Treating water in tank to make sure it's safe to drink?

[TitanMike]

Before starting I know that many refuse to drink water from their trailer fresh water tank. This thread is not for you.

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Often while boondocking it's necessary to add water to your fresh water tank from a stream or other water source other than a regularly inspected community water source. When I was a kid we were always told that as long as the stream was flowing briskly and over rocks, the water was clear, it was safe to drink. I drank gallons of water back then and never suffered ill effects.

Today those streams are often sources of animal contamination as well as human so old rules no longer apply. Even water from wells, unless regularly tested by health departments, can be "questionable".

I've taken a pro-active approach to maintaining my fresh water tank so I can drink the water safely if necessary. I merely add 2 drops of unscented Clorox Bleach per quart (1 Tsp per 10 gallons) whenever adding/filling my tank from a stream or unknown quality well water system.

This is per instructions posted by Clorox and many public health sources for treating water to make it safe for drinking. They recommend that the water should have a FAINT smell of chlorine when just right. Key work is "Faint". If it's strong, drain some water out and add more untreated.

They also recommend that the water be allowed to sit for a minimum of 30 minutes before drinking.

In my mind this also prevents the tank from growing any harmful organisms and as for taste in my glass, the on-board filter in my TT filters water from the tank as well as "city water" and all the taste is absorbed by the charcoal.

Chlorination standards for drinking water limit the amount of chlorine to 4 ppm and at that level the smell is quite strong so if only a faint smell one should be well below the limits.

I figure a few drops added to the FW tank whenever my water source is of unknown quality (this includes a lot of campgrounds I've been to) I can at least have water I can drink whenever I need without having to boil it first.

Anyone else do this?

Basically I'm a "Boondocker" at heart. I find lots of great campsites around here that many people shun because they don't have full hookups. My next reserved site (July 23rd-----) is in a NF campground with NO amenities other than an outhouse. Only $8 per night with Lifetime Senior Inter-agency Pass. Three nights for less than the price of one at the cheapest Full Hookup site within 200 miles of my house.

No water other than what flows down the fast running creek without a single residence upstream.

[Bama Rambler]

If you follow the guidelines you will be fine. Personally I let the treated water sit for over an hour, because there are some rare organisms that the kill time is slightly less than an hour. I also use a dpd chlorine pool test kit to make sure I get 3 ppm free chlorine in the water.

[Reverse_snowbird]

Originally Posted by TitaMike

I merely add 2 drops of unscented Clorox Bleach per quart (1 Tsp per 10 gallons) whenever adding/filling my tank from a stream or unknown quality well water system.

Saw an emergency preparedness segment where they used the saturate paper towel to drip 2 drops into a liter bottle for purifying water where you might not have access to measuring spoons.

[D W]

Originally Posted by Bama Rambler

If you follow the guidelines you will be fine. Personally I let the treated water sit for over an hour, because there are some rare organisms that the kill time is slightly less than an hour. I also use a dpd chlorine pool test kit to make sure I get 3 ppm free chlorine in the water.

And then there are some micro-organisms that chlorine will not kill at all. We found this out in Vietnam. The Army used to issue chlorine tabs to put in your canteen to purify water. Didn't always work! The Army then switched to Iodine tabs, and they worked. Water tasted like crap though, but zero chance of introducing a "parasite" into your digestive system. In the 80's the Army discontinued Iodine tabs and went to Reverse Osmosis to purify water. Personally, I would never introduce ANY unknown water into my FW tank, nor ingest it. There's more out there than organisms these days. In Alaska, anywhere near where gold was mined you will find arsenic in the water tables. It'll kill you. Additionally, drinking water from streams and rivers in AK has been know to cause cases of what we refer to as "Beaver Fever", very similar to E-coli. Some have contracted it and it has taken them months to get rid of it. In the Puget Sound area of WA you will find lots of heavy metals in the waters left over from the copper mining industry of the early 1900's.

No, I'll pay a little more and settle for potable water. At my age there's enough stuff I have to worry about killing me without me taking unnecessary chances.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by D W

At my age there's enough stuff I have to worry about killing me without me taking unnecessary chances.

At my age I've already had people, cars, motorcycles, illness, (including maybe an ex wife) that's tried and failed to kill me.

Having passed the 3/4 century mark I've stopped over worrying and just take basic precautions. Chlorine and filtering should handle whatever I expect to encounter.

[wannabeowner]

TitanMike - Did you modify your onboard water filter? I thought I've read that only city water goes through the factory one. Is that right?

[Duckogram]

There is another method: https://www.rvwaterfilterstore.com/B5029.htm
I use the 120v version of this at home and process swamp water into near surgical quality.

And yet another method is an ozonator.
https://www.ozonepurewater.com/ozone...all-ozonators/
Note: I don’t know what the power requirement is.

This is the same principal the SoClean CPAP sterilizer uses.

Just some food for thought...

[TitanMike]

Mine filters both and was set up that way from the factory.

