The portable shower

[Ken James]

We installed a portable shower in our current 17' Bigfoot. We resented the loss of space for a bathroom that is in use such a short time each day. So, since we have a porta-potti, all we needed was our shower and we could take out the bathroom. Here is our shower solution.

Once again, this was posted earlier but lost in the hijacking, I'm just trying to restore some things.

This portable shower is all based on this Coleman battery-operated pump system.

We heat water on the stove and put this pump in the pot and the hose takes the warm water into the shower stall. More to follow.

[Ken James]

Here is the shower stall we hang from the ceiling. The water is collected in a tray at the bottom. Of course, you have to keep the shower curtains inside of the catch tray.

There are a number of ways the hanging of this frame can be accomplished. Some, in Bolers and such, have used tension shower curtain rods to press against the cupboards and the closet on each side to create something to hang the shower stall from.

[Ken James]

This is how the shower curtains look in their final form. We sewed loops which had small plasic rings in them. In the ceiling we screwed cup hooks to which we clip the plastic rings.

When we finish our shower we pump the water back into a 5-gallon plastic jug using the same pump that fed the warm water from the stove into the shower head. Now we can dispose of the grey water at our own convenience.

Then we fold the shower curtains into the catch tray along with the pump and slide the whole thing under the bed. This allowed us to put a larger bed in our trailer once we took out the bathroom.

[Ken James]

Here's the larger bed now that the bathroom is gone.

[Dave Chatham]

Ken, Is that a PINK dust ruffle (ruffie) I spy on the larger manly bed, OH MY!
( dust ruffles,this could be the new okra)

[Ken James]

Yes, that's a pink dust ruffle Dave. It makes a nice cover for my shotgun that I carry under the bed.

[Gina D.]

Ken wins!

[Dave Chatham]

Yes he does, never poke at a man with a shotgun!

[Frederick L. Simson]

When you took out the bathroom, did you add the 2nd small window in the rear of the trailer? I remember that 17' Bigfoots had the bed in the corner oriented front-to-back with the bathroom in the opposite corner. You re-oriented the bed side-to-side across the back. Very clever way to get a longer bed.

[Darrel Smith]

Good mod Ken, I like it.

My Compact II is too low to install a built in shower, which is one thing my wife is not crazy about, but your mod would allow me to place the shower in the pop up area of my trailer and 'wala' instant shower.

I have a couple of questions about the pump set up. We have been using the coleman pump for a shower while tent camping. This last summer I tried to use the pump it would not work. I took it apart and found the whole thing rusted inside. I had been submerging the pump end in a water container and not screwing it onto the coleman collapsable like it was designed to do. I think the water got into the pump somehow and rusted it.

I think you said you drop your pump into a warm water source to shower and then into the catch base to pump it out when you are done. Do you think rust will be a problem for you down the road or maybe my problem was the exception? I am invisioning mounting a small 12 volt boat bilge pump which is designed to be submerged that could be used the same way as the coleman portable. It could be pluged into a 12 volt outlet located close where you set up the shower.

A similer set up is used in boat showers with a small submersable pump connected to a water level switch mounted in a sump area connected to the shower. Any time water level activates the switch it starts pumping away.

I know the coleman battery power is convenient but will it hold up over time by submersing it.

Thanks again for your mod idea.

Darrel

[Ken James]

Thanks Darrel! We are real pleased with that shower mod. We've used it for over a year now and show no signs of rust or problems of any kind.

In fact, on several occasions the hot water went off in the apartment building we live in. My wife cannot, or will not, start her day without a shower. I simply went down to the parking lot where we keep the trailer and turned on a burner under a large pot of water. Actually, we have two stock pots of 2 1/2 gallons each. We measured (by putting the plug in our bathtub) how much water Di used when showering. A normal shower uses less than 3 gallons. Washing hair pushes that up to about 5 gallons. She went down there and showered and peace reigned once more in our home.

By the way, we also bought a baby bath thermometer. Now I can measure exactly what temp she likes and regulate the water in the pots accordingly.

As I said, once the shower is finished we pump the water out of the catch bin into a plastic jug to be disposed of. It is all very efficient and convenient. We love it!

[Ken James]

Darrel;

As an afterthought we put a 4-way joint in the shower frame to give a place for the shower head to pass thru. This allows for hands-free showering.

See attached picture.

The shower head fits snugly into the piece of 3/4" ABS, so much so that one can twist it to point the stream exactly where you want it to go and it stays there. Then with a little twist you can pull it out and spray anywhere you wish. Very handy!

[Ken James]

Frederick;

Our original trailer had a window in the bathroom as well as one in the bed area hence we get two now. My brother-in-law bought a newer 17' and his has only one window across the back.

That bed we have now is extra large, 54" wide by 90" long, and we like it like this a whole lot. We each lounge at opposite ends when watching TV which sits over on the table in the dinette.

[Darrel Smith]

Hello again Ken.

I hope you don't mind me asking a fiew more questions.

