Water

[jeff sackett]

Hi all. Question is....What do you folks do about potable water when boondocking?. The tank capacity isn't very much on these guys. Thanks

[steve dunham]

Our Casita has a 25 gallon fresh water tank . We also carry 6 ,one gallon jugs of water for drinking ,coffee, and cooking. You learn to conserve water or you make a lot of trips to town.

[C&G in FL]

Originally Posted by jeff sackett

Hi all. Question is....What do you folks do about potable water when boondocking?. The tank capacity isn't very much on these guys. Thanks

If you are only drinking or cooking, a full tank will go a long way. We generally carry water in 1 gallon Arizona tea jugs for drinking/making coffee. I frequently freeze a full one and stick it in the refrigerator to assist in cooling. When it melts, it is used for consumption. If you use the water in the tank to take a shower, you better shower with a friend! A tank full will not last very long if you use it for bathing.

[Ian G.]

I use an external reservoir, has many advantages including: easy to refill, easy to clean, in hot weather add a block of ice for cold water , ...
Proud Canadian - Link to Blog article,more information in the Custom Boler page

[Glenn Baglo]

I probably have to go to town to get more beer anyway. . .

[Raz]

We don't drink campground water. We bring water from home or we buy it. I keep the 2 1/2 gallon water jugs. They're good for water and if needed, an oil change. Raz

[Bob Miller]

We never use holding tank water for cooking, only for washing and the loo.
Fresh water comes from refillable 1 gallon containers and up to three Coleman, 5 gallon collapsible containers. We can boondock in Joshua Tree NP (where there is NO water in the park) for about 4-5 days with a 10 water tank and 15 gallons of fresh water+ about 20 frozen 1 liter water bottles in the refrigerator.

[Bob Miller]

Originally Posted by Ian G.

I use an external reservoir, has many advantages including: easy to refill, easy to clean, in hot weather add a block of ice for cold water , ...
Proud Canadian - Link to Blog article,more information in the Custom Boler page

Neat Idea, I may just add that with another pump to my Hunter

[papa-t]

I added a second 12 gal fresh water tank to our Scamp 19. I also have 3 colapsable 5 gal water jugs to refill.

[Carol H]

I also have a few collapsable 5 gal water jugs I take with me when exploring the area to refill. I do not drink the water from the fresh water tank - its used for dishes, showers and loo only.

[papa-t]

Yea I don't drink it either.

[David B.]

We used collapsible bottle/jug in our car, and refilled it whenever we were in town or a gas station, to add to our small 10 gallon Scamp water tank. We also conserved water usage quite a bit by adding a water saving device to the sink faucet. This seemed to have cut down and saved about a 4th of our usage.
Dave & Paula

[jeff sackett]

Thanks all for good suggestions.

[CynicalSailor]

It's interesting to see that folks don't drink from the fresh water tank (we don't either). What are your reasons for not doing so? Does anyone worry about contamination and do you regularly disinfect yours?

[Glenn Baglo]

The fresh water tank is where we get the water for coffee in the morning. The tank gets drained from time to time. Have no problems with water from the municipal tap.
Note that Nestle bottles our water at a plant in Hope, B.C. an probably sells it to you.

[Bob Miller]

I see an unused holding tank as a perfect incubator for anything that comes into the tank. As we often leave our RV for as long as 2 months between uses it would mean having to keep track of sterilization continually. For us it's just easier to use a fresher source of water, one that hasn't had an opportunity to cook in the warm California sun. But, as you will see, others will have less concern.


That said, I just built an extra tap into my Hunters massive kitchen, with it's own pressure pump, that we can now connect directly to our external 5 gallon water cooler.
Sooo we now have two sources of water, fresh drinking water and hot & cold water for bathing and washing. And we double our water capacity when we fill the cooler and the 5 gallon water cube when we get somewhere or go where there is no water available.

[Steve Outlaw]

We carry a couple of the Scepter Military Water Canisters (made in Canada). We too do not drink or cook with the water in our on board tank. I don’t really know why, just never have.

As a side note we also have a half dozen of the Scepter Military Fuel Canisters (also made in Canada) for use when traveling deep into the hinterlands.

[Paul O.]

Originally Posted by Bob Miller

I see an unused holding tank as a perfect incubator for anything that comes into the tank. As we often leav

Anything that was not drained out of my tank and pipes FROZE to death during this global warming winter - just looking for a silver lining...

[cpaharley2008]

My on board tank is for toilet and washing dishes, drinking water I carry in jugs for both me and the dogs. Only after these are gone before I ingest the on board water. The other item to remember is weight, a gallon weighs like 8 lbs. so an extra 15 gallons is like an extra person along for the trip. I only fill mine 1/2 way for enroute use.

[C&G in FL]

Originally Posted by P. Raz

We don't drink campground water. We bring water from home or we buy it. I keep the 2 1/2 gallon water jugs. They're good for water and if needed, an oil change. Raz

Originally Posted by CynicalSailor

It's interesting to see that folks don't drink from the fresh water tank (we don't either). What are your reasons for not doing so? Does anyone worry about contamination and do you regularly disinfect yours?

All it takes is a little bleach to disinfect the tank. Bleach is essentially a very dilute solution of chlorine, which is what is used in many public water systems to ensure that the pipes and structures remain pathogen free. Some utilities are now using chloramines (mixture of chlorine and ammonia) but I personally do not like its taste. Don't like chlorine taste either but it seems preferable to chloramines.

I am on a well, and in addition to water softening equipment, it is chlorinated using 1 gallon of bleach in a 30-gallon tank which feeds the chlorine injector. The taste is easily removed using a charcoal filter ahead of the spigot used for drinking, cooking, and supplying the refrigerator (icemaker and cold water dispenser).

Having worked in the "water industry" for almost 25 years, I have no qualms consuming water from any public supply system, be it municipal or private (such as a campground) in the U.S. or Canada. I know how stringently regulated the state and provincial environmental agencies regulate the production and delivery of potable water. Generally, if a private system serves more than a specified number of people then the system must be maintained by a licensed operator. If anyone is bringing water from home in jugs and it came out of the tap (not supplied by a private well), then its safety is no better than what is being supplied by any regulated water supply system. Due to mineral content, it may taste different, but it is safe to drink. Now Mexico...........