I'm sure this could vary from model to model but it makes no sense to not filter tank water.

On that note, many have removed factory filter and have separate units outside that do only filter city water. They'd rather use a filter that has cheaper filter elements.

[Oakman]

Your trailer carries 43 gallons of fresh water which should be more than enough for boondocking if you know how to manage the resource. Learn to camp like those who camp in tents and you won’t need to drink water from a stream.

You have an outhouse and a stream available. Poop in the outhouse and bathe in the stream (biodegradable soap).

The only time I drank purified water from a steam was on backpacking trips and it was a necessity.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by Oakman

Learn to camp like those who camp in tents and you won’t need to drink water from a stream.

Hmm. When I did camp in tents (from age 6 on) I always drank water from the streams. Ditto when backpacking.

[mnoland30]

Things have changed since we were kids. Lots more cattle and people in the wilderness, and more things in the water to worry about. Chlorine won't kill cryptosporidium, and is only moderately effective on giardia (your most likely contaminant). UV light doesn't work well unless the water is very clean. Walmart sells a tiny Sawyer Filter for $20 that will take the cryptosporidium, giardia, and bacteria out of your drinking water. I would assume a hose filter would do the same. We use the Sawyer for backpacking. It doesn't kill the small viruses, so chlorine or UV might be needed. They also make base camp sized filters. The tiny ones claim to treat 100,000 gallons. It wouldn't be too hard to rig up a pump to fill a large gravity filter that would then drain into your RV tank. I carry an extra 30 gallons of water on a rack in my pickup, and let it siphon into the RV. I've known people to get sick drinking water from the Colorado river in the Grand Canyon, and others to drink it without treatment with no problems. Maybe you've developed a resistance to the bugs. The thing I like most about filters is the absence of the chlorine taste. If it were me, I'd save the tank water for drinking, dishes, and flushing, and use a solar shower from the stream.

[Waterops1]

The “Beaver Fever” D W spoke of should e of concern if anyone takes on untreated surface water. Fecal material from beavers (and some other mammals) can introduce cysts of giardiasis. Cryptosporidium is another nasty insofar as intestinal maladies from water.

Filtration is required for removal of these organisms. A cartridge filter MIGHT be sufficient if in the <1 micron range.

I carried chlorine dioxide tablets with me when I did field service work in China outside of large cities. ClO2 works where plain chlorine does not.. Boiling is a good treatment method so long as fuel is available. One minute of rolling boil is generally adequate. Caveat with boiling is that if nitrates are in the water, they will be increased. Methemoglobinemia (blue baby syndrome) can result from infants, expectant and nursing mothers consuming nitrate contaminated water even in small doses. Blood loses its ability to carry oxygen.

For Air Force, we used a portable reverse osmosis unit (ROWPU) for water in the field or during contingency ops. That would be the ultimate.

After all this rambling, I would continue to go with a municipal supply with some supplemental sodium hypochlorite (bleach) for added protection against contamination of the tank and lines.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by Waterops1

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After all this rambling, I would continue to go with a municipal supply with some supplemental sodium hypochlorite (bleach) for added protection against contamination of the tank and lines.

I too would go with a municipal supply if available. As for stream water I guess I'm fortunate. Most of the streams where I camp are clean enough to actually supply some municipalities. One, a city of 100,000, was able to use mountain stream water without filtration, just chlorine, until just a few years ago. From glacier/snow melt to intake is only a few miles


As for using chlorine bleach in the few tank, to me it's good preventive medicine. Keeps the system free of organisms that might be introduced by dirty hands or contaminated hose. Also could cut down on the annual sanitizing routine if all water added had the appropriate amount of bleach added as well.

I've noticed several posts referring to military water treatment.

The sickest I ever got while in the Army was not overseas but stateside while stationed at Aberdeen Proving Grounds. An entire company contracted "the GI's" after a dishwasher malfunctioned and didn't properly rinse the trays and silverware. Soap remained and literally cleaned every one out. Bad thing was that the supply sergeant couldn't keep enough tp stocked for the week it took to run its course.

[Wolverine 1945]

Add TastPure to your FW tank aftering sanitizing with Bleach !!!

[rock-rocker]

I have been telling my DW water will kill me. I stick with beer. This thread proves it.

[Wolverine 1945]

Originally Posted by rock-rocker

I have been telling my DW water will kill me. I stick with beer. This thread proves it.

In the olden days people gave the kids beer,,, because the water was unsafe to drink in some countries !!!

[XenoRev]

Originally Posted by Wolverine 1945

In the olden days people gave the kids beer,,, because the water was unsafe to drink in some countries !!!

Also to stave off scurvy

[Jerre turner]

what is the best way to add chlorine to the holding tank, it has a water hose fitting with what appears to be a built in check valve

[glsimms]

Originally Posted by Jerre turner

what is the best way to add chlorine to the holding tank, it has a water hose fitting with what appears to be a built in check valve

Funnel??

[Wolverine 1945]

Jerre may be asking about the fill valve that have hose fitting ???