Which waste water tote and Why? - Fiberglass RV
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Old 07-02-2012, 10:40 AM   #1
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Name: Jack
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Which waste water tote and Why?

I grow tired of my initial enthusiasm for the shower pan as an alarm on the level in the grey water tank. Is there a waste water tote which, in your personal experence, is both simple, convenient, and durable? I don't have much faith in little plastic wheels with sleeve bearings bouncing over potholes behind the tug. I'd prefer to buy this once and get five yrs. of use out of it rather than buy it once a yr. for five and heave the old one in a dumpster. I'm thinking that a jerrican without wheels might be best but also thinking that 5 to 10 gal capacity would be about all I'd want to lift into the back of the 4runner. What do you use?

jack
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Old 07-02-2012, 10:59 AM   #2
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Get a couple of the smaller ones. Depending on the length of trip, you bring one or two. If two you can leave one hooked up and have the spare time to dump the second.

Or the Reliance fresh water jug has wheels and a handle that you could MacGuyver into working as a grey water.
Hydroller 8G/30L | Water Containers & Accessories | Reliance Products
When you say grey water tanks, the price doubles or more for the same sized plastic jug for some reason or another. Go figure.

I picked up my Hydroller at Walmart for less.
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Old 07-02-2012, 11:08 AM   #3
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As an almost offside topic but related

I stumbled across mods on a boat today that many of us could use in our trailers.
08-09 Sailing Lake Powell page 16

Not to mention that I have been getting a lot of ideas for mods from the tent trailers.

We could all benefit from thinking outside the egg.
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Old 07-02-2012, 11:21 AM   #4
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Roy, I just checked Amazon and the Hydroller is a lot cheaper there (with free shipping).

We would have to get the high lift axle in order to use that, I would think.
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Old 07-02-2012, 11:31 AM   #5
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If you are only want a small 5-10 gal. tote you dont need wheels. I have a 6 gal one like this one. I changed the caps on my grey water tank to the type with the water hose connection so I dont need to drag out the large slinky hose to drain it as the tank came with a short garden hose and it has a connection for it as well as the larger slinky hose. The small size of the tank means it doesnt take a lot of space in the back of the tow. Have had it 5 years and its as good as new.

Here is a link to this topic where Donna D posted a simple easy to make tote which is a way cheaper alternative.
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Old 07-02-2012, 11:31 AM   #6
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This may not be exactly to the point, but I have a 6 gal Tote-N-Store and a 10 gal Tote-Along on those "not good for anything serious" wheels. Most of the time we go out for 2 or 3 nights without dumping, so they don't get a lot of use.

At my age I am not anxious to lift them or maneuver them when full, and the connections lend themselves to spillage, so I rarely use them (but we have the deep well with a waterproof pan in the rear of the Ody which is very helpful).

I am planning on more extended trips again, so a solution is coming into focus: Add a 20 gal. or so fresh-water tank to the back of the Honda for resupply and do the following: for years I have used a Flo-Jet mascerator unit (good unit and very fast) to do dumping through a 50-foot black garden hose at home. It could be used to pump the waste into the two tanks I already have (I'd just leave them in the trunk area). Keeping them from overflowing could be a challenge, but a single larger tank could be the solution if that is a problem. The fittings are already on the portable tanks, so the mascerator could quickly be repositioned to reverse the flow at a dump site.

I have a spare, but functional water pump and a white fresh-water hose and I may fit it to the new fresh-water tank to resupply the Burro tank. There are 12v outlets both next to the trailer dump valve and one in the rear of the Honda, so that could work out.

The result is that I might be able to dump and resupply the trailer without 1) moving the trailer, and 2) lifting any tanks.

As you know, the dump valve on the Burro is none too high, so while this is OK at the average dump site, it presents a problem when trying to fill a portable tank. This proposed setup would make that a non-problem. Both hoses could be left attached to the tanks in the Honda, so spillage might be minimized.

If there is something I haven't adequately considered I'd like some feedback on this setup. Added weight is a potential problem, but I don't see doing this while doing serious mileage with these tanks full. I have about 70 lbs left on my tongue weight limit, but the rear airbags level things out, so that part is not a problem since the weight would only be on the Honda wheels.

This may work for me, since I have the pump, hoses, and mascerator already. The mascerator, water pump, and a serious fresh-water tank would add up to a tidy sum, but in my case I'm mostly making use of what is already there.