What do you use for the catch basin? I have looked for options but haven't found anything big enough for this wide body jet set. Do you pump right off the pot on the stove while showering? Have you had any splash problems? Sorry about all the questions but I really think this is the way to go.

Thank you
Darrel

[Gina D.]

I have a similar arrangement, tho my curtian is hung on suction cups. With the Burro glass walls, this is easy.

I snickered at Kens story of retreating to the trailer to shower when the house system goes down.

My Coleman shower is in my house right now. The wind keeps blowing out my pilot on my water heater! I have given up trying to keep it lit (It's in a shed outside the house) and have been using my camping set up for 3 days! Only in a real shower stall

"Always have a back up" even for the home on a foundation!

I sure hope the wind dies down tho...

I have had mine for over a year, no rust issues either. Maybe you got one with funky plating?

[Ken James]

Darrel, feel free to ask away, I'm only too happy to help if I can.

I first bought a plastic bin as a catch tray. They come in many sizes and may work for you. However, for me, I decided upon building a bin of plywood to my exact size and fiberglassing the whole thing. Under the new bed we built, I left a door to give access to the storage space under there. I made the catch tray so that it would slide in that opening. As luck would have it, when I pull the tray out it ends up directly under my hanging frame to which we hang the shower curtains.

Yes, we leave the pot on the stove. I first heat the one pot and regulate the temp with cold water and turn off the gas under that pot. Then the wife starts her shower and I turn the heat on under the second pot. As she gets down in water I add with a ladle if needed. She does the same for me of course.

A lone person could do all of this due to the small size of the trailer. You simply reach out through the joint in the curtains and the pot is within arms reach.

As for splashing, we never get a drop anywhere outside the enclosure. Remember, that shower head only works when you depress the button. So if you reach outside for some reason you merely turn off the flow before doing so. We lay out our fresh clothes on the dinette before showering then we step out onto the carpet, get dressed, pump the water back into the jug, and we have the whole trailer again. No bathroom space lost!


We wipe the curtains dry, fold them and put everything, pot, pump, thermometer, and curtains into the tray and push it under the bed and we're ready for another day enjoying our trailer.

Here is a picture of the catch tray I built.

[Ken James]

I have a similar arrangement, tho my curtian is hung on suction cups. With the Burro glass walls, this is easy.

I snickered at Kens story of retreating to the trailer to shower when the house system goes down.

My Coleman shower is in my house right now. The wind keeps blowing out my pilot on my water heater! I have given up trying to keep it lit (It's in a shed outside the house) and have been using my camping set up for 3 days! Only in a real shower stall

"Always have a back up" even for the home on a foundation!

I sure hope the wind dies down tho...

I have had mine for over a year, no rust issues either. Maybe you got one with funky plating?

Gina, you were smarter than we were. Why didn't we just bring the pump into the apartment? We could have heated water on the stove and showered without much inconvenience at all. Once again, thanks to this forum I'm a tad wiser. In future we'll follow your example.

[Darrel Smith]

Gena and Ken you have convinced me to give the coleman another chance. I guess my experience with rusting was just a fluke. I will buy two colemens though just in case my luck holds true. With that in mind I will beplanning to incorporate a shower for my wife and me, when she insists, as I continue with my restoration.

Thank you again for your great help and everyone on this great forum. It really is like a great big family. I especially appreciate Michael and all the moderators who work so hard to keep this forum so great.

Thank you
Darrel

[Ken James]

Good mod Ken, I like it.

My Compact II is too low to install a built in shower, which is one thing my wife is not crazy about, but your mod would allow me to place the shower in the pop up area of my trailer and 'wala' instant shower.

I have a couple of questions about the pump set up. We have been using the coleman pump for a shower while tent camping. This last summer I tried to use the pump it would not work. I took it apart and found the whole thing rusted inside. I had been submerging the pump end in a water container and not screwing it onto the coleman collapsable like it was designed to do. I think the water got into the pump somehow and rusted it.

I think you said you drop your pump into a warm water source to shower and then into the catch base to pump it out when you are done. Do you think rust will be a problem for you down the road or maybe my problem was the exception? I am invisioning mounting a small 12 volt boat bilge pump which is designed to be submerged that could be used the same way as the coleman portable. It could be pluged into a 12 volt outlet located close where you set up the shower.

A similer set up is used in boat showers with a small submersable pump connected to a water level switch mounted in a sump area connected to the shower. Any time water level activates the switch it starts pumping away.

I know the coleman battery power is convenient but will it hold up over time by submersing it.

Thanks again for your mod idea.

Darrel

Frankly Darrel, I think you allowed water to get into your pump when you did not connect as it is designed to. We connect the hose long before we submerge the pump. That way there is no way water can get into the pump other than the opening which it sucks through. I'm sure if you use your pump the way I describe you'll not need that second Coleman you mentioned.

These pumps work on the same principles that garden pond pumps work - and they function for years on end submerged.

[DetroitRed]

More than 10 years later, I still find this an excellent idea. We think we won't always need a shower for our installation, because often there is an acceptable camp shower or some other solution. So this would be a great alternative, indeed. Wherever Ken James is, may he be blessed.