monitored the old fashioned way.

Our fresh water tank is also under a rear bench . Trying to access the tank means having to lift up the mattress and often destroying the bed my wife so carefully made (Not Going to Happen ) I dump 5 to 7 gallons of water into the tank each morning and then hope for the best
We also keep 4 one gallon jugs of water on hand when traveling as a backup supply

[Scamper Jim]

You could spend big bucks for a monitor system, or you could drill a hole near the bottom in the water tank and insert a fitting with a barb end. Then attach a clear hose to the barb and run the hose out to where you can see it and run it up as high as a full water tank. The water level will show through the hose. You can draw 1/4, 1/2 and 3/4 levels on the hose.

[Stretcher]

I just installed a clear deck plate in the top of my Scamp fresh water tank. While the main reason for doing so was to be able to clean the tank, it also allows me to see the water level. Amazon offers deck plates in a variety of sizes. Ours is 8", probably overkill, but it make accessing the tank easier.
It's located under the bench seat so getting into the compartment is required.

[Sid]

This site is amazing! Thanks everyone for your comments. I will probably stick with the low tech 5 gallon morning top off for now since the tank is not translucent. The egg being new I am hesitant to begin surgery no matter how sligh,at least for now ( epically if Vicki is looking :P ).

[jack smith]

Umm... remove the cushion, lift the wooden cover, look at the tank. Low tech for me!

[Andrew Morris]

Originally Posted by Scamper Jim

You could spend big bucks for a monitor system, or you could drill a hole near the bottom in the water tank and insert a fitting with a barb end. Then attach a clear hose to the barb and run the hose out to where you can see it and run it up as high as a full water tank. The water level will show through the hose. You can draw 1/4, 1/2 and 3/4 levels on the hose.

Jim - would you happen to have any pics of doing this? Also, I presume you have to leave the end of the hose open to atmosphere in order to have the water level rise/fall accurately in relation to the tank level - is there any spillage, particularly if traveling with water in the tank?

Sent from my Z30 using Fiberglass RV mobile app

[Scamper Jim]

Andrew,

I saw the idea posted by someone else either on this site or on another, there are too many sites to keep straight after a while. I don’t have photos of the site-hose method as I have a monitor for the tanks.

Correct, there would be a small opening at the top of the hose end to allow for air pressure changes with changes in the water level. But it could be a very small hole drilled through a golf tee that plugs the top end of a 1/4” or 3/8” hose.

Since the hose is connected at the bottom of the tank where the water movement is stable, and if the hose ends a few inches higher than the tank, there would be no sloshing around or spilling during travel.



Jim

[Randy P.]

You could also run the hose back into the top of the tank creating a closed loop site gauge.

[Andrew Morris]

Excellent ideas! I have a leak in my fresh water tank so when I replace it I am going to be repositioning it to place it closer to the trailer's axle for better weight distribution and stability. When I do this I will certainly be interested in installing a simple sight gauge such as this... I will try to document my work and post pics...


Sent from my Z30 using Fiberglass RV mobile app

[Jared J]

Completely different application, but...same principle mentioned above.

[Borrego Dave]

I did the site glass thing on a cabover 25 years ago. Two 90* angles and a piece of vinyl hose. The tank was at the front of the camper under the step to get into the overcab bed. Just cut a slim slot, 1/2" wide by the hight of the tube in the paneling so I could see it. Think it cost me about ten bucks and took about two hours. Oh, also rounded a piece of styrofoam to float in it to make it easy to see. Not sure how something like that would work with the different moulded trailers since the tanks are pretty much under the rear dinette seats but thought I'd throw it out there.

[blodn1]

I know this is a little spendy, but it'll monitor your fresh, grey and black tanks, and isn't difficult to wire:
Amazon.com: See LeveL Tank Monitor 709: Automotive

[Steve L.]

In the Casita I'm lucky enough to have a storage area with an outside hatch through which I can see the tank. I filled it 5 gallons at a time, making a mark. Also pretty low tech.

[Steve Outlaw]

Originally Posted by blodn1

I know this is a little spendy, but it'll monitor your fresh, grey and black tanks, and isn't difficult to wire:
Amazon.com: See LeveL Tank Monitor 709: Automotive

Deborah,

When you get your Oliver this will be standard equipment.

[Paul O.]

Originally Posted by jack smith

Umm... remove the cushion, lift the wooden cover, look at the tank. Low tech for me!

I like it. Save the high tech for where it matters. I just cut off about 1/3 of the wooden cover and replaced it with a piece of 3/8 thick lexan piece; shimmed it up to make up for the thickness of the cover. I only have to lift the corner of the cushion a little to look. Need a flash light to see the water level better, but that is always in a cubbyhole nearby.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

Our fresh water tank is also under a rear bench . Trying to access the tank means having to lift up the mattress and often destroying the bed my wife so carefully made (Not Going to Happen ) I dump 5 to 7 gallons of water into the tank each morning and then hope for the best
We also keep 4 one gallon jugs of water on hand when traveling as a backup supply

Before we had the SeeLevel system we added this door by simply using a picture frame to build the door with the cutout inserted where the picture and glass would go. simply opening the door allows access to a view of the tank.
We used a tap light placed inside... but a flashlight works just fine.
No more lifting cushions or unmaking the bed.