Incidentally, after 13 years of a cheap dump hose I got a real one, but I sawed off the extra length on the elbow to the dump hole that I've found in the state parks but left it long enough to push into the pipe without floating around. That left it short enough to fit all of it into one of those 4x4 vinyl fence post things without a problem. An extra elbow will do for the rare times we use a full hookup and need a firm screw-in connection.
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Old 07-02-2012, 12:26 PM   #7
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Water weighs about 8.3 pounds per gallon so a 10 gallon tote full would be over 80 pounds. Might be too much for some people to lift. 50 years ago (for me) 80 lbs would not have been an issue but now....
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Old 07-02-2012, 02:06 PM   #8
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Thankyou for the ideas. I have gone for the Husky Tote 'n Stor 15 gallon model at Amazon. Pretty hard to beat the price with free shipping. At 65, I can still manhandle 120#. I'm pretty certain I could walk a mile with two 5 gal. buckets and a shoulder yoke; problem would be how to fill them from dump valve 8" above ground. I am sooooo grateful to not have the same problem with black water.

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Old 07-02-2012, 02:32 PM   #9
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well,,,, i feel i made a good choice to not have a shower or toilet. we generaly stay where there are facilities.and right now,,,this post,,,makes me sort of happy,,,though i know that does you no good at all.
i did dry camp for a week in northern michigan. but used the same basic water and sanitation methods i would have used tenting or back packing ,with the exception that we did have access to a port-o-potty.
and for showers i had to drive about 15 miles to the nearest state park to use theirs. though we did tend to take refreshing dips in the river which cooled us off and rinsed most of the gub away.
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Old 07-02-2012, 02:33 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rabbit View Post
Thankyou for the ideas. I have gone for the Husky Tote 'n Stor 15 gallon model at Amazon. Pretty hard to beat the price with free shipping. At 65, I can still manhandle 120#. I'm pretty certain I could walk a mile with two 5 gal. buckets and a shoulder yoke; problem would be how to fill them from dump valve 8" above ground. I am sooooo grateful to not have the same problem with black water.

jack
back her real close to a cliff.....but be carefull.<_<
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Old 07-02-2012, 02:55 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sharon G View Post
Roy, I just checked Amazon and the Hydroller is a lot cheaper there (with free shipping).

We would have to get the high lift axle in order to use that, I would think.
Good find Sharon, I think the price on my link was suggested retail.

Have a look at the "notes" picture in the link you gave and hover your mouse over the squares to get the terms I will use.

Put the black handle in the down position.
Lay the tank with the black handle side down, the blue handle will be on the top. Use the capped air hole to connect to your grey water outlet. On my trailers the grey feeds only from the kitchen sink.
When the tank is full, you can use the spout to drain into the dump station and you tilt the tank as you near empty. Placing something between the black handle and the blue body also tilts the tank while keeping it stable.

A word of warning the spout needs teflon tape to keep it from dripping. Or maybe a washer.

Forgot to mention that I think the large opening may match the size and threads of the connector on one of my gray water tanks.
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Old 07-02-2012, 04:33 PM   #12
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I often get gubby [sic] John. Not always a river close by. Now tell me you don't have AC in your trailer and make ME feel really good.

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Old 07-02-2012, 04:55 PM   #13
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well, john may have AC but i sure don't. we also, like john, are extremely glad we don't have to deal with any of the above grey/black water issues. we have never used our water tank and when i do dishes, it's just like tentcamping---i walk them up to the sink provided at the facilities. showers---if not provided and/or no river or lake handy to have a refreshing dip, then baby wipes make a decent substitute.
water is brought by us from home for drinking, making tea or coffee and cooking.
we have become very water-conservative....a skill honed by many years of dry camping....literally!
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Old 07-02-2012, 05:18 PM   #14
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Roy, when my dump spout is in the down position, I only have 7" clearance from the ground at the highest point. I have the old 14" tires and the low axle. So the 11" on the Reliance jug would still be too high.

The only thing I've found so far that is low enough to work -- if I put it to the side instead of under the pipe -- is this.

But I can't bring myself to pay $150 for it, so will come up with some other home-cobbled solution.
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Old 07-02-2012, 06:26 PM   #15
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Drier (and hotter) than Thou. A commendable position no doubt.

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