Keep water in the tanks ready to go?

[dsagal79]

Hi all, just a question to see if you folks keep your water tanks full and ready to go during camping season or of it is better to leave them empty and fill up before leaving. What is more sanitary?

[Oakman]

If you sanitized the water tank at the beginning of the season keeping water in it ready to go isn't a problem. I never do that because of the extra weight you add to the trailer with a full fresh water tank. Most campgrounds we stay at have a fresh water spigot somewhere in the park where we can fill our tank. When we hit the road and travel long distances we put about 10 gallons in the fresh water tank in case we need to use the toilet.

[dsagal79]

Thanks Oakman, we did sanitize and that is a good tip. I don't mind the extra weight when pulling but I am sure every little bit helps with fuel mileage!

[Herk7769]

Just my thought here;

While I do sanitize before the season starts, I also sanitize if it sits for a while with city water in it (or it was last filled with well water) before I use it again. My logic is that since it is an open system (the vent), the dissolved Chlorine will leach out of the held water over time. (Le Chatelier's principle - Le Chatelier's principle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Over time, the water will be a warm haven for bacteria and mold spores. While it won't necessarily make you sick. It just sounds icky to wash with (and drink ).

[SaskCampers]

We usually dump anything in the tank when we return from a trip and refill when heading out again.

[dsagal79]

Do you drain the water from the filter container also? What about the HW tank?

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by dsagal79

Do you drain the water from the filter container also? What about the HW tank?

Leave water in filter canister.
I empty my wh if not being used for several weeks.
Personal preference

[KyDan]

Originally Posted by dsagal79

Do you drain the water from the filter container also? What about the HW tank?

My water filter is outside the trailer. I pour out as much water as I can
between trips, but I use it for a year and then replace the cartridge.

I don't drain my water heater until I winterize.
One time the water in the WH smelled like rotten eggs. I flushed and re-filled
and moved on. That's once in 8 years of camping. I figure if the water in
my WH goes bad it means I'm not going camping often enough!

YMMV.

[Gripper]

Originally Posted by dsagal79

Do you drain the water from the filter container also? What about the HW tank?

I drain all my tanks, including the hot water tank. There has been discussion here respecting to drain your hot water tank or not. There seems to be good logic why some do or don't, but no health problems either way. I agreee with sanitizing the fresh water tank as well if the trailer is sitting for extended periods (say a month) without use especially in warm weather. Leave the water in your filter and simply run the tap for a few minutes once hooked up, something you should always do even at the water supply. Enjoy.

[Oakman]

Originally Posted by dsagal79

Do you drain the water from the filter container also? What about the HW tank?

The only time I do this is when I winterize the trailer. During the camping season the water stays in. Been doing this for 10 years without issue.

[SaskCampers]

I leave the WH and filter, it only takes a few seconds to run through what was in the filter and I don't drink the hw. Actually the only thing we use hw for is dishes anyway as we never use the shower.

[ryand]

I think everyone does what works for them. I try not to travel with full water when I can just because of the weight plus our slide out prohibits the use of the bathroom when its retracted anyhow. I installed 1/4 turn ball valves at all the low point drains and FW tank. My low point drains empty the WH without removing the Anode Rod. FW tank gets drained as well after each trip.

[force]

Great question. I'm still new to TT's, but per advice on this forum, I travel with 10-15 gallons in my fresh water tank (for 'just in case' circumstances, as we haven't done any boon-docking yet, and weight isn't an issue).

If I know I'm going to be camping within a 1-2 weeks of the last trip, I'll leave whatever fresh water is in there. If I'm going to be home longer than that, I'll drain the fresh water tank and then refill the day of the next trip.

I plan to sanitize the system every few months. I should note that we don't use this water for drinking, other than the little bit you'd get from brushing your teeth. Not that I wouldn't drink it, it's just that we've always carried bottled water during our tent camping days, and now we do the same with the TT.

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by ryand

I think everyone does what works for them. I try not to travel with full water when I can just because of the weight plus our slide out prohibits the use of the bathroom when its retracted anyhow. I installed 1/4 turn ball valves at all the low point drains and FW tank. My low point drains empty the WH without removing the Anode Rod. FW tank gets drained as well after each trip.

My "Quick Draw" mod.

[melk-man]

can you use some liquid household bleach to sanitize the fresh water in the tank ? like add 1/2 cup to 20 gal or something? how much is too much bleach, or not enough ?

[arlee453]

They do sell water freshener products to add to water that's been sitting in the tank... personally I would be leery of adding regular bleach to the water that I would be using for washing/drinking. (as opposed to using bleach to do the sanitize cycle where you dump the water after running it through the system)

Amazon.com: Camco 40206 RV TastePURE Drinking Water Freshener - 16 oz: Automotive

Drinking Water Freshener - Valterra V88459 - Fresheners & Softeners - Camping World

[BarryD0706]

Seems like we only got half the picture here. Of those of you who just leave the water in the tank for long periods: Do you drink it???

Those that say you're not concerned about the weight: Maybe the TT structure and tank mounting brackets do care.

[dsagal79]

Originally Posted by BarryD0706

Seems like we only got half the picture here. Of those of you who just leave the water in the tank for long periods: Do you drink it???

Those that say you're not concerned about the weight: Maybe the TT structure and tank mounting brackets do care.

Good point, but one would assume it would be constructed to haul the water load otherwise why have the tank? Just have hookups and skip the whole tank thing all together.

[bodzcampers]

Originally Posted by BarryD0706

Seems like we only got half the picture here. Of those of you who just leave the water in the tank for long periods: Do you drink it???

Those that say you're not concerned about the weight: Maybe the TT structure and tank mounting brackets do care.

I recall a thread where the person's Lippert frame was cracking and Lippert stated it was due to traveling with water causing bowing....something like that. It wasn't covered and the gentleman had to foot the frame repair himself.
Here's a link to that thread:
http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ame-33991.html.

[chugger22]

We fill with well water at home so I normally drain after a camping trip and refill before leaving again since there are no chemicals in our water. I do notice that our hot water will smell of rotten eggs once it's heated back up again. to avoid this I normally hook the hose to the city connection and let the hot water run for a bit to flush the WH before leaving and then just dump the gray water in the rock drive or dump when we arrive at the park. Even though I sanitize the tanks in the spring we normally don't drink the water from the RV except brushing teeth. Coffee and Tea are made from gallon jugs of spring water.