sanitizing water tank

[Carol H]

Actually Byron I wasnt thinking of this forum when I mentioned Experts but it was this forum that made me take the time to look around elsewhere for more info on the topic.

Heres just one of the many sites I found info on. Its a story about a study supported by the Harvard University Center for the Environment and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Biological Analysis Core, Department of Environmental Health, HSPH:

BPA, Chemical Used To Make Plastics, Found To Leach From Polycarbonate Drinking Bottles Into Humans

[Possum]

After having my Casita for a year, I decided to install a deck plate on the top of the fresh water tank. Really, for no other reason than to be able to actually get in there and wipe up any water that may be left in there when I get ready to winterize so I'm not dilluting the pink stuff. Anyway, when I was able to cut the hole and take a look inside, I was amazed at some of the stuff that was in there.....and only after a year. Some brown stuff and some bits of the plastic left over from the tank install. Now I can inspect the whole inside of the tank from time to time for visual and sensual peace of mind. Even with this modification, it is still important to sanitize the whole water system, not just the tank.

[Rodre]

The manual for a previous RV I had said that you should fill it half way then add a cup of bleach and drive around to let it slosh around for no more then 4 hours then run 2 tanks of water through it to get rid of the bleachy smell/taste. I know the plastic water tanks they make for trailers today are made with special plastic that is not supposed to leech into the water, not sure about the one's from the 70's though. If it was really bugging you, you could replace it with an aluminium tank. The reality is that a lot of municipal water systems use traces of chlorine to further sanitize the water, so a little left in your tank probably won't hurt you. I also use an RV water filter when filling from gas stations and RV parks. Personally I enjoy the plastic taste cuz if I am tastin' plastic that means I am camping off-grid!

~Rodre

[Robin G]

Originally Posted by Possum

I was amazed at some of the stuff that was in there.....and only after a year. Some brown stuff and some bits of the plastic left over from the tank install.

Scary, but so true! I was amazed at the gunk that was in my hot water heater tank after only a year. I am surprised that it can even run with all the deposits in there.

= Rodre, The manual for a previous RV I had said that you should fill it half way then add a cup of bleach and drive around to let it slosh around for no more then 4 hours then run 2 tanks of water through it to get rid of the bleachy smell/taste.

Excellent way to clean the tank as well as the gray and black tanks.

[Pam Garlow]

I had a new tank installed when I bought my trailer, and I can't get rid of the plastic taste, so I just use it for dishwashing, handwashing, etc. I put a small amount of bleach in it each time I go camping, (maybe 1/8 cup for 5 gallons) to keep it clean. Now I know why, its all the sloshing around going back and forth to campgrounds!!
For drinking water, I use 1/2 gal plastic milk jugs filled with water, freeze them for my coolers, and just thaw out what I need for drinking and cooking, one jug at a time.
As my camping time goes by and the food gets used up, I'm also using up the ice jugs. Works great! I'm able to get the empty milk jugs from my workplace, so I periodically recycle them and get new ones.

[Kevin Poll]

Originally Posted by Rodre

I know the plastic water tanks they make for trailers today are made with special plastic that is not supposed to leech into the water, not sure about the one's from the 70's though.
~Rodre

the freshwater tank in our 35 year old Trillium appears to be made of polypropylene, a plastic commonly used for food applications.

I'm not saying this to further polarize this discussion, but most water systems look pretty gross after a bit of use, city water mains, indoor plumbing... water is the universal solvent and has a knack for picking up, dissolving, transporting and leaving behind deposits of ...stuff.
We shock our tank seasonally with some bleach solution, (to control any bio contamination). when we camp I like bringing my own water (and I am fussy about the source) more than what is available at most campsites.
like Donna said earlier:taste and smell are paramount, if you react negatively to either no amount of compelling arguments are going to convince your nose or tongue that everything is fine.

[Byron Kinnaman]

Originally Posted by Kevin Poll

the freshwater tank in our 35 year old Trillium appears to be made of polypropylene, a plastic commonly used for food applications.

I'm not saying this to further polarize this discussion, but most water systems look pretty gross after a bit of use, city water mains, indoor plumbing... water is the universal solvent and has a knack for picking up, dissolving, transporting and leaving behind deposits of ...stuff.
We shock our tank seasonally with some bleach solution, (to control any bio contamination). when we camp I like bringing my own water (and I am fussy about the source) more than what is available at most campsites.
like Donna said earlier:taste and smell are paramount, if you react negatively to either no amount of compelling arguments are going to convince your nose or tongue that everything is fine.

I can't quite bring enough water from home to last 3+ months. But, what I can do is bring along a ceramic/charcoal filter and filter all the water that goes into the water tank.

As for water and stuff in it some places like Portland Metro area claim great water without a lot of treatment. Their water comes from two large mountain reservoirs in area where people are prohibited and bears thrive. The water turns yellow in the fall due to the large amount of vine maple leaves in the water. The reservoirs are home to fish, crayfish, salamanders, snails, frogs, plus all sorts of insects. The surface is home to ducks, geese, and a loon or two. And still the water is some of the purest in the country.

As a kid I managed to get a city water supply tank that was on my grandfather's place. We just looked inside. There was slugs, snails and slim on the wall at the water line. Who knows what was deeper. Since then I've looked catch boxes at springs that fed individual homes, no better.

Many would stop drinking or using water if they ever really looked at the municipal storage systems.

[HikeSticks]

The scientific community tells us life began in water... and continues to thrive there. Proper filtering is smart and proper cleaning of the holding container necessary.
Barrie

[honda03842]

Fortunately humanity is relatively tolerant to water quality. We probably are tolerant because for at least a million years there was no water treatment and in some measure have adapted. Certainly a significant part of the population lives with no water treatment. It's interesting to me that one of the recent improvements in water quality in parts of Africa is to simply fill a former clear plastic water bottle with water and leave it in Sunlight for a couple of days.

During our spring 2008 trip across Labrador a number of communities had drinking water warnings. When we asked the locals about it they simply said they ignored it with no ill effects.

For us when driving thru suspicious areas we filter our water on the 'way in' and if really concerned have filtered it on the 'way out' at the tap. For tap filtering we have used a super filter that really removes virtually everything except the water.

Trav-L-Pure Camper Canister - Water Purifiers and Water Micro Filters - General Ecology

I've always wondered about 'way in' filtering because it can remove protective chlorine.

As our RV years have passed we have become less concerned about water quality but do carry a tap filter when we are entering an area of concern.

Probably if we gave our home water systems equal scrutiny we might show similar concern but in reality water quality is really near the bottom of our concerns in the USA and Canada.

Safe water and travels,

Norm